“The modern law firm is subscription-based, not built on the billable hour,” said Kimberly Bennett, co-founder and CEO of the legal tech platform Fidu. She was the keynote speaker at the Lawyers Mutual Modern Solo/Small Firm Conference in October at the Durham Convention Center.
“The modern small law firm must design client-centered legal services no longer tied to the billable hour,” said Bennett. “When you stop billing by the hour, the possibilities are endless. If you’re stuck trading time for money, you’ll miss the opportunity to make your services more accessible, affordable, and widely available, without burning yourself out in the process. And you’ll miss the opportunity to serve a market our current industry has overlooked for far too long.”
Bennett co-founded Fidu, the tech platform for subscription and flat-fee law firms after running the model in her own NJ-based business and intellectual property practice for over 10 years. She has been recognized as a vLex Fastcase 50 honoree and was named one of the Women of Legal Tech.
Intentional Design
Bennett explained what she calls “intentional design” offers the modern firm a long-term strategy.
“Intentional design lets you scale with clarity and purpose. When you’re clear on the service you’re designing, who it’s for, and the outcome you deliver, you create services that are consistent, sustainable and easy for your clients to understand and for you to deliver. With that foundation in place, you can build a practice that gives you more freedom, more time to grow your revenue, and more time to spend with your family.”
“Once you productize, systematize, and standardize your work, the value isn’t in the hours, it’s in the outcomes,” said Bennett.
“You’re being thoughtful and intentional in how you use your expertise to guide clients toward their goals. And because you’ve standardized that expertise, you help clients reach their goals with more clarity and speed.”
As a result, she explained, “a subscription model allows attorneys to design services that scale delivering consistent outcomes through systems and standardization while generating predictable, sustainable revenue.
“And, the client gets transparency. You don’t hide the fee. You’re clear on what the fee includes, what it doesn’t include, and the potential roadblocks that could shift the scope. You prioritize active communication throughout the engagement, and if something changes, the client knows exactly how it affects the fees. They decide how they want to move forward feeling informed and empowered.
“With a subscription model and intentional design, the client becomes an informed partner in their representation. This approach shifts the client into a more collaborative role.”
Bennett said the subscription flips the relationship, so the client sees the attorney as a member of their team rather than a cost center, which can make the attorney feel like an adversary.
Taking Baby Steps.
Bennett said that as lawyers plan for the future, AI should be front and center. “When starting out, attorneys don’t need to use Gen AI in their core legal work, but they can use it to reshape everything around their legal work, like marketing, sales, and communication. As legal professionals get more comfortable with Gen AI, they should integrate it into their core work to complement, not replace, their expertise and scale how they serve their clients.”
Recognizing the quantum leap from hourly billing to subscription-based billing, Bennett advocates starting with baby steps.
“I want legal professionals to review their services and ask, ‘Can I deliver this differently?’ If the answer is ‘I don’t know’, use AI to brainstorm possibilities. If it’s ‘yes’, make one small change in your service that moves you toward the delivery model you want and test it with one client. The point is to test, be curious, and stay open to delivering services not tied to the billable hour.”
For more information, visit fidulegal.com or email hello@fidulegal.com.
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