Two-year-old AI-first law firm Crosby has bid to buy some of the assets of Weil, Gotshal & Manges, including its trademark, brand and unspecified internal data, TechCrunch has confirmed. The Silicon Valley startup is separately working to hire some of the firm's 1,200 lawyers, as the storied Wall Street firm prepares to vote on its own dissolution.
Weil Gotshal confirmed to the New York Times this week that it was preparing to vote on dissolution in the coming days. The wind-down follows the firm's presumed leadership heir apparent turning down the role, the departure of a number of its top-producing lawyers, and the shelving of a hoped-for merger with rival Willkie Farr & Gallagher, the Times reported.
Crosby, which came out of stealth in 2025, is itself a law firm rather than a vendor of legal AI. Its founders believe they represent the future of law firms: instead of selling its internally developed AI technology to existing firms such as Harvey or Legora, Crosby uses the technology to provide legal services at a speed the startup promises has never been possible before.
The startup has raised about $85 million, including a $60 million Series B in March led by Lux and Index, with participation from seed lead Sequoia, Elad Gil, 01 Advisors and Bain Capital Ventures. It had $5.8 million in seed money.
Terms of the bid were not disclosed and there is no guarantee Crosby will prevail. No one has pointed to the rise of legal AI as a contributing factor to Weil Gotshal's downfall, but if the bid succeeds, the firm's legacy could be revived in transformed, AI-first form. The Information was first to report the offer.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The possible collapse of one of Wall Street's most prominent law firms, and an AI startup's bid for its brand, would mark a striking shift in how legal services are delivered.
- Crosby is betting that an AI-native firm can outrun incumbents, rather than licensing its technology to them as Harvey and Legora do.
- The coming dissolution vote will determine whether Weil Gotshal survives in any form, and whether its name passes to an AI-first owner.
Background
Weil, Gotshal & Manges has been one of the most prominent corporate law firms in the United States, representing major companies for decades. Crosby, a Silicon Valley startup, is part of a wave of firms using artificial intelligence to automate legal work such as research, document review and drafting, and is backed by prominent venture capital investors.
What to Watch
- Whether Weil Gotshal's partners vote to dissolve the firm in the coming days.
- Whether Crosby's bid succeeds, and what assets and lawyers it ultimately secures; terms have not been disclosed.
- Whether any rival bidder emerges before the vote.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
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- SupportedTwo-year-old AI-first law firm Crosby bid to buy some of Weil Gotshal’s assets, including its trademark, brand and unspecified internal data.TechCrunch: “Two-year old AI-first law firm Crosby has put in a bid to buy some of the assets of Weil Gotshal, including its trademark, its brand, and some unspecified internal data, TechCrunch has confirmed.”
- SupportedCrosby is separately working to hire some of Weil Gotshal’s 1,200 lawyers.TechCrunch: “Separately, it is also working to hire some of the firm’s 1,200 lawyers.”
- SupportedWeil Gotshal confirmed to the New York Times that it was preparing to vote on dissolution in the coming days.TechCrunch: “The once-prestigious Weil Gotshal confirmed to the New York Times this week that it was preparing to vote on dissolution in the coming days.”
- SupportedThe wind-down follows the presumed leadership heir apparent turning down the role, top-producing lawyers leaving, and a hoped-for merger with Willkie Farr & Gallagher being shelved.TechCrunch: “The wind down is happening after the firm’s presumed leadership heir apparent turned down the role, a number of its top-producing lawyers left, and a hoped for merger with its rival, Willkie Farr & Gallagher, was shelved, the Times reported.”
- SupportedCrosby came out of stealth in 2025.TechCrunch: “Crosby came out of stealth mode in 2025 armed with $5.8 million in seed money.”
- SupportedCrosby is a law firm rather than a vendor of legal AI.TechCrunch: “Rather than selling their internally developed AI tech to existing firms like Harvey or Legora, Crosby is an actual law firm.”
- SupportedCrosby has raised about $85 million, including a $60 million Series B in March.TechCrunch: “The startup has raised about $85 million, including a $60 million Series B round in March”
- SupportedThe Series B was led by Lux and Index, with participation from Sequoia, Elad Gil, 01 Advisors and Bain Capital Ventures.TechCrunch: “led by Lux and Index, with participation from its seed-lead Sequoia, Elad Gil, 01 Advisors, and Bain Capital Ventures.”
- SupportedCrosby had $5.8 million in seed money.TechCrunch: “Crosby came out of stealth mode in 2025 armed with $5.8 million in seed money.”
- SupportedThe bid’s terms were not disclosed, and there was no guarantee Crosby would prevail.TechCrunch: “Terms of the bid weren’t disclosed and there’s no guarantee that Crosby will prevail.”
- SupportedNo one has pointed to the rise of legal AI as a contributing factor to Weil Gotshal’s downfall.TechCrunch: “While no one has pointed to the rise of legal AI as a contributing factor to Weil Gotshal’s downfall”
- SupportedThe Information was first to report the offer.TechCrunch: “The Information was first to report this offer.”