L4SB disrupts legal industry with better, faster tech-forward service

The heyday of formal brick and mortar corporate law firms characterized by Corinthian columns, lavish and intimidating interiors, towers of file storage boxes, and prohibitive upfront fees is waning, and waning fast.

While "do-it-yourself" (DIY) legal services, technology, and changing consumer expectations are largely the drivers behind the industry’s evolution, it’s the pioneering firms finding ways to meet these challenges head-on that may be the true disruptors of the industry — and consumers stand to benefit. Albuquerque’s tech-forward firm Law 4 Small Business (L4SB) is the premier local example, touting the prescient tagline, “A little law now can save a lot later.”

“The reality is, the traditional way of doing business is dead, and most law firms don’t know it yet,” said Larry Donahue, member attorney at L4SB and head of the firm’s internet and transaction department. “We’re leading the rapid change of the practice of law, meeting customers where they’re at, even if that means when they’re on a laptop or on the phone from their bedroom.”

Indeed, a person can complete many common legal tasks at any time, 24/7.

L4SB, which provides legal services exclusively to businesses and business leaders, conducts about 90% of its work online. It is run by lawyers; services are provided by paralegals and licensed attorneys; and its competitively priced offerings can be purchased quickly over the internet. L4SB was founded to compete directly with self-service unlicensed online legal providers, such as LegalZoom and Rocket Lawyer.

The DIY legal services industry, which is just one segment of the broader online legal services market, was valued at $20.6 billion globally in 2024. The entire legal tech market is projected to reach $55 billion by 2029. Such non-lawyer online legal services allow individuals to create legal documents and manage legal processes, often using document templates and online tools. While they may provide cost-effective alternatives for straightforward legal matters like incorporating a business or creating a will, they can also cause more legal problems than they solve, leading to greater expense and time down the road.

For example, most non-lawyer online legal services provide a “template” Operating Agreement that isn’t customized to the needs of their customers. This can have a big impact on taxes and liability protection, the primary reason to form an LLC in the first place. In contrast, L4SB built a sophisticated expert system that delivers a high-quality, highly customized Operating Agreement that many attorneys use as a starting point. Called the Lawyer Defined® Operating Agreement, it’s an exclusive at L4SB, and all LLC clients are given free access to this system.

In addition to the unlicensed online providers, AI has become problematic, said member attorney Donald Kochersberger, who heads the firm’s litigation department: “It’s amazing, but it’s kind of emboldened people to think they don't need a lawyer, so here we are cleaning up unnecessary messes again. Clients will say, ‘Instead of risking LegalZoom giving me a dud contract, I asked ChatGPT to do one for me, and it’s getting me in trouble.’

“We’re a tech law firm, and we love AI, and we see it making a better world and making things easier, but you have to know its limitations.”

For example, the law is nuanced, and AI doesn’t do nuance well. It often doesn’t understand when a matter is state specific or ordinance specific, so it can’t effectively apply case law. It doesn’t typically ask follow-up questions.

“If someone crafts a legal motion in ChatGPT, it can easily turn into a fiasco, costing people lots of money and backing up the justice system. So, it’s kind of dangerous,” Kochersberger said.

With so many digital options for consumers, the legal industry is essentially facing the same challenges that have led retail stores, including stalwart brands like Neiman Marcus and JCPenney, to file bankruptcy in recent years. These include the rise of e-commerce and shifting consumer habits, intensifying competition, evolving expectations for customer experience, high operational costs and rising sustainability demands.

L4SB’s model is designed to acknowledge and solve for all of the above via digital innovation, personalization, approachability, and sustainability.*

The firm’s offices are contemporary and comfortable but not over-the-top. The physical footprint — 10,000 square feet at 6801 Jefferson St. NE in Albuquerque and a smaller space in Santa Fe — is modest, considering the firm has 30 employees serving about 8,000 clients worldwide. Operations, including client meetings and filings are often done online. The firm describes itself as “paperless,” even though it is a transactional firm, which would historically be “paperful.”

“For me, transactional basically means, ‘to keep people out of trouble,’” Donahue said. “I founded the company because I wanted to provide easier, faster, less expensive access to law for small businesses and provide a better alternative to the unlicensed legal providers.

“Most small business owners are proficient at what they offer. They know how to shave a dog or bake a cake or whatever they are passionate about. But they don't know the basic issues that can get them in legal trouble — things like employee classification, workman's comp, and operating agreements, or lack of.”

Indeed, L4SB’s mission is to protect those businesses that fall within the 99.9% comprising the backbone of the American economy — the mom and pops, the entrepreneurs, and the established companies that simply realize they need experienced help.

“When a small business is just trying to make it through the day-to-day, they suddenly need legal advice on a lease review for example, and these nonlegal service providers tell them it’s $1 and it’s easy,” Donahue said. “So, then when there’s a problem, the onus is on the business to fix it, and it wipes them out. We want to make sure things are done correctly, affordably and quickly.

Ultimately, L4SB is recognizing that the future of commercial law will depend on the ability of lawyers to adapt to shifts in consumer behavior, technology, and values, delivering products and services in ways that resonate with a new generation of clients.

“The larger legal community needs to stop thinking it’s about brick and mortar with marble columns and needing $500 just to talk to you. It has a stifling effect,” Donahue said. “We’re cutting edge in how we’re incorporating technology, and one part of technology is just being an e-commerce company ourselves. But the other part is just doing the work better, cheaper, faster.”

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*L4SB’s business model is distinguished by its emphasis on:

Digital innovation: Enhancing their online platforms, improving access to information or knowledge systems, and leveraging technologies like AI.

Personalization: Tailoring product recommendations, services, and interactions based on individual customer preferences and needs.

Approachability: Redefining in-office and virtual experiences to be more friendly, engaging, understandable and cost-effective.

Sustainability: Incorporating green practices.