By Legal Futures Associate Qanooni AI
New law firm Black Swan Law has launched with a model designed to combine senior legal expertise with artificial intelligence technology, aiming to deliver high-value legal advice without the cost and inefficiencies of traditional law firm structures.
Founded by Jacob O’Brien and John Battersby, both formerly leading partners at Brandsmiths, have more than a decade of experience advising major UK brands and high-growth technology businesses. They have launched Black Swan Law in response to changing client expectations and the rapid advancement of legal technology.
Black Swan Law focuses on intellectual property, litigation and complex deal-making. The award-winning team has represented clients in the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, as well as acting on high-profile deals in the brand, technology and sports sectors.
The founders identified that much of the work traditionally carried out by junior lawyers and paralegals can now be supported or automated by AI tools. However, they believe that the real value of those tools is only realised when they are used directly by experienced practitioners who can apply legal judgment, context, and commercial insight.
As a result, Black Swan Law has been built as a lean, partner-led practice, where clients pay for expert advice rather than time spent on low-level tasks.
John Battersby said:
“We have experience working at the coalface of some of the most important and significant legal work of the last decade. With the current changes in technology, we believe that clients are becoming more value driven, and more conscious of some of the waste that exists in the traditional law firm model. Through Black Swan Law, we will continue to advise some of the country’s biggest and most well-known businesses, while also opening up that expertise to smaller, cutting-edge companies and entrepreneurs.”
To support this model, Black Swan Law has partnered with Qanooni AI, an AI-powered legal platform that operates natively within Microsoft Word and Outlook, allowing lawyers to research, draft, and review legal documents securely within their existing workflows.
Qanooni AI enables firms to automate first drafts, accelerate legal research with auditable sources, and embed firm-specific tone, standards, and playbooks directly into the drafting process, without uploading documents to third-party systems.
Rob Lawson, Head of Sales & Partnerships at Qanooni AI, said:
“Black Swan Law represents exactly how we see the future of legal services evolving, expert-led, technology-enabled, and relentlessly focused on value for the client. Qanooni is designed to put powerful AI tools directly into the hands of experienced lawyers, allowing them to work faster and more efficiently without compromising quality, security, or professional standards. We’re excited to support Jacob and John as they build a modern, lean practice from day one.”
Jacob O’Brien added:
“When we decided to launch Black Swan Law, one of our main priorities was ensuring that we worked with the best partners in legal technology. When we started using Qanooni, it was immediately clear that it could be transformative in how we deliver legal advice. It allows us to focus our time where it matters most, applying our judgement, strategy and knowledge to provide bold and clear advice to our clients.”
