Avvo announces new funding, looks to accelerate growth

News

The consumer legal services universe got a lot bigger this week after Avvo announced a $71.5 million financing round led by Technology Crossover Ventures, with Vulcan Capital and existing investor Coatue also involved.

Avvo’s stated goal (their motto is “Legal. Easier.”) is to make the legal world simpler and more navigable for consumers, and this new investment represents an intention on the company’s part to continue putting more resources toward making sure people can get the legal information they need in transparent and intuitive ways.

“Our mission is to make legal services routine and easily accessible in our daily lives,” said Mark Britton, founder and CEO of Avvo, in a statement announcing the investment.

As a way for consumers to access free legal resources, Avvo has built some impressive tools:

  • Over 9 million people visit Avvo.com each month, with someone getting free legal advice on Avvo every 5 seconds.
  • The site’s legal Q&A forum is the largest online, with nearly 7.5 million questions and answers available for those with legal questions to use as a powerful research tool.
  • Avvo also provides research tools on finding a lawyer, with ratings, reviews and detailed profiles for 97% of all attorneys in the U.S.
  • The site provides comparatively affordable ways to speak directly to experienced attorneys, offering 15-minute phone calls for just $39

The site’s focus on consumers found its way into the news recently, as they successfully protected consumers’ rights to anonymity in which a Florida attorney was attempting to force Avvo to reveal the identity of an online commenter who had posted a negative review.

From a strategic standpoint, partnering with TCV helps fuel Avvo’s development of products and services, and works to improve the legal experience for consumers. Their past investments in sites like Expedia and Spotify show a strong history of partnering with companies to provide better information, on-demand services, and more affordable options to consumers across a variety of industries.

“You can expect us to introduce simpler and real-time products to even more people,” said Britton. “In so many ways, we’re just getting started.”

Read the full press release here. To learn more about what Avvo has to offer, try it out at www.avvo.com.