Relying on trusted content helps build confident lawyers

Walker Family Law has embedded Lexis+^® with Protégé^™ into its day-to-day workflows, helping lawyers move from legal questions to source-backed answers with a direct route to the underlying authority.

For newly qualified solicitors, linked citations provide direction when a problem is unfamiliar.

For supervisors, they make research easier to review and discuss.

For experienced practitioners, they offer a faster way to verify niche points of law.

Across the firm, linked citations support greater confidence and a consistent approach to legal research, while keeping professional judgement and responsibility firmly with the lawyer.

Watch the 1 minute video case study to learn more

Establishing a firm-wide standard for legal AI

Founder and Managing Director Ian Walker believes that the value of legal AI begins with the quality and authority of the material behind it. Because of this, accuracy, data security and the risk of fictitious authorities were central considerations when assessing how AI could be introduced into the practice.

Protégé generates answers grounded in trusted LexisNexis content, like Family Court Practice (the Red Book), and provides links to the underlying sources. Lawyers can move from an AI-generated response to the relevant case, legislation or commentary, then check that it supports the proposition being made.

For Ian, that was an essential connection:

“It’s really important that we have linked citations in research documents because if there’s no citation, it doesn’t exist. You need to have the ability to check the source to make sure that it is a real thing.”

This creates a consistent standard across the firm. Whatever the lawyer’s level of experience, they always have a clear route back to the underlying law.

Building confidence in unfamiliar work

For newly qualified solicitor Max Harding, linked citations help turn an unfamiliar legal problem into a manageable research process.

The initial answer gives Max an overview of the legal framework. The citations then allow him to examine the supporting authorities, follow the relevant issues in greater depth and identify where further research is needed.

That process helps reduce the uncertainty that can come with encountering a new issue early in a legal career.

“Lexis+ with Protégé has helped me in my career already because it’s helped me to have the confidence to say yes to things. I know that even if I might not have the expert knowledge at the start of a case, that I know I can get it, and I can get it quickly.”

With Protégé, Max can form an initial view before bringing the matter to his supervisor. This changes the nature of mentorship conversations from asking where to begin, to discussing a proposed solution against the relevant law.

“I’m saving my supervisors time by not having to pester them twice a day with a problem. I can at least come to them with a proposed solution.”

Verification at every legal workflow stage

For Head of Legal Fiona McCarthy, linked citations have become part of how she handles unfamiliar questions from the first client conversation, through to court proceedings.

Fiona described how, before an initial meeting involving an unusual legal issue, she used Protégé to establish the relevant framework and follow the supporting authorities. She could verify the position before speaking to the client and address their questions during the meeting, rather than having to research the point afterwards.

That same habit of returning to the source proved critical in another matter. When the opposing solicitors submitted court documents supported by questionable authorities, Fiona used Protégé to test the citations against the underlying law.

“I was dealing with a case and the other solicitors produced documents for the court process in which they had cited cases that did not exist... it was embarrassing for them, and they had to apologise to the judge.”

The two situations placed Fiona on different sides of the research process. In one, citations helped her build advice around a niche issue. In the other, they helped her scrutinise the legal basis of an argument advanced by someone else.

In both workflows, the value came from being able to move beyond a plausible answer and verify the authority behind it.

Confidence that reaches every client relationship

Ian, Max and Fiona each value linked citations for a different reason.

Ian sees them as a foundation for trustworthy legal AI that can equip his firm for the future, Max as a route into unfamiliar work, and Fiona as a practical safeguard when checking advice and arguments.

Clients reap the benefits of all three use cases. No matter who they interact with at Walker Family Law, they have confidence that the lawyer has prepared evidence with a clear citation trail.

As Ian explains:

“We’re not using it to replace team members. We’re using it to enable them to provide better explanations, clearer explanations, better letters, just to do things better for the clients.”