Speakers

Designing an AI Teammate That Is Less Needy and More Reliable    

AI tools often perform well in pilots but struggles in real legal workflows. This session uses agentic AI as a practical example to show how legal teams can design AI adoption that delivers impact. Attendees will learn a practical framework to reduce risk, set expectations, and build reliable digital teammates fit for Australian legal practice.  

3 Key Learnings

1. How deliberate adoption design leads to more reliable results
2. How risk management ROI separates professional-grade AI from general-purpose tools
3. A practical framework they can apply to current and future tools grounded in lessons learned from real world AI implementations

Panel | From Generate to Govern: Building a Defensible AI Framework in the Age of Agentic Legal Practice

The question is no longer whether firms adopt AI, but whether they can govern it responsibly as it shifts from a tool that drafts to one that decides and acts. Generative AI gave lawyers a research assistant; agentic AI puts an autonomous agent in the workflow. This shift demands governance architecture, not just policy. This panel examines what defensible AI governance looks like for Australian firms: data classification, human oversight, and practical frameworks that create an auditable record of responsible use.

3 Key Learnings

1. Agentic AI demands a governance redesign, not a policy update. Organisations that don't understand this distinction are exposed in ways they may not yet recognise. 
2. Australian legal practitioners have concrete obligations under the Privacy Act, legal professional privilege, and duties of confidentiality that apply to AI use right now, not at some future regulatory inflection point. 
3. A defensible AI governance position is achievable in 30 days and is fast becoming a client trust signal, however organisations that act now are building competitive advantage, not just managing risk.

About Petra

Petra Stirling is Director of Operations, Risk and Transformation in the Legal function at Westpac. She leads large‑scale transformation initiatives focused on modernising legal operations, governance, and risk management in a highly regulated environment. Petra brings deep practical experience in designing scalable operating models, embedding technology enabled change, and translating strategic intent into day to day execution. She is particularly recognised for her work in building effective legal service delivery models that balance innovation, risk, and regulatory obligations.