Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup are pressing outside lawyers to cut costs as AI speeds up routine legal work including research.
Page F2From§Eachthe early bird edition — 1 September 2026
Wall Street asks elite law firms for AI discounts, as Elon Musk’s attorney bills for FIFA deal
Banking giants are requesting that elite law firms reduce their hourly rates, citing the efficiency gains from artificial intelligence. Yet, at the same time, the legal profession continues to bill enormous sums for high-profile deals, like Elon Musk's attorney handling a $20 billion FIFA transaction. The receipts illustrate the paradox: Wall Street demands AI-driven savings from its legal partners, but the market for marquee transactions has no ceiling. The ledger is bifurcated—routine work is streamlined and discounted, while complex, headline-making deals remain premium. The gap between rates is not accidental; it's institutional, and the price is paid in the billable hour. The beneficiaries are those with leverage; the cost is absorbed by the client, and the cycle persists. The reconciliation is in the table: AI brings efficiency to the many, but star attorneys bill the billions for the few. The game is not new, hon; it's just faster, and the numbers are larger. The law is efficient on the docket but extravagant on the invoice. The question for the market is not whether AI will lower costs, but for whom, and the receipts suggest it won't be for everyone.
“Bankers want law firms to cut prices because AI is faster, but the same lawyers are billing billions for sports deals. Guess who gets the discount, and who gets the bill.”
“AI is revolutionizing legal work, making it faster and more efficient, so it only makes sense to ask for lower rates. And high-profile deals are complex—did I say 'complex'? Well, maybe they're expensive, but that's just how the market works. Efficiency for the many, premium for the few.”
The receipts
Spiro, a partner at law firm Quinn Emanuel whose high-profile clients have included Elon Musk, Jay-Z, Alec Baldwin and Eric Adams, disclosed in a Monday court filing that he’d be representing Kushner and Thrive.
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.