AI reshapes South Korea's legal field, leaving junior lawyers behind

South Korean lawyers are replacing junior associate hires with AI subscriptions at a fraction of the cost, while mental health counselors argue their profession resists automation, The Korea Times reported Monday.

The shift is deepening a divide between established lawyers who leverage AI for greater productivity and junior associates who risk losing the entry-level work that builds legal careers — a pattern legal scholars warn could take root across knowledge economies globally.

A Seoul-based lawyer identified as Ha said she pays 600,000 won — roughly $410 — per month for AI subscriptions instead of hiring a junior associate who would cost about 100 million won annually. "Without AI, I'd probably have one more person in the office by now," Ha told the Korea Times. She built a specialized research system by scanning legal reference books into a private database, allowing AI to handle drafting and analysis automatically. "I still need to review the quality of final drafts, but the need to hire new lawyers has definitely gone down," she said.

Her approach reflects a broad shift across the profession. LBOX, South Korea's most widely used legal AI platform, counts about 22,000 members out of approximately 38,000 registered lawyers nationwide, according to the Korea Times.

Ko Hak-soo, a Seoul National University law professor specializing in AI and technology law, said the changes are moving faster than institutions can track. "The most troubling thing is that no one is systematically examining what changes are taking place with the rise of AI," Ko said. He warned of what he called the 'AI pyramid' effect. "In the United States and Europe, bar associations and law schools are already debating this 'AI pyramid' effect — a narrowing base of younger junior lawyers and an expanding layer of senior partners," Ko said, according to the Korea Times. "The tasks that junior associates used to do are the ones AI can more easily replace. So fewer junior lawyers will get real field experience, and without that experience, they could struggle to advance in the profession."

In counseling, the picture differs. Kim Jang-hoi, head of the Korean Counseling Association, said small practices have been largely unaffected so far, while larger organizations face budget pressure. "Individual counseling centers haven't seen much change yet," Kim said. "But for larger institutions and state agencies, AI chatbots are being seriously discussed because it comes down to budget." The Seoul Metropolitan Government has deployed an AI chatbot called "Maeum-e" providing around-the-clock suicide prevention and mental health support, the Korea Times reported.

A Gyeonggi Research Institute survey cited by the Korea Times found 27% of Seoul-area residents with normal mental health use AI counseling services — a share that rises to 53% among those with severe depression. Cases in other countries have shown AI chatbots reinforcing self-harm ideation rather than intervening, the Korea Times noted, highlighting the risks of AI-only mental health support.

Ko said the profession must move quickly. "This is the time to seriously consider a major shift in how we train legal professionals," he said. Kim, meanwhile, sees AI's rise as ultimately elevating the value of human connection. "Counseling, fundamentally, isn't about getting answers — it is about the nuances of face-to-face interaction, even the meaning found in moments of silence," he said. "In a world where AI becomes ubiquitous, human encounters become even more valuable. Counseling is a profession that helps people through real human connection — and I believe demand for that will only grow."