Podcast

How Lawpath Reached 600,000 Customers: Tom Willis on Co-Founder Dynamics

In this episode of Give It A Nudge, Steve sits down with Tom, co-founder and CMO of Lawpath.

by hao-nguyen on February 19, 2026

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About the guest

Tom Willis

Co-Founder and CMO at Lawpath

Tom Willis is the co-founder and CMO of Lawpath, an Australian legal tech platform serving over 600,000 small businesses. He came to the business from a digital marketing background, cutting his teeth at Spritz (acquired by Yahoo7 for $40 million) and Tom Waterhouse, where he learned rigorous brand discipline.

Episode overview

Tom Willis joins Steve Grace to talk about eleven years of building Lawpath, the legal tech platform that has quietly grown into one of Australia’s most important small business support tools.

The market nobody was looking at

The conventional wisdom says there are 2.7 million businesses in Australia. Tom thinks that number is wrong. The real figure is 9 million active ABNs, of which a large portion are side hustles and new businesses. 120,000 new ABNs are being registered every single month. Tom sees a clear path to one million customers by 2030.

The COVID bet that paid off

When lockdowns hit in 2020, Lawpath did the opposite of everyone else. While competitors froze hiring and cut ad spend, Tom and the team decided to double down. That contrarian call was one of the defining moments in the company’s growth.

“We said, ‘We actually think we should be doubling down here, and maybe we’ll live to regret it, but we actually think this is maybe one of those really pivotal moments.’”

Tom Willis on the COVID decision

Survival rate as a product metric

The three-year business survival rate average is 51%. For Lawpath customers, it is 65%. When legal and compliance work is automated and affordable, founders get hours back to actually build their businesses.

Eleven years with the same co-founder

Tom and his Lawpath co-founder Damian have worked together for over eleven years. The conversation gets honest about what that actually requires: complementary skills, hard conversations, and genuine loyalty to the mission over personal ego.

Key takeaways

The addressable market is much bigger than the official numbers suggest. Nine million active ABNs is the real market, and 120,000 new ones are created every month.

Doubling down in a downturn is a real competitive strategy. Lawpath grew market share during COVID by advertising when everyone else pulled back.

Improving customer survival rates is a defensible moat. A 14-point improvement in three-year business survival rates is a retention and referral engine.

Australian customers reward loyalty, not just price. Tom found that Australian small businesses will choose a trusted relationship over a marginally cheaper competitor.

Strategic investment from a bank is not the same as VC funding. The $10 million from Westpac was strategic. Banks want to be embedded in the financial lives of small businesses.

Learning to stop micromanaging requires a forcing function. Tom’s child was born at the worst possible time and forced the issue. For many founders, delegation comes from necessity.

Chapters

00:00Intro: Surviving Spritz’s $40M Yahoo7 acquisition 05:47Learning strict brand discipline at Tom Waterhouse 08:31The origin of Lawpath 11:48Reaching 600,000 customers 13:51The $10M Westpac investment 16:24120,000 new businesses every month 18:56Why Australian clients value loyalty over price 20:39The COVID pivot 26:40How a Black Friday baby cured his micromanaging 30:00Co-founder survival: 11 years together 37:01The 65% survival rate

Mentioned in this episode

Lawpath Westpac Yahoo7 The Nudge Group

Frequently asked questions

How did Lawpath get 600,000 customers?

Lawpath grew to 600,000 customers by targeting the 9 million active ABNs in Australia rather than just the 2.7 million GST-registered businesses. The platform removed the cost and friction of legal work for small businesses, and accelerated during COVID by doubling ad spend while competitors cut back.

How did Lawpath secure a $10 million investment from Westpac?

Lawpath positioned the business as a support platform for small business banking customers. Banks are deeply invested in the financial health of small businesses, and Lawpath’s compliance tools gave Westpac a way to deliver value beyond traditional banking products.

What does Lawpath actually do for small businesses?

Lawpath is a business support platform covering company formation, legal contracts, compliance, and on-demand access to lawyers and accountants. Unlike traditional law firms, Lawpath uses flat fees and subscription pricing.

Why do Lawpath customers have a higher business survival rate?

The three-year business survival rate for Lawpath customers is 65%, compared to the national average of 51%. When founders no longer have to navigate legal and administrative work themselves, they can focus on the things that actually determine whether a business survives.

Topics discussed

Legal TechSmall BusinessCo-FoundersScale-UpAustralian StartupsFintechGrowth Strategy

About the host

Steve Grace is the CEO and co-founder of The Nudge Group, a talent and advisory firm working with Australia’s fastest-growing tech and professional services companies. Connect on LinkedIn.

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