Shoosmiths offers £1m bonus pot for 1 million AI prompts

Landmark move rewards AI adoption to accelerate smarter, faster, better client service.

Shoosmiths has reinforced its position at the forefront of legal innovation by becoming the first major law firm to link a firmwide bonus to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) by its workforce. The firm has set a clear and ambitious annual target: one million Microsoft Copilot prompts to unlock a £1m bonus pot for staff in its new financial year.

The bonus metric will form one element of the firm’s multi-million collegiate bonus pool, available to all staff. If the AI target is achieved, Shoosmiths will share £1 million with its staff in reward—a tangible commitment to embedding AI into the day-to-day work of its people, and ultimately into the value it delivers to clients.

David Jackson, CEO at Shoosmiths, commented:

“We believe AI is a powerful enabler—one that can help us deliver smarter, faster, better results for our amazing clients beyond what any other law firm is doing. This initiative is about creating a culture where everyone plays a role in embracing change and using technology to raise the bar on client service.”

“Our passion for innovation is driven by our deep focus on client outcomes. We don’t fear AI—it won’t replace our people. Instead, it frees them to spend more time on the human-to-human work that really matters: solving problems, building trust, and supporting clients through complexity.”

The initiative is underpinned by the firm’s partnership with Microsoft as an early adopter of Copilot across Shoosmiths’ operations. Through a combination of training, peer support, and financial incentives, the firm is embedding many forms of AI into how its people work—augmenting the judgement, creativity and insight of its talented lawyers and business teams with powerful new digital tools.

If every Shoosmiths colleague uses Copilot just four times per working day, the one million prompt target will be comfortably exceeded. Usage will be tracked and shared transparently across the firm, with monthly updates to encourage collaboration, learning and momentum.

Shoosmiths is also committed to sustainable innovation and achieving net zero by 2040, in line with our science-based goals, and is on track to do so. This includes taking action to manage our upstream emissions from AI and other goods and services with a new approach to sustainability in 2025. 

Creating value—inside and out

The firm is already seeing the positive impact of AI on both efficiency and client delivery. New roles are emerging to support this shift, including Innovation Leads in each Division, Head of Legal Innovation and a new Data Manager, reflecting Shoosmiths’ long-term investment in digital capability and its people.

AI rollout at Shoosmiths is supported by a wide-ranging engagement programme, including drop-in sessions, hands-on workshops, and an internal knowledge hub where teams share practical use cases, tips, and success stories.

Shoosmiths' commitment to innovation is grounded in its people-first culture. This new incentive recognises the role every individual plays in shaping the future of the firm—using AI not for the sake of it, but to make a meaningful difference in the work they do and the service they provide to clients.

“This is not just about how many times someone uses AI—it’s about how well we use it and the benefits it will have for our clients,” said Jackson. “We’re giving our people the tools, the space and the encouragement to explore what’s possible—together. And that’s where the real power lies.”