📩 20,000 Aspiring Lawyers with One Goal for 2026.

Hey there

As the year comes to a close, we wanted to take a moment to say thank you.

Over the past year, Equal Opportunity has supported thousands of aspiring lawyers through applications, events, resources, and guidance — all with one goal in mind: making access to legal careers clearer and fairer.

Today, our community has grown to over 20,000 aspiring lawyers, and that number continues to rise every week. This reflects the amount of effort, ambition, and resilience people like you bring to this process.

Breaking into law is not easy. It requires persistence, clarity, and access to the right information at the right time. We know how challenging this journey can feel, especially when results don’t come immediately, and that’s exactly why Equal Opportunity exists.

As we head into the new year, our focus is simple:

• More practical resources

• More insight from recruiters and trainees

• More support across applications, tests, interviews, and assessment centres

If 2026 is the year you want to make real progress towards your legal career, make sure you’re using everything available to you. You can sign up below to access all of our resources, events, and opportunities in one place.

Wishing you a happy New Year,

The Equal Opportunity Team

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28 December 2020 — Promotions on food and drinks high in fat, salt or sugar in retailers were restricted. The new rule was designed to support the nation to make healthier choices. It prevented retailers from offering multi-buy promotions such as buy 1 get 1 free / 3 for 2 offers on these products.

29 December 1970 — Equal Pay Act 1970 came into force, which was a significant step forward in the fight for gender equality. 5 years later, the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 came into force and it sought to eliminate discrimination on the grounds of sex or marital status.

30 December 2020 — The European Union (Future Relationship) Bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament and received Royal Assent on the same day.

31 December 2023 — Today the UK government ends the special status of all retained EU law under the Brexit Freedoms Bill. It enables the government to crate regulations tailor-made to UK’s own needs.

1st January 1973 — The UK, Denmark and Ireland entered the EEC.

2 January 1974 — Museums and Galleries began charging admission for the first time, as provided by The Museums and Galleries Admission Charges Act 1972.

3 January 1984 — The FTSE 100 was launched. This is an index of 100 leading shares listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Two interesting stories worth considering this week:

1) AI Agents and Hospitality

The Update

Online travel agents are website platforms like Expedia that allow travellers to compare and purchase travel products, like hotel stays with companies like Hilton and Marriott.

However, these online travel agents receive a commission for providing this service - a commission ranging from 15 to 25% of the sale being made. The advent of generative AI is a cheaper alternative for these hotel companies, as these AI agents can autonomously arrange travel packages on behalf of these hotels instead of online travel agents.

The Implications

This development represents a core tension between product and distribution. Hotels rely on the reach provided by services like Expedia and Booking as travellers prefer these platforms for ease and accessibility. At the same time, the hotels are ultimately providing the travel package being sold, so will want to retain as much of the sale revenue as possible.

What does this development mean?

• Law firms prominently operating in the Hotels & Leisure industry will have to support clients in designing and operating these new AI agents.

• Booking platforms will be thinking about how they can compete with these new AI agents, perhaps by reducing the commission they take.

• Hotel companies will likely boost the perks they provide to customers in order to incentivise more direct sales.

How to Use This

Whilst Hotels & Leisure fall under a more niche practice group, this does demonstrate how companies are beginning to tangibly incorporate AI into their business models. Thinking about AI agents specifically, how hallucinations and poor service might lead to customer complaints that law firms will have to help tackle, in addition to advising on the regulations involved in operating these AI agents in the first place.

2) Powered by Jet Engines

The Update

Data centres are the server rooms that enable AI models to be trained and operated. These data centres require large amounts of power. This power can usually be derived from the electrical grid - a national network of transformers, power lines, etc.

However, data centre developers are facing grid connection delays, as data centres need substantial amounts of power instantly, which is not what these electrical grids were designed to supply. In the meanwhile, data centre developers are turning to aircraft engines and fossil fuel generators to power their infrastructure.

The Implications

By seeking out power alternatives, data centre developers are essentially opening up new business opportunities for those that are able to provide said alternatives. Boom Supersonic is an example, as this company is using jet engine technology to deliver energy to AI data centres.

What other implications does this bring about?

• Local power sources like jet engines are less efficient than grid generation, so will produce more emissions.

• Tech companies are accepting much higher electricity costs to bypass grid connection delays.

• Regulatory frameworks are shifting to accommodate data centre development, with certain US states loosening generator restrictions.

How to Use This

Data centre developers have found a short-time solution to the issue of a power gap, but there is still an infrastructure bottleneck stifling the growth of AI. It is worth considering how energy constraints bring a lot of the tech sector and associated M&A activity to a halt, and also how alternatives bring environmental concerns to the fore.