If you want to know what legal problems beset the average Australian, there is one source which claims “on the ground” stats. LawPath, the online legal platform that has been making waves in the legal industry for the past six months, says it has a pretty good handle on what prompts Australians to seek legal advice.

LawPath is angling itself as the punters' legal platform, where no question is too stupid to ask, and no lawyer too lofty for consultation. In less than a year it has accrued close to 350 lawyers on its books, matchmaking them with more than 3000 clients. It is backed by start-up specialist Pollenizer, and global legal database supplier LexisNexis. It has also just announced that a major investor is putting up $600,000 to help the platform with its ambitions in Asia.

Damien Andreasen and Paul Lupson: challenging the legal profession.

The platform, founded by Paul Lupson and Damian Andreason, is no legal directory. It acts as filter sizing up legal problems and passing on a potential client to an appropriate lawyer. That lawyer is bound by LawPath to offer his or her first half hour consultation free.

“The point of this is to take away the fear factor,” says Lupson. “People don't approach lawyers because they think every time they pick up the phone they're up for $500.”