Purpose
To offer businesses and entrepreneurs access to professional corporate legal services through an online marketplace, covering areas such as company formation, compliance, contracts, mergers, and governance.
1. Functional Requirements
1.1 Service Categories
- Incorporation Services (LLC, C-Corp, S-Corp, etc.)
- Contract Drafting & Review
- Corporate Compliance & Filings
- Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A)
- Shareholder Agreements & Bylaws
- Business Restructuring
- IP & Trademark Registration (if bundled)
1.2 User Roles
- Clients (individuals/businesses seeking services)
- Legal Professionals (licensed lawyers, law firms)
- Admin (platform managers)
1.3 Booking & Consultation
- Allow clients to:
- Search and filter legal experts by specialization, jurisdiction, reviews
- Book consultations (paid/free, depending on setup)
- Select between services (flat-rate or custom quote)
- Allow legal experts to:
- List service offerings with pricing
- Schedule availability for consultations
- Upload credentials and licenses
1.4 Document Handling
- Secure upload/download of legal documents
- E-signature integration (e.g., DocuSign)
- Version control for contract drafts
- NDA auto-generator (optional)
1.5 Payments & Invoicing
- Transparent service pricing
- Allow deposits, milestone payments, and full payments
- Integrated payment gateway (Stripe, PayPal)
- Auto-generated invoices and receipts
1.6 Communication & Notifications
- In-app messaging or secure email communication
- Notifications for:
- Document updates
- Meeting reminders
- Legal deadlines or compliance alerts
2. Security Requirements
- All legal documents encrypted at rest and in transit
- User access control (Role-Based Access)
- NDA enforcement and click-to-accept legal disclaimers
- Two-factor authentication (2FA) for lawyers and clients
- GDPR and regional privacy compliance
3. Validation Rules
| Field | Rule |
|---|---|
| Legal Expert License | Must be valid, verified with bar association |
| Business Name (Client) | Required, alphanumeric |
| Document Upload | File size limit (e.g., 20MB), PDF/DOCX only |
| Booking Date/Time | Must not conflict with lawyer’s schedule |
4. UI/UX Design Guidelines
- Dedicated dashboards for:
- Clients (track legal matters)
- Legal experts (manage bookings, documents)
- Step-by-step onboarding for new clients (e.g., forming a company)
- Clear CTAs like “Book Now,” “Upload Document,” “Request Quote”
- Service comparison chart or “Lawyer Match” feature
- Legal glossary and FAQs for corporate law terms
5. API Endpoints (REST Example)
| Endpoint | Method | Description |
|---|---|---|
/api/legal-services | GET | List available corporate law services |
/api/legal-experts | GET | Search/filter lawyers |
/api/booking | POST | Book a consultation |
/api/documents/upload | POST | Upload legal documents |
/api/payment | POST | Make a payment |
/api/contracts/sign | POST | E-sign document |
6. Database Schema (Simplified)
Users Table
| Field | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| id | UUID | Primary Key |
| role | ENUM | client, lawyer, admin |
| name | String | |
| String | Unique | |
| password | String | Hashed |
| verified | Boolean | Email & license check |
Services Table
| Field | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| id | UUID | |
| name | String | e.g., “Incorporation” |
| description | Text | |
| price | Decimal | |
| duration | Integer | In minutes |
Bookings Table
| Field | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| id | UUID | |
| user_id | UUID | Client |
| lawyer_id | UUID | Legal expert |
| service_id | UUID | |
| status | ENUM | pending, confirmed, done |
| meeting_link | String | Video call link |
7. Acceptance Criteria
- Clients can book and pay for legal services securely
- Lawyers can manage availability, documents, and payments
- Clients can upload and retrieve documents without data loss
- All actions are logged and audit-traceable
- Platform verifies legal credentials of lawyers