Smokeball Reaches Landmark Milestone, Empowering 500,000 U.S. Lawyers with Legal Tech Access

Smokeball is setting new expectations for how bar associations support their members by giving them free access to trust accounting software.

Chicago, IL — February 11, 2025 — In a trailblazing move for the legal tech industry, Smokeball, the industry-leading legal practice management software platform, now provides free access to its innovative technology to half a million U.S. lawyers through partnerships with multiple State Bar Associations. Smokeball Bill, a complete trust accounting and billing software solution for solo and small legal practitioners, empowers lawyers to manage client trust accounts with ease and compliance while delivering better client results. 

For many lawyers, the realities of running a law firm — something not covered in law school — can be daunting and take time away from focusing on meaningful casework. Additionally, solo and small practitioners often face significant challenges balancing the demands of their practice with their personal lives. Without easy access to technology, managing essential tasks like trust accounting becomes even more complex, adding ethical and operational burdens to an already overwhelming workload.

"Envision the difference it will make when half a million lawyers have the freedom to focus entirely on practicing law and advancing justice rather than managing back office tasks like trust accounting, billing, and invoicing,” said Jane Oxley, CRO and co-founder of Smokeball. “With solo and small law firms making up the majority of America’s legal field, it’s vital for them to have access to the same legal technology as larger firms — empowering them to make a difference in their communities. Our strategic partnerships with state bar associations make this possible.”

Smokeball’s free product partnerships currently span 10 exclusive relationships with state bar associations, including the State Bar of Texas, the D.C. Bar, the New York State Bar Association, the California Lawyers Association, the Virginia State Bar, the Maryland State Bar Association, the Alabama State Bar, the Oklahoma Bar Association,  the Colorado Bar Association, and the Nebraska State Bar Association. Looking ahead, Smokeball is poised to maintain its momentum with significant expansion efforts with bar associations planned for this year.

“Through our partnership with Smokeball, we are providing our members with access to free trust accounting software, an essential tool for improving their practice management and compliance,” said Trey Apffel, executive director of the State Bar of Texas. “This initiative has increased our support to our members, particularly solo practitioners and small firms, by providing them with essential tools that were once out of reach for many. By helping to bridge the technology gap, we’ve empowered more Texas lawyers to streamline their processes, giving them more time to focus on their clients and their cases.”

The State Bar of Texas became the first bar association to offer free access to Smokeball Bill through its partnership with Smokeball, opening the door for other bar associations to adopt this initiative and support their lawyer members. 

For lawyers looking to access Smokeball’s free product offering in their state, reach out to your state bar association for additional information.

About Smokeball

Smokeball is your partner to drive your law firm into the future. As the industry's leading cloud-based legal practice management software, Smokeball empowers you to run your firm specific to your area of law. Our platform gives you all the insights and tools you need to work smarter, not harder: automatic time tracking and invoicing, streamlined workflows for your specific practice area, a library of over 20,000 standard legal forms and documents, and actionable reports. Smokeball is a member benefit of over 20 US bar associations. Learn how to run your best firm at smokeball.com.