Lawyers, Litigation Firms & Legal Services

R&D Tax Incentive Guide for Australian Legal Practices

Why R&D Matters in the Legal Industry

Law firms are rapidly moving toward automation, data-driven practice, and AI-supported workflows. Many firms don't realise that developing new legal technology — especially where outcomes are uncertain — can qualify as R&D.

How the R&D Incentive Applies

Eligible activities may include:

Building document automation systems

Experimenting with machine learning for matter prediction

Improving case analysis and classification models

Developing settlement probability algorithms

Creating workflow or triage systems with technical uncertainty

Integrating, testing, and refining AI or NLP tools

The key is uncertainty: if a tool requires trials, data modelling, or experimental refinement, it may qualify.

Typical Eligible Work in Legal Practices

Prototyping ML tools for large document sets

Testing automated litigation workflows

Developing systems to assess evidentiary strength

Creating predictive models for risk, cost, or likely outcomes

Integrating AI assistants into matter management

Testing compliance mapping systems for new legislation

How We Assist

Sora Systems acts as your technical and compliance partner:

Mapping your innovation roadmap

Designing experiments within the R&D framework

Handling all documentation, logs, testing evidence

Ensuring privacy/security requirements are maintained

Preparing clear technical summaries for tax agents

Impact for Law Firms

R&D reduces the net cost of building bespoke legal technology and allows firms to innovate without fearing sunk development costs.

Firms can streamline litigation, reduce admin labour, and create genuine competitive advantage.

Ready to Claim Your R&D Benefits?

Book a free consultation to discover how the R&D tax incentive can benefit your legal practice.

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