Shoosmiths is modernising its core IT estate, moving SAP and other key systems to the cloud, and pushing Microsoft Copilot adoption as part of a technology programme aimed at supporting the UK law firm’s ambition to become top-tier by 2030, according to Legal IT Insider.
In the latest episode of Legal IT Insider’s Inside View podcast, editor Caroline Hill spoke with Shoosmiths chief operating officer Rachel Reid and director of IS Dawn Faulkner about the firm’s technology roadmap. The short version: Shoosmiths is not pitching itself as an AI-first law firm so much as a firm trying to make sure the plumbing is fit for AI, automation, and growth.
That means infrastructure before novelty. Reid and Faulkner described work to replace ageing laptops, adopt a hardware leasing model, reduce support desk calls, audit systems, and rationalise the firm’s application landscape. For IT teams, it is the familiar but often under-sold part of transformation: fewer brittle systems, fewer exceptions, and fewer avoidable tickets before anyone starts talking about agents.
A major plank of the programme is Shoosmiths’ move toward becoming a cloud-first organisation. Legal IT Insider reports that the firm is in the final stages of migrating SAP to the cloud and is using Microsoft and SAP as strategic technology partners.
That matters because legal AI projects are only as useful as the data, identity, security, and workflow layers underneath them. Shoosmiths’ message is that its cloud migration and systems clean-up are intended to support both client-facing work and employee experience, rather than simply shifting old processes onto newer platforms.
The firm has also been auditing and simplifying its technology estate to improve adoption and create a clearer roadmap. That is not flashy, but it is usually where law firm transformation either gains momentum or stalls: lawyers and business services teams will not use new tools consistently if the surrounding systems remain slow, fragmented, or poorly governed.
The firm has also announced Project Apollo, an internally developed contract review tool. Legal IT Insider reports that Shoosmiths is taking a “build, not buy” approach with Apollo, suggesting the firm sees enough value in tailoring the tool to its own workflows rather than relying entirely on commercial legal AI products.
That choice comes with trade-offs. Building internally can give a firm tighter control over data handling, user experience, and integration with existing systems. It also creates ongoing responsibility for maintenance, model governance, security review, and change management. For a law firm handling client material, those are not optional extras.
For WindowsForum readers, the notable part is not that another professional services firm is talking about AI. It is that Shoosmiths is presenting the less glamorous dependencies — endpoint refresh, cloud migration, SAP modernisation, support reduction, data governance, and user training — as prerequisites for useful AI at scale.
Admins and IT leaders watching legal-sector AI rollouts should read this as another reminder that Copilot and agents do not remove the need for disciplined infrastructure work; they make the cost of skipping it more visible.
In the latest episode of Legal IT Insider’s Inside View podcast, editor Caroline Hill spoke with Shoosmiths chief operating officer Rachel Reid and director of IS Dawn Faulkner about the firm’s technology roadmap. The short version: Shoosmiths is not pitching itself as an AI-first law firm so much as a firm trying to make sure the plumbing is fit for AI, automation, and growth.
That means infrastructure before novelty. Reid and Faulkner described work to replace ageing laptops, adopt a hardware leasing model, reduce support desk calls, audit systems, and rationalise the firm’s application landscape. For IT teams, it is the familiar but often under-sold part of transformation: fewer brittle systems, fewer exceptions, and fewer avoidable tickets before anyone starts talking about agents.
Cloud first, but not cloud for its own sake
A major plank of the programme is Shoosmiths’ move toward becoming a cloud-first organisation. Legal IT Insider reports that the firm is in the final stages of migrating SAP to the cloud and is using Microsoft and SAP as strategic technology partners.That matters because legal AI projects are only as useful as the data, identity, security, and workflow layers underneath them. Shoosmiths’ message is that its cloud migration and systems clean-up are intended to support both client-facing work and employee experience, rather than simply shifting old processes onto newer platforms.
The firm has also been auditing and simplifying its technology estate to improve adoption and create a clearer roadmap. That is not flashy, but it is usually where law firm transformation either gains momentum or stalls: lawyers and business services teams will not use new tools consistently if the surrounding systems remain slow, fragmented, or poorly governed.
Copilot adoption and an internal contract tool
AI is now part of the programme, but Shoosmiths appears to be treating it as an adoption and governance challenge, not just a licensing exercise. Reid and Faulkner said the firm has reached around 1.7 million Microsoft Copilot prompts, driven by training, governance, and employee engagement.The firm has also announced Project Apollo, an internally developed contract review tool. Legal IT Insider reports that Shoosmiths is taking a “build, not buy” approach with Apollo, suggesting the firm sees enough value in tailoring the tool to its own workflows rather than relying entirely on commercial legal AI products.
That choice comes with trade-offs. Building internally can give a firm tighter control over data handling, user experience, and integration with existing systems. It also creates ongoing responsibility for maintenance, model governance, security review, and change management. For a law firm handling client material, those are not optional extras.
Leadership and change management
The podcast also points to senior leadership as a key factor. CEO David Jackson is described as a strong advocate for technology-led transformation, while Reid and Faulkner repeatedly return to people, education, and experimentation as the practical levers behind adoption.For WindowsForum readers, the notable part is not that another professional services firm is talking about AI. It is that Shoosmiths is presenting the less glamorous dependencies — endpoint refresh, cloud migration, SAP modernisation, support reduction, data governance, and user training — as prerequisites for useful AI at scale.
Admins and IT leaders watching legal-sector AI rollouts should read this as another reminder that Copilot and agents do not remove the need for disciplined infrastructure work; they make the cost of skipping it more visible.
References
- Primary source: Legal IT Insider
Published: 2026-07-08T09:50:08.665948
The Inside View: From infrastructure to AI - How Shoosmiths is preparing for 2030 - Legal IT Insider
Caroline Hill sits down with Shoosmiths' COO Rachel Reid and IS director Dawn Faulkner to discuss its transformation by 2030 goals.legaltechnology.com