New Zealand’s legal market is entering a period of change shaped by economic pressure, rising business expectations and a growing demand for practical advice. Legal expertise remains essential, but organisations are becoming more deliberate about how they invest in their internal teams. Rather than automatically increasing headcount, many businesses are looking for smarter ways to manage workloads, improve efficiency and make better use of their existing legal capability.

This environment is also changing the role lawyers play within an organisation. Legal professionals are increasingly expected to contribute before decisions are made, not simply respond after a dispute or compliance issue has emerged. Their value is now closely connected to their ability to understand commercial priorities, identify risks early and recommend practical ways forward.

As a result, technical legal knowledge is only one part of what businesses are seeking. Commercial awareness, communication skills, emotional intelligence and the ability to translate complex risks into clear actions are becoming defining capabilities for modern legal professionals.

“It’s no longer enough to just know the black letter law. You have to understand the operational realities of the business you’re advising.”

On a recent New Zealand Legal Market Update, Legal Recruitment Manager Kirsten Garrett was joined by Employment Lawyer and Workplace Relations Specialist Anamika Sharma to discuss how the legal profession is evolving, what businesses now expect from their legal teams and which skills will help professionals stay ahead.

Anamika described the first half of 2026 as dynamic, with the predicted growth in demand for legal expertise becoming evident across the market. However, this growth is unfolding alongside close scrutiny of costs. Businesses still require high-quality legal support, but many are reluctant to add multiple new lawyers to their internal teams. This is encouraging legal functions to reconsider their operating models, adopt more efficient processes and find creative ways to meet increasing demand.

For in-house teams, this often means demonstrating value beyond responding to immediate legal matters. Businesses increasingly want their lawyers involved at the beginning of strategic and commercial discussions. Anamika explained that organisations no longer want legal teams acting as an “ambulance at the bottom of the cliff”

after a dispute has occurred. Instead, lawyers are being asked to help design strategies, assess potential consequences and support risk-aware decision-making from day one.

This earlier involvement can benefit both legal teams and the wider business. When lawyers understand the objectives behind a decision, they can provide advice that protects the organisation without unnecessarily slowing progress. They can also identify potential issues before they become expensive disputes, regulatory problems or workplace challenges. In this model, the legal function becomes a contributor to business performance rather than a service that is contacted only when something goes wrong.

The shift also requires lawyers to move beyond explaining what the law says. Anamika described the evolution as a move from the “what” to the “how”. Businesses may still need a clear explanation of the legal landscape, but they increasingly expect their advisers to show them how that law can be applied within real operational conditions. The most valuable advice is therefore not simply correct. It must also be practical, timely and immediately actionable.

Commercial and pragmatic thinking will be especially important for legal professionals seeking to progress during 2026. Lawyers need to understand how their organisation operates, where commercial pressure is coming from and how different teams measure success. Advice that ignores budgets, resources, customer expectations or operational deadlines may be legally sound but difficult to implement. By developing stronger business acumen, legal professionals can offer solutions that balance risk with the organisation’s wider goals.

Emotional intelligence is another capability likely to distinguish strong legal professionals. Legal work frequently involves difficult conversations, competing priorities and high-stakes decisions. The ability to read the room, communicate with empathy and explain complex risks in simple language can influence whether advice is understood and followed. As Anamika noted, persuasion and emotional awareness are valuable whether a lawyer is advising internal stakeholders, external clients or employees navigating a workplace matter.

This evolution is also changing how legal teams relate to the rest of the organisation. Rather than delivering advice and stepping away, in-house lawyers are becoming embedded within business units and increasingly co-owning risk with their stakeholders. This requires trust, curiosity and a willingness to understand the specific pressures faced by each team. It also means legal professionals must be comfortable recommending a practical path, rather than providing a lengthy explanation and leaving the business to determine the next step.

For employers, the message is clear. Building a high-performing legal function is not only about recruiting professionals with strong technical credentials. It also requires creating opportunities for lawyers to understand the business, participate in strategic decisions and develop broader commercial and interpersonal skills. For candidates, demonstrating this combination of legal expertise and business partnership may be one of the strongest ways to stand out in a competitive market.

How can legal professionals prepare for changing business expectations?

• Develop a deeper understanding of how your organisation generates revenue, manages costs and measures performance.
• Become involved in projects and decisions earlier so risks can be identified before they develop into disputes.
• Translate complex legal concepts into clear, practical language that non-legal stakeholders can act on.
• Strengthen emotional intelligence by improving listening, empathy, persuasion and stakeholder management.
• Focus on providing recommended actions, not only explanations of the relevant law.
• Look for ways to improve legal processes, manage demand and increase efficiency without compromising quality.