Can a lawyer with 28 years under his belt stand up to a team of millennials and venture capital? Before I tell you what the competition is, let's give credit to millennials. First, they have energy. I mean that. I won't go so far as to say that, as a class. they are hungry. But, they are... you know, perky. They seem connected to some high mind through their smart phones. My smart phone is just my camera. They also are really into "teams." They use words like "onboarding." Details to them are "granular." Good word. They also like to wear matching outfits. My competition wears long sleeve pastel shirts. That's cool. Oh, one other thing, they are VERY good at web design and marketing. So, there's that.
Let's also point out the other big advantage. Venture capital. Money. Moo-lah! You can rent cool office space in San Diego no less for the pastel clad team and have a big whiteboard in a conference room for drawing stuff. I used to do that.
Ready for the game? Battler? Business plan.
Five years ago, I announced on my radio show on KOMO that I would roll out a platform that drafted legal documents using the drafting app I had coded for use in my own law firm. (I am an amateur programming enthusiast or was.) I say "was" because online apps exploded, all connected through APIs or simple webhooks. I had this idea over a decade ago but, back then, there was no way to remotely merge a Word document. Now you can do it for free using Google docs.
As of today, my platform can draft a Deed, and a will-based plan. Mind you, I have been in the trenches in estate planning, then elder law, and most recently estate tax for as long as the youngest person on the millennial team has been alive. Obsessing about this, my app can draft a testamentary 42 USC trust for the spouse. Assets in that trust are 100% protected against Medicaid spend-downs, transfer penalties, liens, etc. My will app can draft a full estate tax plan in each of the 12 states with an estate tax. I can go on and on. The point is, it makes LegalZoom look like its a kindergartner smearing glue in its hair. (Sorry. I just liked that imagery. LegalZoom is fine. They were the pioneers. The Millenials actually talk about "having this great idea. Wow! You mean, you had this new idea after LegalZoom, Mama Bear Forms, Suze Orman, Rocket Lawyer, and a few others.
Now, to give an idea of fire power per dollar. The milenials will give you access to the team and they will create and send to you a deed for $500. A deed is the only way to convey title to real estate. They charge $500 for that. My deed app goes live next week. It will create a deed for $59. Here is the amazing part. The app can also RECORD the deed. Imagine that. I can record a deed in almost every county in the US.
I am not done. My app can also prepare the property tax form and file that too. After covid, states finally recognized that notaries can do their jobs remotely. My app can quarterback a remote signing and notary.
Total price for a recorded deed without leaving your living room? $300 plus county recording and filing fees?
So, can I compete? I gotta admit. It is going to tough. One thing I have realized is that people really don't care you the value of the Law. They care about image, user experience, etc.. The vibe.
The best part of my platform is that it is also an Academy and a membership site. The Law has requirements. They must be met. But, you can use my assessment tool, and within 15 minutes, you can have the same case design a skilled attorney can create for thousands of dollars in attorney time. Enter payment and click submit. You have a plan with the asset protection trusts you need.
Lawyers are about to have their world turned upside down because AI can replace them. BUT, the hard part is implementation. THAT is hard. So, I have courses and weekly live Q and A events.