Legal Tech on a Lawyer's CV: What to Mention and How
A few years ago, the "IT skills" section of a French lawyer's CV fitted on one line: "Microsoft Office, legal databases". It now deserves more thought. Firms have widely adopted practice management software, e-signature, data rooms and, more recently, generative AI tools. A recruiter may legitimately wonder whether a candidate can work in that environment.
The opposite risk is just as real. A CV listing fifteen software names and presenting AI as its main skill sends an awkward signal: that of a lawyer defined by their tools rather than their legal reasoning. This article helps you strike the balance: which tools to mention, where to place them, and how to phrase them without undermining the core of the profession.
The principle: tools serve the practice
A partner reading your CV is looking for a lawyer first. Tools only matter insofar as they make your work faster, more reliable or more secure. Hence a simple rule: a tool is only worth mentioning if it is linked to a professional use.
Before: Doctrine, Dalloz, Lexis 360, ChatGPT, Excel, Word, Outlook, Teams.
After: Legal research: Dalloz, Lexis 360, Doctrine (case law monitoring and analysis). Matter management: Secib (time recording, billing). Procedure: RPVA (e-filing and electronic communication with the courts).
The second version says what you do with each tool. It reads in seconds and leaves no doubt about the hierarchy: law first, tools second.
Categories of tools
Legal databases and research
This is the most expected and least differentiating category: every lawyer does research. Mention the databases you actually use, especially if they match your field:
- General databases: Dalloz, Lexis 360, Navis by Lefebvre Dalloz, and Légifrance for official sources.
- Case law platforms: Doctrine, for example, for searching and monitoring decisions.
- Specialist sources: tax databases, intellectual property databases (INPI and EUIPO registers), public procurement databases for public law practitioners.
For an intellectual property profile, prior-art search tools or trade mark registers say more than a list of general databases.
Procedure tools
The RPVA (the French lawyers' private virtual network) and electronic communication with the courts are part of daily litigation work. Mentioning them is not essential for an experienced lawyer, but it is useful for a trainee or junior associate, as it signals immediate autonomy on procedural filings. For administrative litigation, Télérecours plays a similar role.
Practice management
Matter management, time recording and billing software: Secib, Kleos or Jarvis Legal, for example. These are mainly relevant for small and mid-sized firms, where an associate who is operational on the software saves the team time. For a partnership candidate, command of billing and profitability tracking is an argument in itself.
Document management and transactions
In corporate firms, document management systems (iManage, NetDocuments), virtual data rooms (Datasite, Intralinks) and e-signature solutions (DocuSign, Yousign) underpin transactions. An associate who organised a due diligence data room or coordinated an e-signature closing can mention it in the deal description rather than in a list of tools.
Generative AI
This is the most delicate category. Several legal publishers now offer AI tools built into their databases (Lexis+ AI, GenIA-L by Lefebvre Dalloz, Doctrine's AI features), and dedicated tools such as Harvey are used in some firms. Firms are interested, but cautious.
In 2024 the Conseil national des barreaux (CNB) published a practical guide on the use of generative AI systems by lawyers. It stresses that lawyers remain responsible for the content they produce and that professional secrecy prohibits sending confidential data to a tool that does not offer the necessary safeguards. A recruiter will therefore read any mention of AI through one question: can this candidate use it without putting the firm at risk?
Phrasing AI without undermining the profession
What to avoid
Proficient in ChatGPT for drafting submissions.
This line raises three problems. It suggests drafting is delegated to a tool. It names a consumer tool, which raises questions about the confidentiality of the data entered. And it says nothing about how the output is checked.
AI legal expert.
Beyond being vague, the word "expert" should be handled with care in a lawyer's communication: the Paris Bar's 2020 guide on digital communication considers it likely to confuse the public.
What works
Describe the use, the framework and the control:
Use of firm-approved generative AI tools (Lexis+ AI) for initial analysis of case law, with systematic verification of cited sources.
Member of the internal working group on generative AI governance: drafted a usage policy consistent with professional secrecy and the CNB practical guide.
Contract review of 400 supplier agreements assisted by a clause extraction tool; legal analysis and summary memo written by the team.
The figures in these examples are illustrative. In each case, the tool is a means and the added value remains legal: selecting sources, legal analysis, synthesis, compliance.
Highlight governance skills
The most sought-after contribution is often not using AI, but framing its use: selecting a tool, reviewing the vendor's contract terms, data protection, internal rules, team training. If you have contributed to such a project, it deserves a line in your experience, not just in a "Tools" section.
For a lawyer in technology or data protection law, this skill ties directly into the practice: advising clients on the EU AI Act or the GDPR while mastering the tools is a coherent profile. The pre-filled IP and IT lawyer CV offers a suitable structure.
Where to place tools on your CV
Three possible places
- A short "Tools and working environment" section at the end of the CV, organised by use.
- The description of a role, when the tool relates to an achievement (data room, rollout project, process automation).
- The headline or summary, only if legal tech is central to your practice, for example for a lawyer advising legal software publishers.
Sample section
Tools and working environment Research: Dalloz, Lexis 360, Doctrine Procedure: RPVA, Télérecours Management: Secib (time and billing) Transactions: Datasite, DocuSign AI: publisher generative AI tools, within the firm's internal rules
Five lines are enough. Beyond that, the section takes up space that belongs to your practice.
Adapting to your profile
Trainee lawyers and first associate roles
For a junior profile, tools are an employability argument. Mention the databases you know, the RPVA if you used it during an internship, and the management software of the firms you worked in. Our advice on the CV for a first associate position covers the balance between education, internships and practical skills.
Experienced associates
The tools section shrinks; achievements matter. A digitalisation project, a redesigned document review process or internal training on a tool are worth more than a list.
International firms
Anglo-American and large firms often use English-language tools and expect you to name them as such. If you are preparing a CV in English, our article on the English-language CV for an international law firm sets out the conventions.
Common mistakes
- Listing office software (Word, Outlook): proficiency is assumed.
- Mentioning a tool you have not mastered: the question will come up in interview.
- Presenting AI as a substitute for legal work rather than as supervised assistance.
- Listing tools from a former firm you never really used, just because they were installed.
- Referring to client data when describing a tool: professional secrecy applies to your CV too.
Conclusion
Tools have their place on a lawyer's CV, provided they remain in service of the practice. Group them by use, link them to achievements where possible, and describe generative AI in terms of method, control and compliance with professional secrecy. A recruiter should close your CV remembering an effective lawyer, not a software catalogue.
To structure this section, open the pre-filled IP and IT lawyer CV or create your CV in the editor.
Frequently asked questions
Should a lawyer mention ChatGPT on their CV?
It is better to describe supervised use than to name a consumer tool. The CNB's 2024 practical guide on generative AI stresses that professional secrecy prohibits sending confidential data to an unsecured tool. If you name a tool, specify the framework: firm-approved tool, non-confidential data, verification of results.
Where should legal tools go on the CV?
In a short section at the end of the CV, grouped by use (research, procedure, management, transactions). When a tool relates to a concrete achievement, such as organising a data room or rolling out software, describe it in the relevant role instead.
Is the RPVA worth a line on the CV?
For a trainee or junior litigation associate, yes: it signals immediate autonomy in electronic communication with the courts. For an experienced lawyer, proficiency is generally assumed.
Can highlighting legal tech hurt an application?
Yes, if tools overshadow legal practice or if the wording suggests reasoning is delegated to a machine. Always present the tool as a means and the added value as legal.