When Manny Griffiths labored with a private damage lawyer after his spouse’s automotive accident, he was stunned by the lack of understanding and communication from their lawyer relating to their declare. The couple generally wouldn’t hear from their lawyer for months and located all the course of to be actually opaque.
Griffiths dug deeper and realized that he wasn’t the one one with this problem. He found by his analysis that just about half, 44%, of unfavourable Google evaluations for regulation corporations that work with individuals, relatively than with different companies, needed to do with customers dissatisfied on account of a breakdown in communication. However regardless of customers feeling like they’ll’t get in contact with attorneys, attorneys reported they spend 37% of their day on communication, a Hona survey of 41 attorneys discovered.
“Folks simply need to be talked to and know what is going on as a result of they’re on this emotional, traumatic time,” Griffiths instructed TechCrunch. “I began speaking to regulation corporations, I actually dug deep on what their challenges had been, and I discovered that they’re interrupted on common each three minutes through the day, and they’re so busy that they don’t have time to speak correctly with their shoppers.”
Griffiths and his co-founders launched Hona to attempt to fill that communication hole with expertise. Hona is a communication portal that plugs right into a regulation agency’s present case administration software program and sends automated updates to shoppers. The objective, Griffiths stated, is to permit shoppers to trace their case with the identical ease as they observe an Amazon package deal. This clearly resonated with regulation corporations as the corporate noticed sturdy demand even earlier than its February 2022 launch.
“We really made some mockups, we had somebody design the product on Figma, and we stated, ‘Let’s go attempt to promote this earlier than we even write a line of code and inform individuals we might have it out by ‘x’ date,’” Griffiths stated. “I simply began chilly calling regulation corporations and I received 5 corporations to enroll earlier than we had written something.”
The Lehi, Utah-based firm has continued to see demand since. It grew its income 400% in 2023 — however wouldn’t share precise income numbers. Hona at present works with greater than 500 regulation corporations and has been utilized by 308,000 shoppers. It additionally simply closed on a $9.5 million Sequence A spherical led by Costanoa Ventures with participation from Ludlow Ventures, Soma Capital and Y Combinator.
Griffiths stated he doesn’t anticipate that Hona will exchange or automate all communication between attorneys and shoppers — neither facet desires that — however relatively simply eradicate shoppers calling their lawyer only for an replace or with a query about authorized jargon. Purchasers can message their attorneys by Hona as effectively and entry instructional supplies about phrases and knowledge on what stage their case is at within the authorized course of.
The case updates, training sources and consumer query solutions are generated by AI, Griffiths stated. He added that the corporate was actually cautious on the way it incorporates AI due to the delicate nature of authorized circumstances, and the important have to get info proper. To fight potential misinformation, attorneys determine what Hona’s AI system can entry.
“Early on, we allowed the regulation corporations to add accepted subjects of dialog, accepted metrics and knowledge relating to their case,” Griffiths stated. “Our mannequin would possibly develop just a little bit slower than different AI fashions. We restrict what it could actually communicate to initially however it is going to be extra correct upfront. That may be a big initiative for us to ensure they aren’t getting false info.”
The corporate determined to give attention to consumer-facing authorized practices like private damage and prison protection first as a result of Griffiths anticipated that that’s the place essentially the most friction is. It’s extra possible that these corporations’ shoppers wouldn’t have a powerful understanding of the authorized system in comparison with a enterprise shoppers that cope with attorneys on a extra common foundation. The corporate does hope to increase to B2B regulation practices sooner or later as effectively.
Hona can be working to increase its choices. It just lately launched an esignature software for paperwork and plans so as to add companies like billing and paying down the road.
“We’re passionate in regards to the consumer on the opposite finish of the spectrum,” Griffiths stated. “Lawsuits are robust, and something with authorized, it’s traumatic. Hona helps regulation corporations be extra environment friendly and provides them again time, in addition to assist the buyer and actually give them piece of thoughts throughout their case.”
