4 Strategies for Legaltech Founders to Communicate Automation Value to Law Firms

4th November 2025

By Andrew Juma – Founder of The AJ Center, an award-winning end-to-end digital marketing firm. Follow Andrew on LinkedIn.

Legal technology offers significant value to law firms seeking to modernize their practice, but communicating this value effectively remains challenging for founders. Industry experts reveal that focusing on concrete results, sustainable business models, and improved client outcomes creates more compelling automation value propositions. This article presents four proven strategies that help legaltech entrepreneurs effectively demonstrate how automation enhances legal service delivery without emphasizing time-based metrics alone.

• Quality Improvement Leads To Better Client Outcomes
• Replace Wasted Hours With Higher Value Work
• Results Matter More Than Hours Spent
• Automation Transforms Law Into Sustainable Client-Centered Business

As an attorney, I will say I think that fear of replacing billable hours with automation is misplaced. It shows a fundamental lack of understanding of how lawyers' time is actually spent. I think law firms get this wrong all of the time. The reality is that most lawyers are overloaded with work. This means that they are working as much as they reasonably can just to try and stay ahead of their caseload. If things can be automated with technology, that will not mean fewer billable hours for the lawyer; it will mean more productive billable hours. For example, for a task on a specific case, I might only have 5 hours to devote to it in a certain week. If I have automation technology that takes away some of the more mundane aspects of the task, or shortens the time on those things, I can spend more of that 5 hours going deeper into an issue for the client. That means I have still billed the same hours, but I have done more with those hours and put together better work product for the client. It is not a reduction of billable hours; it is an improvement of quality (which should lead to more cases, and thus more billable hours).

Sean Sweeney, Trial Lawyer - Commercial Business and Investment Loss Recovery, Halling & Cayo S.C.

I don't focus on getting rid of billable hours, but on getting rid of wasted hours. Automation isn't about reducing workload, it's about doing work that adds more value. When law firms notice that technology helps them deliver faster, increases profits, and keeps clients satisfied, they drop their fears about automation and start to see it as a competitive advantage.

Jeff Howell, Founder, Lex Wire Journal

Billable hours are old school. Clients prefer block fee estimates for your work. While this may not always be possible, and one may need to track hours, still, block fee estimates are best when one adds a provision in case of a problem that is more difficult to deal with than expected. The reason block fees are better is because clients are interested in results-based work, not how much time and effort you put into the assignment. Results are the name of the game. And that is why using AI tools to make you more efficient fits right into this paradigm. Results-based work, using block billings with a proviso for extraordinary difficulty, and employing AI technology does the trick. Use it!

Andy Semotiuk, U.S. and Canadian Immigration Lawyer, Pace Law Firm

As a LegalTech founder, one of the most important ways I communicate value to law firms that are understandably wary of replacing billable hours with automation is by reframing automation not as a threat to revenue, but as a catalyst for growth, client satisfaction, and long-term profitability.

Law firms have traditionally operated on the billable hour model, which directly ties revenue to time spent. On the surface, automation appears to reduce billable time and therefore revenue. But what I emphasize to firms is that clients are increasingly rejecting inefficiency. They do not value time for its own sake; instead, they value outcomes, speed, and trust. Automation allows firms to deliver those outcomes more consistently and at scale.

By integrating automation into routine, repetitive tasks such as document generation, intake, case scheduling, compliance checks, and legal research, professionals free up their most valuable resource: their judgment and advocacy skills. Those are precisely the areas where clients are most willing to pay premium rates. Rather than cannibalizing revenue, automation shifts firms toward a value-based model, where higher-quality client experiences lead to stronger relationships, repeat business, and referrals.

I also remind firms that automation can expand capacity without increasing headcount. A solo or small practice can handle more matters efficiently, widening its client base while reducing burnout. For larger firms, automation creates consistency and reduces risk exposure by minimizing human error. This efficiency also opens up opportunities for alternative fee arrangements, such as flat fees, subscription models, or hybrid pricing, which attract cost-sensitive clients and help firms remain competitive in a changing market.

Finally, I frame automation as a tool for future-proofing. Courts, regulators, and clients are all moving toward digital-first processes. Firms that embrace automation now position themselves as innovators, while those that resist risk falling behind peers who can deliver faster, cheaper, and more reliable service.

In short, I communicate that automation is not about eroding the billable hour; it's about transforming the business of law into one that is sustainable, client-centered, and scalable. The firms that lean into this shift don't lose revenue; they gain market share, reputation, and resilience.

Daniel Abiodun, Paralegal Law Firm, D.A. Commissioning & Legal Services