LEAP Renewal? Time to Ask the Hard Questions

That renewal letter hits different this time

If you're on a per-user legal practice management platform, you already know the feeling. The renewal notice arrives and the number is bigger than last time. Sometimes a lot bigger. You look at it, you look at your team, and you think — is this really what we should be paying?

I talk to firms in this position every week. And the story is remarkably consistent. The software worked well enough when you first signed up. But over the years, the price has crept up, the contract terms haven't loosened, and you've had to bolt on more and more tools just to do what you assumed was included from the start.

If that sounds familiar, this post is for you.

The per-user pricing trap

Per-user, per-month pricing sounds simple. But it scales against you. Every new staff member — every paralegal, every legal assistant, every graduate — adds to the bill. And because these platforms typically lock you into multi-year contracts, you're committing to those costs well before you know what your team will look like in two or three years.

Firms tell me they've seen increases of 40, 50, even 70 percent at renewal. Not because they added features. Not because the software got dramatically better. Just because they grew their team — which is supposed to be a good thing.

There's a different way to price legal software. At Law Support Australia, we charge per file opened — not per user. That means you can have as many staff logged in as you need. The cost sits with the matter, not the headcount. And because it's a file cost, it can be on-charged directly to the client as a disbursement. Your practice management software becomes a recoverable cost, not an overhead.

The bolt-on problem

Here's something I hear constantly from firms looking to move: "We're paying for our practice management software, plus Xero for general accounting, plus another tool for document management, plus something else for compliance." Three or four subscriptions, three or four logins, three or four sets of data that don't always talk to each other.

This happens because many platforms don't include general accounting. They'll handle trust accounting — because they have to — but for your office accounts, your creditors, your BAS, your profit and loss? You're told to integrate with Xero or MYOB. That's an extra cost, extra complexity, and extra risk every time data moves between systems.

Law App has full general accounting built in. Not an integration. Not a bolt-on. Your trust accounting, your general accounting, your billing, your time recording, your document generation — it's all in one place. One login. One set of data. One subscription.

Lock-in contracts and what they really mean

Three-year contracts are standard on some platforms. That sounds manageable until you realise what you're actually agreeing to. You're locking in today's price (or more accurately, today's price plus whatever the vendor decides to charge at the next renewal). You're locking in today's feature set. And you're locking in a vendor relationship that may or may not serve you well over that period.

If the support deteriorates, if the product doesn't evolve, if your firm's needs change — you're still paying. Every month. For years.

We don't do long lock-in contracts. We'd rather earn your business month to month than hold you to a commitment you regret.

Support matters more than you think

When your trust account doesn't reconcile at 4:30 on a Friday afternoon, you need someone who picks up the phone. Not a chatbot. Not a ticket queue that gets answered next business day. Not someone in a different time zone who doesn't understand Australian trust accounting rules.

Our support team is in Australia. We answer the phone. We understand your compliance obligations because we work with Australian law firms every day. That's not a marketing line — it's how we operate.

What to ask before you sign

If your renewal is coming up, here are the questions I'd be asking — whether you stay or move:

• What's the total cost per year including all bolt-ons? Not just the headline licence fee — include Xero, any document tools, any compliance add-ons. What are you actually paying?
• What happens to the price if I add three more staff? On per-user pricing, three new people could add thousands to your annual bill. On per-file pricing, it adds nothing.
• Is general accounting included or do I need a separate tool? If it's separate, factor in that cost and the time spent reconciling between systems.
• What are the contract terms? How long are you locked in? What happens if you want to leave early? What's the exit process?
• Where is my data stored? Is it on Australian servers? Who has access to it? What happens to it if you leave?
• Can I speak to a real person when I need support? Try calling the support number before you sign. See what happens.

Hybrid isn't cloud

Something that catches firms off guard: not every platform that says "cloud" is truly cloud. Some are hybrid — part installed locally, part hosted. That means updates that need managing, desktop apps that need maintaining, and a setup that doesn't work the same from every device.

Law App is 100% web-based. You open a browser, you log in, you work. Chrome, Edge, Safari — on a desktop, a laptop, a tablet. No installations. No local servers. No VPN. Just your browser and your data, hosted securely on Microsoft Azure in Australia.

We handle the migration — not your old vendor

Here's something firms don't always realise until they try to leave: your current vendor has no incentive to help you go. They won't export your data in a clean, usable format. They won't walk you through the transition. Why would they?

At Law Support Australia, we handle the full migration. We take care of your data conversion, your trust accounting setup, and your staff training. We've done this before, we know what to expect, and we make sure nothing gets left behind.

And here's something worth knowing: Law App comes with a full library of legal document templates included as standard. On some platforms, templates are an extra cost on top of your licence fee. With Law App, they're built in from day one.

You don't need to figure it out on your own. That's our job.

Worth a conversation

I'm not here to tell you what to do. Every firm is different, and the right software depends on your size, your practice areas, and how you work. But if your renewal has you questioning whether you're getting value for money, it's worth looking at what else is out there.

Law App might be the right fit. It might not. But a 20-minute conversation will give you a clear comparison — and you'll have that information before you sign anything.

You can reach me directly:

Kelly Mills
kelly@lawsupport.com.au
07 3040 3036
lawsupport.com.au

Your renewal doesn't have to be a foregone conclusion.