The CIO-Legal partnership will define the future of enterprise AI
88% of enterprises now run AI regularly. But legal teams and CIOs are still operating in separate silos — and it's costing them.
Why it matters
As AI scales beyond pilot programs into production across organizations, governance is becoming a shared responsibility between technology and legal leadership. The piece outlines why this partnership matters and how to structure it operationally.
The key facts
10 to knowMcKinsey 2025 State of AI: 88% of organizations regularly use AI in at least one business function (up from 78% prior year)
Norton Rose Fulbright 2025 Litigation Trends Survey: 56% of legal leaders cite managing AI-related litigation risk as a challenge
Shadow AI identified as major risk: unrecognized AI embedded in third-party products or deployed by non-technical employees
Common litigation vectors: discrimination, consumer protection, privacy, wiretap laws, data consent — existing laws applied to AI context
Governance model recommended: AI governance committee including IT, legal, compliance, security, and business unit representatives
McKinsey 2025 State of AI: 88% of organizations use AI in at least one business function (up from 78% YoY)
Norton Rose Fulbright 2025 Litigation Trends: 56% of corporate legal leaders say managing AI-related litigation risk has been a challenge
Shadow AI identified as biggest governance risk — more significant problems often come from AI operating without organizational awareness
Agents and low-code/no-code AI tools enabling non-technical employees (HR, finance, marketing) to deploy AI without IT involvement
Disconnect: legal teams aware of AI lawsuits; business and technical leaders often unaware
Go to the source
CIOcio.com
Publisher excerpt: AI is moving quickly across organizations. Companies are scaling existing use cases, introducing new tools and giving more employees access to AI as they look for ways to improve efficiency and stay competitive. That expansion is making AI governance a shared responsibility. CIOs are responsible…