AI for lawyers: firm knowledge in seconds, client confidences in-house.
Model contracts, clause libraries, pleading templates and the firm manual: law firms hold a lot of knowledge in documents that take long to find in daily work. RAGSuite answers questions from them with sources and can run on your firm’s own servers.
No legal advice from the AI · answers from your documents · can run in your own network
“Which standard clause do we use to limit liability?”
Clause
“Which template do we use for a defence in a tenancy case?”
Template
“How does deadline control work here?”
Per the firm manual, a
Key points
- German lawyers are bound by professional secrecy (section 43a(2) BRAO, section 203 StGB). Under section 43e BRAO, service providers may only access protected facts under conditions.
- It is simplest when the AI runs in the firm’s own network: then NITSAN as the vendor gets no access to client matters.
- Typical uses: clause libraries, model contracts, pleading templates, the firm manual and onboarding new staff.
- RAGSuite answers questions from your documents. Legal review and responsibility stay with the lawyer.
Which rules apply to AI in a law firm?
Lawyers carry special duties as soon as client matters are involved. Four of them shape the decision on AI:
Secrecy (s. 43a(2) BRAO, s. 203 StGB)
What you learn in your professional capacity is protected. That also applies when you use digital tools.
Service providers (s. 43e BRAO)
Providers may only get access as far as necessary. They must be chosen carefully and bound to secrecy in text form; abroad only where protection is comparable. Services that directly serve a single mandate need the client’s consent.
Data protection (GDPR)
Client data is often personal data. Legal basis, data processing agreement and deletion periods must be settled.
Checking results
The German Federal Bar (BRAK) published guidance on AI use in December 2024. One key point: lawyers check AI results themselves.
This is general information, not legal advice. Clarify the use with your bar association or data protection adviser.
AI for lawyers: examples from daily work.
Clauses and model contracts
Find the approved standard clause or the right model contract in seconds, with version and source.
Pleading templates
Find the right template for a claim, defence or warning letter instead of searching folders.
Firm manual and workflows
Deadline control, file opening, billing: how things work in your firm, answered from your own rules.
Onboarding
New lawyers and staff ask the assistant instead of their colleagues.
Running it in your firm’s network.
RAGSuite runs on your firm’s servers or with a host of your choice. Documents, search index and histories stay there. With local language and embedding models, no request leaves your network.
For content without client matters, such as the firm website, you can also use RAGSuite Engine, run in a data centre in Germany. For client matters we recommend running it on your own servers.
FastAPIPostgreSQLChromaDBOllamaFor content without client matters: run in Germany, no servers of your own.
RAGSuite Engine →What to settle before you start.
Tick what you have already settled. Nothing is stored.
Questions about AI for lawyers.
May lawyers use AI?
Yes, as long as secrecy and data protection are maintained. If an external service provider gets access to protected facts, the conditions of section 43e BRAO apply, such as careful selection and a secrecy commitment in text form. If the AI runs in the firm’s own network, the question does not arise for RAGSuite itself. If you use a hosted language model, its provider is a service provider under section 43e BRAO; with a local model every request stays in your network. If hosts or IT service providers can access your servers, section 43e BRAO applies to them too. This is not legal advice.
What do law firms use AI for today?
Often for internal knowledge: clause libraries, model contracts, pleading templates, the firm manual and onboarding new staff. These uses pay off quickly because answers come from reviewed firm documents, and they keep secrecy questions small if no client files are in the index.
Does the AI replace legal review?
No. RAGSuite finds the right passage in your documents and names the source. Legal review and responsibility stay with the lawyer. Check results yourself before they go into pleadings or client communication.
Can we use RAGSuite Engine?
For content without client matters, such as your website or general firm information, yes. RAGSuite Engine is hosted in Germany; AI processing in the EU/EFTA (Microsoft Azure). For client matters we recommend running it on your own servers so that no service provider gets access.
What does AI cost for a law firm?
The Community Edition is free; you run it on your own servers. Enterprise with roles, a full audit log and support is available at a fixed price on request. RAGSuite Engine starts from €39 a month billed yearly, plus VAT.
AI for your firm, without client confidences leaving the building.
We show you RAGSuite with documents like yours and go through the secrecy questions with you.