Steven Highfill
As founder and CEO of LawFi, Inc., Steven Highfill is leading the pack with the mission of bringing financial inclusion to the legal system. “There’s a pervasive access to justice gap in our society. Most people have too much income to qualify for legal aid but still can’t afford legal services. The legal system works well for the rich but remains inaccessible to middle-class families living paycheck to paycheck and the poor” he shares. “We’re working to fill this gap for the people in the middle.” Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the development-stage company is inventing a new class of loan assets called “Legal Fee Loans.” The company is working to transform the lawyer procurement and payment experience with the first-of-its-kind legal fintech lending platform. Designed to empower more inclusive access to legal services, the platform delivers financing options for the financing of legal consultations, retainers, legal fees, and invoices. “We’re creating a lasting loan program that changes the lives of legal consumers and business owners who, until now, could not find financing options to secure legal services when facing legal emergencies or important legal matters,” Steven explains. With partners that include banks, credit unions, and other distribution partners, LawFi’s legal fee loan options will be embedded in law firm and lawyer practices and offered at the Point-of-Service through a large network of legal merchants.
As a 34-year veteran certified personnel consultant specializing in law firm mergers and acquisitions, Steven started out as a stockbroker before getting into legal recruiting. Having obtained all his licenses at just 19 years old, he was one of the youngest stockbrokers in the country at the time. When the market crashed in 1987, he switched gears and became a lobbyist for Associated General Contractors before working as a legal headhunter and dabbling in technology along the way. Steven took his first step into the space when he licensed the exclusive rights for the vertical use of the technology behind flipdog.com before it was later purchased by monster.com. “It was at that time that I fell in love with technology. Now, at LawFi, we are integrating the best open banking, credit, employment, and financial technology with alternative data to create a highly unique credit decision engine and customized legal fee loans. We are also using deep web extraction technologies to create the most accurate database of lawyers and unique legal merchant data,” he states. “We’re leveraging our deep knowledge of the legal industry and new ABA and state bar rules that allow lawyers to refer clients to third-party financing sources for the first time in the history of the profession.” As Steven likes to say, “Carpe diem.”
Steven holds a Certificate in FinTech from Harvard University and a CPC designation.
Steven Highfill
Founder & CEO — LawFi, Inc.
Website: www.Lawfi.com
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