Dear Friends,

I’m happy to announce The Kalon Law Firm, LLC is now open. I’ve been thinking about a new law firm business model for many years, but it is only in the last year, enrolled in an eight-class program on innovation at the GSB, that I felt confident in making it work. Stanford helped me think not just out of the box, but away from the box, and then without reference to the box. Much of the design of the firm comes from the process of design thinking, which begins with understanding what a client wants, brainstorming and experimenting with solutions, and then testing and rolling out the final product, which is actually never final, since it is always being improved.

Our business model is lean, is based on operational excellence, and seeks purpose, mastery, and autonomy for our people.

I was not alone in this process. We have an amazing founding team: Ron Houde and Demetra Turi. We are each strong in different ways and compliment each other. We have a flat hierarchy, so each of us has a voice and a stake in our process. And we are not alone. We have had many professionals guide us, help build us, and improve us.

We built Kalon to serve two groups: clients of the firm and employees of the firm. For clients (insurers and their insureds) we sought to understand what needs they are seeking to have fulfilled by a law firm. For employees, we sought to understand what they are looking for from employment, and to learn especially why so many lawyers leave the practice of law and how we could attract and retain our attorneys.

It seemed to me that law firm business models were based on old paradigms that were stifling innovation. William Gibson quipped, “The future is already here – it’s just not very evenly distributed.” I set out to discover the thinking of the future and use it to build a better law firm. I think we have done that with Kalon.

People have asked me, “Who is Kalon?” No one. Kalon is not a person. Kalon is an ideal (it’s an old Greek word). We decided not to use the traditional choice of taking the name of a partner for a firm to signal we are innovative and we are about more than just the named partners.

We learned clients want their problem identified, a strategy to solve their problem, and follow through (including timely, to-the-point communication) at a reasonable fee. Employees want meaningful work, professional growth, flexibility, and camaraderie.

We looked for ways to use technology to meet these needs. Because we are new, we could build our infrastructure from a clean slate. We are leveraging technology to be digital, mobile, and have information at our fingertips (literally). Our files are digital (that makes us green too) and accessible from our laptops (which double as tablets). Our people can work securely anywhere there is a WiFi connection, eliminating commutes and needless “face-time.” In a sense, all the world is our office. Our tech gives us the ability to better meet client needs and allows our people work-style flexibility.

We eliminated the annual billable goal. Ask any lawyer in private practice if there is a part they hate and you’ll get the same answer: the annual billable hour goal. Keeping track of time is fine. It’s the march to meet a 2,000 annual billable goal that is so onerous, because it becomes the focus and measure of performance. At Kalon, we don’t have an annual goal. Instead, we have a revenue-based compensation system, which gives us flexibility and focuses us on the real performance metrics.

We decided to not have a traditional legal office, with a big lobby and cozy, expensive personal offices. Instead, we are based in a loft with a conference room. Our space is open, sunny, and filled with fresh air when we open our enormous windows. Sometimes our people work at the loft, sometimes they work at home. This week, I am working from New Orleans.

We have a core skills requirement and a professional development program so our people have basic competencies and will continue to grow.

We built our client services around a four-point matrix based on a model developed by a leading services company. We began with a focus on what our clients want, developed delivery systems (our people and our tech) to meet those needs, set quality standards (such as checklists and set procedures), and now work to integrate all three.

We also plan to contribute to the community we are based in. We will make an announcement soon. For now, I can say that we will be partnering with an amazing non-profit here in Hartford to add to their mission.

All of the above work together to draw quality employees, invigorate our team, and deliver better legal services to our clients for less.

We have been open for less than a month. Even though a great deal of thought and experimenting went into building Kalon, we are still innovating. Big things have small beginnings, and we are just beginning.

Christopher P. Kriesen
June 25, 2017

Disclaimer

The information you obtain at this site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for advice regarding your individual situation. We invite you to contact us and welcome your calls, letters and electronic mail. Contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not send any confidential information to us until such time as an attorney-client relationship has been established.

Privacy Policy

This privacy policy applies to information collected online from users of this website. In this policy, you can learn what kind of information we collect, when and how we might use that information, how we protect the information, and the choices you have with respect to your personal information.

What personal information is collected through this website and how is it used?

We collect information about our users in three ways: directly from the user, from our Web server logs and through cookies. We use the information primarily to provide you with a personalized Internet experience that delivers the information, resources, and services that are most relevant and helpful to you. We don’t share any of the information you provide with others, unless we say so in this Privacy Policy, or when we believe in good faith that the law requires it.

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Information that you provide to us through the contact form or an online chat will be used so that we may respond to your inquiry. We may also use information you provide to us to communicate with you in the future. If you do not wish to receive such communications, you may opt out (unsubscribe) as described below.

Web server logs: When you visit our website, we may track information about your visit and store that information in web server logs, which are records of the activities on our sites. The servers automatically capture and save the information electronically. Examples of the information we may collect include:

The information we collect in web server logs helps us administer the site, analyze its usage, protect the website and its content from inappropriate use and improve the user’s experience.

Cookies: In order to offer and provide a customized and personal service, our websites and applications may use cookies and similar technologies to store and help track information about you. Cookies are simply small pieces of data that are sent to your browser from a Web server and stored on your computer’s hard drive. We use cookies to help remind us who you are and to help you navigate our sites during your visits. Cookies also can tell us where visitors go on a website and allow us to save preferences for you so you won’t have to re-enter them each time you visit. The use of cookies is relatively standard. Most Internet browsers are initially set up to accept cookies, but you can use your browser to either notify you when you receive a cookie or to disable cookies.

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By visiting this website, you consent to the use of cookies and similar technologies in accordance with this Privacy Statement.

Third-party Services: We may use services hosted by third parties, including Adobe Site Catalyst, to assist in providing our services and to help us understand the use of our site by our visitors. These services may collect information sent by your browser as part of a web page request, including your IP address or cookies. If these third-party services collect information, they do so anonymously and in the aggregate to provide information helpful to us such as website trends, without identifying individual visitors.

In addition, we may use services provided by third parties to display relevant content, products, services and advertising to you. These third parties may use cookies, web beacons and similar technologies to collect or receive information from this website and elsewhere on the internet. They may then use that information to provide measurement services so we can understand your interests and retarget advertisements based on your previous visits to this website. Please keep in mind that we do not share your personal information with any third-party advertiser, ad server or ad network.

You may be able to opt-out of the collection and use of information for ad targeting by some third parties by visiting www.aboutads.info/choices. You can opt out of Google’s use of cookies by visiting Google’s Ad Settings. You can visit this page to opt out of AdRoll’s and their partners’ targeted advertising. Please see “Cookies” in the section above for more information on how you can control the use of cookies on your computer.

California Do Not Track: Our web services do not alter, change, or respond upon receiving Do Not Track (DNT) requests or signals in browsers. As described in more detail above, we track user activity using web server logs, cookies and similar technologies. Information collected in web server logs helps us analyze website usage and improve the user’s experience. Cookies allow us to offer you a customized experience and present relevant advertising to you.

How is personal information protected?

We take certain appropriate security measures to help protect your personal information from accidental loss and from unauthorized access, use or disclosure. However, we cannot guarantee that unauthorized persons will always be unable to defeat our security measures.

Who has access to the information?

We will not sell, rent, or lease mailing lists or other user data to others, and we will not make your personal information available to any unaffiliated parties, except as follows:

How can I correct, amend or delete my personal information and/or opt out of future communications?

You may opt out of any future contacts from us at any time. Contact us via the phone number, contact form or mailing address on our website at any time to:

If you have any additional questions or concerns about this privacy policy, please contact us via the phone number, contact form or mailing address listed on this website. If our information practices change in a significant way, we will post the policy changes here.

Effective September 14, 2015

Hartford Square Office

GOOGLE MAP »
Directions for Hartford Square

From the North

Take Route 91 South to the “Capitol Area” Exit 29A. You will be on the Whitehead Highway. The first exit is Columbus Boulevard. Take this exit and turn Left at the light. Go over the bridge. Our building is the 10 floor Silver building on the Left. The Garage entrance is at the beginning of the building.

From the South

Take Route 91 North to the “Capitol Area” Exit 29A and follow the directions above.

From the West

Take Route 84 East to Route 91 South. Take your first exit on Route 91, the “Capitol Area” Exit 29A. and follow the directions above.

From the East

Take Route 84 West to the “Downtown Hartford” Exit. You will cross the Connecticut River on the Founders Bridge (stay in the Left Lane) and come to a traffic light with the downtown area directly in from of you. Turn Left at the light on Columbus Boulevard. Pass the Convention Center and go over the bridge. Our building is the 10 floor Silver building. The Garage entrance is at the beginning of the building.

Parking

The parking garage is located underground. Go up the stairs to the lobby and check in at the security desk. You must exchange your parking ticket for a token in order to leave the garage.

KALON