Legal Technology Journal

A unique ‘do-it-yourself’ online legal service was launched last week by former road traffic accident specialists Minster Law after a year of heavy investment in new technology and near doubling of their staff.  The post-Clementi style service, branded LawAngel, charges customers a £75 membership fee, entitling them to purchase a broad range of online legal documents at an average of around £29 per document.

The venture is unusual because it not only offers to sell documents covering matters from wills to employment but also provides tailored advice to guide customers to the right documents and an online wizard help them to fill in the details. Customers can then opt to have the final version checked by an advisor and also have 24/7 access to legal advice both online and via telephone.

The launch has been led by Chief Information Officer Neil Boddy, who joined Minster Law in July last year from global management consultant and technology giant Accenture, where he was senior technology solutions leader.

Since Boddy’s arrival the firm has invested in Microsoft’s BizTalk Server and .Net Framework to connect systems across the organisation, including spending over £4m on new hardware.

Boddy said: “It is expensive but it is the cost of building a stable, solid platform that can provide growth and innovation for the business.”

It is anticipated that for many LawAngel members the online advice will be sufficient, but those needing more assistance will get 25% off the normal price of legal advice.

“We want to de-mystify the law and allow people to have the opportunity to reduce cost by doing much, if not all, of the work themselves,” said Boddy.

The firm is forecasting that its turnover of £35m in 2007-08 will double in the next financial year.

One IT head of a top 50 firm said: “It is great to see some innovation but they will need to be sure the model they are delivering to customers is the one that they want.”