Message from the Founder Jacob R. Powell

When I started learning coding as a 10-year-old on the big heavy IBM XT my dad used for work, the idea of being a lawyer never entered my mind. The Internet was just beginning to become popular when I started college, and I learned the basics of web page creation as I studied Computer Science and Math, but I definitely did not want to get involved in the craziness of government, politics, or law.

My feelings toward law began to change while I served for two years as a religious missionary in Hungary. For about a quarter of my mission, I was assigned to help my fellow missionaries with their paperwork to stay legal in the country. During that time, I began realizing for the first time how handy it would be to know how to navigate legal problems, because we had them. When I came back home to the United States, I was still holding onto my original plan to get a Ph.D. in Computer Science and become a professor. However, my mind gradually shifted as I worked through my Master's degree, and in the end, I chose to pursue a J.D. instead of a Ph.D.

I practiced law full time for nearly a decade, working first for the Fourth District Court in Provo, then for a small general-practice law firm. My main motivation for going into law instead of computer science had been to learn how to problem-solve human issues for real humans rather than just knowing how to work with machines, and I enjoyed my work and the people I worked with. I did not, however, enjoy chasing after clients for bills.

After several years of law practice, I began thinking how I might leverage my computer skills to avoid being stuck in the six minute life forever. I began taking more notice of all the software our small law firm used, and I heard myself saying things like, "that's not a very complicated program," "I could do that," and "why are we paying for that?" But the most important question of all was: "Am I on the wrong side of this transaction?"

Around the time these thoughts were running in my mind, the Utah Bar began telling us we would soon go to electronic filing. My first reaction was, "Well, that's one service I'll find a way not to pay for." I imagined I might make a system to e-file for us, add convenient features as needed, and maybe even offer it to others. However, once I learned how much it would cost to become an e-filing service provider, I realized it would not make financial sense to build my own system unless I made it compete on the open market. So, after making the difficult decision to invest in the business, after several months of coming home after a full day's law practice to program late into the night, and after a lot of patience from my wonderful wife, who was pregnant with our second child, Judicialink was born. The baby was born, too, about the time state court e-filing became mandatory for Utah attorneys and we got our first big wave of customers.

As a practicing attorney who has taken cases in most of the areas of the state court filing system and also worked in the state courts, I know your business and can help you with a quality unmatched by other services. I want to be the kind of service provider I would wish to have myself. I am interested in your practice and in doing my part to help your e-filing go smoothly. When you have an e-filing question, I focus on getting to the issue quickly so you can get out of the technical details and back into practicing law. I enjoy providing customer support personally (although I occasionally hire help), and I also enjoy learning about your law practice when time permits.

I still practice law part-time myself, although I have allowed my practice to dwindle to occasional, because Judicialink has made that possible, and I occasionally teach classes as well. I look forward to working with you. Feel free to call Judicialink at (801)877-1596 or e-mail at support@judicialink.com for more information.