The Future of Law: Reflections & Predictions, 30th Anniversary Edition

Summary

The Future of Law: Reflections and Predictions marks the 30th anniversary of Richard Susskind’s seminal work on the transformation of legal and court services. First published in 1996, the original edition argued that technology would fundamentally reshape legal practice and the administration of justice—an idea that many lawyers at the time dismissed. Three decades on, with artificial intelligence now advancing at a remarkable speed, many of those predictions have become reality.

This anniversary edition reproduces the original text in full and unaltered form, offering readers a rare opportunity to revisit the foundations of modern thinking about law and legal technology. Alongside the classic chapters, Susskind provides new commentary for each, reflecting on what was argued 30 years ago, assessing how these ideas have endured, and considering their implications for the years ahead.

In addition to looking back, the book offers an entirely new restatement of Susskind’s current views on the future of law, with particular focus on the likely impact of AI on legal work, legal institutions, and access to justice. It situates contemporary developments in a broader historical context, helping readers understand how the legal world has advanced—and how profoundly it may yet change.

Clear, authoritative, and forward-looking, The Future of Law: Reflections and Predictions is essential reading for practitioners, judges, policymakers, technologists, academics, and anyone interested in the evolving relationship between law and digital technology.

"One of the most important books about law in the past 50 years. Even more relevant today than when first published. Prescient, inspiring and humbling in even measure. I first read this as a trainee. I read it today as a managing partner. It paints a visionary, fundamentally uplifting picture of what a truly modern legal system could be."—Paul Lewis, Firmwide Managing Partner, Linklaters