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Shoosmiths to offer £1m firmwide bonus pot if staff meet AI usage targets

Shoosmiths is planning to link its firmwide bonus scheme with AI use, with a shared £1m bonus pot for grabs if the firm collectively hits one million Microsoft Copilot prompts over the next financial year.

The scheme will form part of the firm’s multi-million collegiate bonus pool available to all staff if certain metrics are met. The AI scheme, which builds on the firm’s partnership with Microsoft, is designed to encourage staff to embed AI into their day-to-day work and augment “the judgement, creativity and insight” of its lawyers and business teams.

The firm said that if all Shoosmiths staff use Copilot just four times per working day, it will “comfortably exceed” the one million prompts target. The firm plans to share monthly motivation updates with staff on its progress.

Jackson, Shoosmiths CEO, said that “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.”

In contrast, Hill Dickinson restricted its staff’s use of generative AI (Gen AI) by requiring them to get approval before using publicly available platforms like ChatGPT. This restriction came about after a “significant increase in its usage.”

MoFo advises SoftBank on mega $40bn funding round in OpenAI

Morrison Foerster (MoFo) was called in to advise Japanese tech investor SoftBank as lead investor in an up to $40bn funding round in ChatGPT-owned owner OpenAI.

MoFo said the financing round is the largest investment by a venture-backed start-up on record, with the deal valuing OpenAI at $300bn. Up to $10bn of the investment is expected to be syndicated to other investors, with SoftBank covering the rest.

The investment will help OpenAI with AI research, they will scale their compute infrastructure and deliver increasingly powerful tools for the 500 million people who use ChatGPT every week.

In January, SoftBank and OpenaI announced the “Stargate Project”, a plan to build dedicated AI infrastructure in the US.

OpenAI has been subject to a number of lawsuits over alleged copyright infringement. In December, Canadian media companies including the Toronto Star, the Globe and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, said they were suing OpenAI for allegedly taking large swaths of their work “indiscriminately and without regard for copyright protection” to train its GPT models.

Earlier this year. OpenAI scored a partial win in a similar dispute with a group of authors including writing and performer Sarah Silverman after a judge in the Northern District of California struck down five claims brought against the AI developer, although part of the claim related to unfair competition was allowed to proceed.

Commercial News: The Latest Insights You Need to Know! 📈

Global Stock Markets Reeling After Trump’s Tariff Announcement

Markets around the world plunged following a sweeping new set of tariffs announced by former US President Donald Trump, triggering widespread investor retreat and stoking fears of a global slowdown.

Sharp Losses Across Global Markets

• European markets extended losses, with a Stoxx Europe 600 down 2% and Germany’s Dax dropping 2%.

• Asian equities also fell sharply: Japan’s Topix was down 3.4%, Australia’s ASX 200 lost 2.4%, and South Korea’s Kospi declined 0.9%.

• US markets saw the S&P 500 drop 2.1% on Thursday—its worst day since 2020—and futures indicated further selling.

Why this matters: These widespread declines reflect investor anxiety over increased trade tensions and potential disruptions to global supply chains. Market drops signal declining investor confidence, which could slow capital investment and hurt economic growth.

Investors Flee to Safe Havens

• Investors rushed into government bonds, driving yields lower. The Us 10-year Treasury yield dropped below 4% while Japanese 10-year bond yields also fell sharply.

• The US dollar rebounded, gaining 0.4%, while risk-sensitive currencies like the pound and Australian dollar weakened notably.

Why this matters: Movement into safe-haven assets typically a “risk-off” environment, where investors fear economic instability. Lower yields indicate expectations of slower growth or rate cuts, while currency volatility can complicate international trade and monetary policy.

Oil Markets Slide Amid Tariff and Oversupply Fears

• Brent Crude prices tumbled 3.7% to $67.54 per barrel, driven by fears of reduced demand and a surprise Opec+ decision to increase supply.

• Oil has dropped nearly 10% this week, raising alarm in oil-dependent economies like Saudi Arabia, which needs oil near $90/barrel to balance its budget.

Why this matters: Falling oil prices hurt producers and oil exporting countries, potentially triggering fiscal crises or policy instability. Lower prices may benefit consumers short-term but also indicate weakening global demand—a warning sign for the broader economy.

Business and Political Reactions

• JCB, a UK-based machinery firm, will double the size of its Texas factory in response to US tariffs, aiming to shift more production stateside.

Why this matters: Companies shifting production to the US to avoid tariffs could affect global manufacturing hubs and local jobs in exporting countries.

• Legal & General warned of rising US recession risks, citing uncertainty and inflation pressures from the tariffs.

Why this matters: Recession fears in the world’s largest economy can ripple globally, impacting trade, investment, and market stability.

• Ireland’s Taoiseach Michael Martin cautioned that pharma tariffs could significantly slow investment, noting that 61% of Irish exports to the US are pharmaceutical products.

Why this matters: Targeting key sectors like pharma could undermine vital bilateral trade relationships and hurt public health supply chains.

• Belgium’s PM Bart De Wever told US officials that free trade is essential for Western unity and security.

Why this matters: a shift toward protectionism could fracture international alliance and weaken the economic cohesion that supports geographical stability.

Tariff Fallout and International Relations

• UK Minister James Murray denied Trump’s claim that PM Starmer supported the tariffs, reiterating the UK’s “disappointment.”

Why this matters: Miscommunication and political misrepresentation can straim diplomatic relations and slow down trade negotiations.

• Switzerland, hit with a 32% tariff—much higher than the EU’s 20%—warned of swift retaliation.

Why this matters: Disproportionate tariffs may lead to retaliatory measures, escalating into a full-scale trade war with broader economic consequences.

• Canada’s Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said US-Canada relations “will never be the same again.”

Why this matters: If historically strong allies like Canada and the US face lasting tension, it could unravel cooperative frameworks like NAFTA/USMCA and destabilise North American trade.

Looking Ahead

• Markets are watching for US job data, expected to show 135,000 new jobs in March.

• Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell is due to speak later today.

• Markets have now priced in four Fed rate cuts this year, up from three before the tariff news.

Why this matters: If job growth slows and the Fed leans dovish, it could signal the beginning of an economic slowdown. Rate cuts could temporarily ease market stress but might not offset long-term damage from trade restrictions.

Legal Lingo Unpacked: Your Quick Terminology Breakdown! ⚖️

Locked-Box Concept

Do you know what the locked-box concept is?

A mechanism through which the parties to a transaction, such as a share or asset purchase transaction, agree on the consideration for the target company or business. The price is generally based on the target’s balance sheet, which is drawn up and settled between the parties at an agreed date before completion of the transaction and notionally retained in a locked box. This approach is advantageous for the seller as it has more certainty as to the consideration.