Introducing Sapphire

Chefs Don’t Cook With Knives Like This

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Software That Thinks Like You Do

When you quit your comfy job as a partner at a big law firm to start a software company even though you don’t have any formal software training, you get asked a lot of questions. The most common one is, “You’re doing WHAT?” But the one that really sticks with you is, “Are you sure you’re making the right move?” Which is really a polite way of asking:

Why on earth do you think you can do this?

It’s a good question. The modern world lacks many things, but there’s no shortage of tech entrepreneurs looking to apply the power of computers and the internet to “disrupt” traditional ways of doing things. If there’s a better way of doing things, why hasn’t one of those tech entrepreneurs found it yet?

The short answer is a paradox: improving the quality of legal and tax technology is not a technology problem.

The long answer is that lawyers and tax professionals are not looking for a next-generation AI to do their research, analysis and drafting for them. What the field needs is software that knows how professionals create value for their clients and helps them do so reliably and efficiently. Building software like that requires a deep understanding of how lawyers and tax professionals work and where the avoidable pain points are. The technical details are easy by modern computing standards.

For now, this space will contain musings about how software can help (or hinder) lawyers, interspersed with news about upcoming products. Please consider following to learn more about our progress:

And perhaps most importantly, Sapphire’s business will only succeed if it can help you deliver value to your clients. I have my own ideas about what software can do to support lawyers and tax professionals, but I’d love to hear yours too. Share your software frustrations here.