Crosby, a two-year-old AI-first law firm, has bid for some of the assets of Weil, Gotshal & Manges, including the 95-year-old firm's trademark, brand and unspecified internal data. Crosby is also working to hire some of Weil's roughly 1,200 lawyers. Terms of the offer were not disclosed, and there is no guarantee Crosby will win the bid.
The offer lands as Weil prepares to vote on dissolving in the coming days, which the firm confirmed to The New York Times. Weil's Management Committee said in a statement that the firm should "pursue an orderly wind-down," and staff were told on a company call on Wednesday that the firm was set to be dissolved over the coming months.
Crosby is a different kind of bidder than Weil's traditional peers. Unlike Harvey and Legora, which sell AI software to existing law firms, Crosby is itself a law firm. It uses AI it developed internally to deliver legal services faster than a conventional practice can.
Key facts
- 01Crosby bid for Weil Gotshal's trademark, brand and unspecified internal data; terms were not disclosed.
- 02Crosby is also working to hire some of Weil's roughly 1,200 lawyers.
- 03Crosby has raised about $85M, including a $60M Series B in March led by Lux and Index.
- 04Weil, a 95-year-old firm with over 2,000 staff, is preparing to vote on dissolution after merger talks with Willkie Farr were shelved.
- 05Crosby charges $250 to $1,000 per contract instead of billing by the hour.
The company was founded in September 2024 by CEO Ryan Daniels and John Sarihan, a former engineering manager at Ramp. Crosby charges per contract, from $250 to $1,000, rather than by the hour. As of this spring, its AI agents had reviewed 13,000 contracts working alongside about 30 lawyers, for clients including Cursor, Clay, Cognition and Tishman Speyer.
Crosby has raised about $85 million in total. It emerged from stealth in 2025 with a $5.8 million seed round led by Sequoia, then raised a $60 million Series B in March led by Lux and Index, with Sequoia, Elad Gil, 01 Advisors and Bain Capital Ventures participating. That round reportedly valued Crosby at $400 million.
Weil's unraveling came quickly. The firm's presumed leadership successor declined the role, several top-producing lawyers left, including former corporate co-managing partner Michael Hickey and private equity co-head Christopher Machera, and a hoped-for merger with Willkie Farr & Gallagher was shelved. Weil is headquartered in New York, employs over 2,000 staff worldwide and has had a London office of about 400 people since 1996.
John Bringardner, head of Debtwire, attributed Weil's collapse to a crisis of confidence among its top partners rather than debt or overspending. He said the firm may file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy to reject its office leases, while its lawyers, staff and clients can move to other firms.
“Ultimately, it is this crisis of confidence that has caused the liquidation.”— John Bringardner, Head of Debtwire
No one has linked the rise of legal AI to Weil's decline. Crosby's bid is aimed at what the firm leaves behind: a brand built over nearly a century, its internal data and a large pool of lawyers who now need new homes.
Whether AI-native firms can reshape Big Law remains an open question. Robert J. Couture of Harvard Law School's Center on the Legal Profession said earlier this year that AI will greatly change how lawyers work, but that he does not expect it to significantly affect the business model of large firms.
Working on something we should cover, or seeing a story we missed? Send leads, documents, or feedback to hello@aichatdaily.com. For sensitive tips, see our secure tips page for Signal and PGP options.
Spotted an error? Email hello@aichatdaily.com with the URL and the issue, or read our full corrections policy.
