Kennedys Partners with Spellbook for AI Training

Kennedys has partnered with Spellbook to create a legal training program addressing how AI automation is reducing traditional entry-level work for junior lawyers.

The insurance-focused law firm announced on October 1, 2025, a strategic collaboration with Spellbook, a generative AI platform, to launch a pioneering training program. The initiative will equip junior lawyers with skills needed as AI automates tasks like first-draft contract preparation and document review. The program will pilot across Kennedys' US and UK offices later this year.

AI-driven automation threatens to eliminate junior-level legal work that has traditionally been critical for training new lawyers. Without practical exposure to these tasks, junior lawyers risk missing essential skill development opportunities. This partnership represents one of the first large-scale initiatives in the legal sector directly addressing AI's impact on early-career training.

Program Details

The training program will combine Kennedys' expertise in legal practice with Spellbook's legal drafting and analysis technology. It will use simulated scenarios and AI-assisted drafting exercises to replicate learning opportunities disappearing from the workplace.

Participants will receive structured feedback mirroring coaching traditionally gained from senior colleagues. The program aims to create AI-fluent lawyers who combine deep legal reasoning with the ability to work alongside AI tools.

Industry Response

John Bruce, Senior Partner at Kennedys, said: "As AI accelerates change across the legal sector, we have a responsibility to ensure junior lawyers aren't left behind. This programme is about creating AI-fluent lawyers: professionals who can combine deep legal reasoning with the ability to work seamlessly alongside AI tools."

Scott Stevenson, Spellbook CEO and co-founder, said: "Kennedys is taking a bold and necessary step in preparing lawyers, and their clients, for an AI-powered future. By embedding Spellbook into a structured learning environment, they're ensuring the next generation doesn't just survive technological change, but leads it."

Catherine Goodman, Chief Knowledge Officer and Honorary Professor in Law at Queen Mary University, London, noted the Spellbook team understood concerns about potential knowledge gaps caused by technology and excitement about solving them through technology.

Kennedys IQ Restructuring

Alongside this announcement, Kennedys IQ, the firm's tech group launched in 2020, is undergoing restructuring. Key staff, including partner Richard West, have left the firm. The group will now focus on innovation in client service delivery, aligning with the firm's new vision and strategy. Kennedys will continue running core Kennedys IQ products and honoring existing client contracts.

About Kennedys

Kennedys is an insurance-focused law firm operating across the United Kingdom and United States, with hundreds of lawyers. The firm emphasizes innovation in legal service delivery and professional development.

About Spellbook

Spellbook is a generative AI platform for lawyers specializing in legal drafting and analysis technology. Scott Stevenson serves as CEO and co-founder of the company.