More so than in many industries, career progress in law is structured around a familiar and well-defined ladder. It looks a little bit like this: student trainee associate partner or GC.<\/p>\n
Legal Tech represents an off-shoot from this traditional pathway and Julia Salasky, the Founder and CEO of CrowdJustice, can remember exactly the words which helped move her towards one, and away from the other.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was at the UN I met a lawyer at the US state department who told me that just because there is a ladder in front of you, it doesn\u2019t mean you have to climb it. I\u2019ve never forgotten those words.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the UN I had a job for life. It was a cushy situation. But I then realised I wanted to push the boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n
Salasky had always involved herself in pro bono work as an Associate at Linklaters and then as a lawyer for the UN and had noted first-hand the obstacles surrounding access to justice.<\/p>\n
So when the decision to move away from law\u2019s traditional path was made, access to justice was the sector she gravitated towards. Hence CrowdJustice, the high-profile platform which has helped to crowdfund legal cases around some of the foremost issues of the day including Brexit, climate change and Donald Trump\u2019s temporary immigration ban.<\/p>\n
CrowdJustice gathers headlines like they\u2019re going out of fashion and Salasky says that the role her platform has played in helping people realise that their collective power and money can really change the law, is what she is most proud of.<\/p>\n
But despite CrowdJustice\u2019s current successes \u2013 making their name synonymous with access to justice in the UK and latterly in the US as well \u2013 it hasn\u2019t always been plain sailing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had moments at the beginning when I thought that CrowdJustice wouldn\u2019t work,\u201d admits Salasky.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I worked out that I had to be the one who believed in it!<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I\u2019ve also come to realise is that you have to find people, both inside and outside of your company, who will champion what you do.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis has made me be selective of who I work with. But the return on this strategy is that now I truly think that we have the best investors, and the best team, and that is what makes the journey exciting and worthwhile.”<\/p>\n
On the subject of gender discrimination in business, Salasky has clear opinions, borne out of her own personal experiences.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have been lucky, because discrimination \u2013 subtle or not \u2013 is quite prevalent in both the legal industry and in the tech industry,\u201d she says. “But again I’d come back to this idea of finding amazing people who lift you up.<\/p>\n
\u201cI raised a round of funding when I was pregnant from some great investors. One of them told me how other people would be thinking: they would never invest in a solo female founder, let alone one who was pregnant. The prejudices themselves feel so socially acceptable that it’s ok to just air them as it’s so plainly stating the obvious. But can you imagine saying the same thing to a father-to-be? I think it’s possible that we can move the needle on changing these retrograde attitudes over the next decade. I do my best to champion the idea that you can be a woman and build both a company and a family at the same time.”<\/p>\n
So far CrowdJustice has facilitated donations to legal cases from 150,000+ people, many of whom, Salasky believes, will have \u2013 in providing a donation \u2013 been encountering the legal system for the very first time.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s this level of engagement which allowed Salasky to raise $2million in investment last year, with her sights on raising further funds in 2018 as well.<\/p>\n
For her team of 10 full-time staff, the success CrowdJustice has achieved so far could well just be the beginning. Learn more about Crowd Justice<\/a> on our startup map.<\/p>\n