LegalZoom has been approved by the Arizona Supreme Court for an Alternative Business Structure (“ABS”) license in the state. The approval positions LegalZoom, a leading online platform for legal and compliance solutions, to accelerate its efforts to democratize law by allowing for greater technological innovation in the delivery of legal services. It also has the potential to make legal services available at more-affordable prices.

Traditionally, the legal industry has been slow to adopt technology. For comparison, IBISWorld found that in 2020, approximately 8% of legal services in the United States were conducted online versus approximately 70% of financial services. At the same time, the American Bar Association reported that more than 40% of solo attorneys do not have a website. Reforms such as these are designed to enable industry innovation and increase access to high-quality, cost-effective legal services.

“The law only works when it is available to everyone. Yet too many people don’t have access to the legal system either because they can’t afford an attorney or are not familiar with how to use the law to protect their businesses, families or intellectual property,” said Nicole Miller, General Counsel of LegalZoom. “These reform efforts create opportunities to bring innovative new solutions to market that can benefit both small business and consumers as well as lawyers, and we encourage other states to pursue similar reforms.”

LegalZoom will be able to directly provide limited legal services to individuals and small businesses through LZ Legal Services’ ABS license. Additionally, the company will be able to create more opportunities for attorneys within the state.

“This is an exciting milestone for our company and those we will be able to serve in new ways,” said Daniel Wernikoff, CEO of LegalZoom. “We intend to continue advancing our mission to democratize law by deeply integrating attorney expertise and support with LegalZoom’s technology, process efficiencies, and commitment to providing affordable access to legal services.”

Arizona is among the first few states to embrace regulatory reforms that increase industry innovation and access to legal services.