The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) has launched a new initiative to equip in-house legal departments with practical tools and collaborative insight as businesses increasingly grapple with artificial intelligence risks and opportunities. The ACC AI Center of Excellence for In-House Counsel was formally introduced last week, offering a centralized platform for legal professionals navigating rapidly evolving legal, ethical, and regulatory AI issues.

With 48,000 members across 117 countries, ACC said the think tank addresses a pressing need for coordinated legal guidance as AI technologies transform corporate operations. The center’s focus spans intellectual property, liability, data privacy, and legal ethics, areas where legal frameworks remain fragmented or in flux.

“Our goal is to help [in-house counsel] deliver greater value in their workplaces and to the corporations that they serve,” said ACC CEO Veta T. Richardson. “The center provides the knowledge, guidance, and peer-driven insights necessary for success.”

The AI Center’s resources include policy templates, peer-led case studies, and curated content organized into four dimensions: the individual lawyer, the legal department, the enterprise, and the legal profession. ACC aims to help legal teams move beyond theoretical discussion to practical implementation. “Imagine the difference between staring at a blank screen and going to our center and pulling tangible, useful documents,” Richardson noted.

Shannon Klinger, Chief Legal Officer at Moderna and a member of the ACC global board, emphasized the need for a centralized, collaborative approach: “Legal departments need not feel as though they must navigate the new frontier of AI alone.” The center is designed to be a hub for real-world use cases and best practices drawn from leading departments globally.

In addition to templates and guidance, the center is working with technology partners to offer training—particularly in prompt engineering and AI literacy—designed to help in-house teams integrate AI effectively into legal operations.

The center also serves as a tool for navigating the regulatory patchwork forming in the absence of comprehensive U.S. federal AI legislation. Sixteen U.S. states have enacted AI-specific laws, with more under consideration. Globally, businesses are preparing for the phased rollout of the European Union’s AI Act, with full compliance deadlines stretching into 2026.

Richardson said the center’s success will be measured by responsiveness to member feedback and engagement levels: “We’re just really proud. We see that it’s the first of its kind in terms of being a global resource center … all by in-house counsel, for in-house counsel.”