AI Law Firm Blackletter Raises $6M To Kill Off The Billable Hour
Blackletter, a new law firm that mixes human lawyers with its own AI, raised $6 million to take on the billable hour, the way most firms charge clients for every minute of a lawyer’s time.
Key Takeaways
- Blackletter raised a $6 million seed round led by venture firm Lerer Hippeau
- The CEOs of AI companies Cohere, TwelveLabs and Adaption AI also invested
- The firm says it already has more than 75 clients, from day-to-day legal work to weather startup WindBorne’s $37 million Series B
- Blackletter says it is redesigning the law firm around clients, not billable hours
Co-founder Jonathan Rosenbluth announced the round on X on Monday. “Law firms say they’re built to serve clients. In truth, they’re built to serve their partners,” he wrote. The post passed 700,000 views within hours.
A Law Firm, Not Just Legal Software
Most legal AI startups sell software to existing law firms. Blackletter is doing something bolder. It is a law firm itself, pairing practicing lawyers with AI tools it builds in house, and it serves clients directly.
Lead investor Lerer Hippeau called it “a modern law firm reinventing client service by combining best-in-class legal talent with frontier AI technology.”
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Why The Billable Hour Is The Target
Under the billable hour, a firm earns more the longer a job takes, which gives it little reason to work faster. If AI can do much of the drafting and research in minutes, that model starts to look like a bad deal for clients.
Rosenbluth said every decision at Blackletter, from hiring and staffing to technology and pricing, is about the client. He added that its technology focuses on memory and self-improvement, and that the firm can handle complex work, not just simple day-to-day tasks.
Blackletter did not share its valuation or revenue. The big question is whether a small AI-powered firm can win the large, complex deals that top law firms charge the most for.
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