February 12, 2026 – In a recent episode of Beyond Billable, Sarah Wilson-Ward, Director at Elevate, joins host Pim Betist in Amsterdam to discuss why legal departments are under growing pressure and how they can rethink operating models to stay effective and sustainable.

Drawing on her experience with legal operations, spend management, and compliance, Sarah explains that the strain on in-house teams isn’t driven by volume alone. Increasing regulatory demands, higher expectations around litigation and investigations, and the administrative burden of managing work internally versus externally have created a compounding workload that legal teams are struggling to absorb.

A central theme of the conversation is rethinking what legal departments should be doing. Sarah suggests a more deliberate, long-term vision: one that distinguishes between (1) core vs. context work, and (2) legal vs. operational activity. This approach highlights a substantial amount of work currently handled by legal teams that does not require legal expertise and can be managed through standardised playbooks, workflows, or by the business itself.

The discussion also touches on the importance of operational AI, embedding technology into well-defined, consistent workflows, supported by clear standards and governance, as a foundation for sustainable operational change.

Listen to the full episode here.