Microsoft Legal Agent Just Launched: Why It's a Tool, Not a Practice Platform - And Why That Distinction Will Define Mid-Market Law Firm Strategy in 2026

Microsoft's April 30, 2026 launch of Legal Agent - combined with Anthropic's Claude for Word - is being framed as an existential threat to specialist legal AI vendors. It isn't. It's a productivity layer. The strategic question for mid-market law firms is whether they're buying tools or running a platform - and the answer determines everything from pricing power to malpractice exposure.