Trust is more critical for business success than ever before. It forms the foundation of every thriving service-based enterprise, especially in sectors like law, where clients rely heavily on integrity, transparency, and ethical conduct.
Without trust, even the most skilled services can struggle to build lasting relationships, impacting sustainable growth.
According to the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer, Australia’s overall Trust Index has fallen to just 49, signalling broad public distrust across business, government, media, and NGOs. Alarmingly, two-thirds of Australians now worry that business leaders are deliberately misleading them.
This weakening of trust points to a critical area for improvement, especially for service-based industries like law, where trust is not just important, but fundamental. For small and medium-sized law firms, this represents a unique opportunity to build trust amongst new clientele. With their agility, close client relationships, and growing tech fluency, these businesses can scale trust in ways that perhaps larger institutions often can’t.
While reputation and experience remain vital, they’re no longer enough on their own. In today’s tough economic climate, credibility is built through genuine, human-centred connections, supported by transparent processes and thoughtful use of technology that enhances communication, clarity, and client confidence. Small law firms are uniquely positioned to rebuild trust by using technology in innovative ways that actually enhance authenticity, such as using tools such as VXT to record client calls, enabling more detailed, timely follow-ups and truly personalised service.
The legal trust crisis
The legal profession is grappling with a significant trust deficit, with only about 40% of Australians saying they trust lawyers and judges. This reflects broader public scepticism towards the legal sector and is driven by rising expectations for transparency, fairness, and ethical conduct. In the legal context, trust is especially vital because clients often seek help during some of life’s most stressful and complex moments, such as resolving disputes, navigating a divorce, or buying a home, when clarity, empathy, and a genuine partnership are as important as legal expertise.
Crucially, trust is not synonymous with ethics. While lawyers must meet specific ethical obligations under professional conduct rules, that is only the baseline. Trust is something that is earned through consistent, transparent communication, dependable follow-through, and a visible commitment to clients’ best interests. In other words, trust is built not just through compliance but through care.
Small law firms and “legalpreneurs” — entrepreneurial, client-focused practitioners are uniquely positioned to build this trust. Free from legacy systems and rigid structures, smaller firms adapt quickly, build stronger client relationships, and deliver personalised, client-centric experiences.
How can small firms build trust that scales?
Small law firms face growing client expectations around clarity and fairness, making trust more important than ever. They build trust by embracing transparency, proactive communication, technology, and clear billing practices. And they scale trust by baking it into systems, pricing, communication and culture as they grow. Transparency can be achieved through:
- Offering fixed or flat-fee pricing models that give clients certainty about costs from the outset, removing the stress of unexpected bills.
- Client portals scale transparency —these secure, cloud-based platforms give every client consistent access to progress and paperwork, helping them feel informed and in control.
- Communication is equally vital. Firms that provide regular, jargon-free updates — whether via email, messaging apps, or video calls- all create a welcoming environment where clients feel respected and valued throughout their legal journey.
- Technology automates routine workflows like appointment reminders, document sharing, and billing notifications, ensuring timely and consistent client engagement.
- Billing should be structured to charge only for completed work, with invoices itemised and easy to understand, helping to alleviate concerns over hidden fees or unnecessary charges.
These steps allow small firms to build trust that scales, handling more clients without sacrificing the personal touch that clients value most.
Marketing for scaling trust
Marketing is often a challenge for small law firms. Many operate in niche areas, struggle to communicate their value clearly, or rely too heavily on word-of-mouth. But in today’s digital landscape, strong, strategic marketing is essential for building trust at scale.
Social media, especially LinkedIn, offers a powerful way to reach and engage the right audiences – it enables firms to showcase their expertise, humanise their brand, and share insights that make legal services feel more accessible. More than half of Australians use social media for brand research. For law firms, this is an opportunity to build credibility by consistently showing up, sharing knowledge, and highlighting their unique strengths.
Done well, marketing becomes more than a growth tool, it becomes a way to earn trust at scale.
Closing the trust gap: an SME advantage
Scaling trust in law and business isn’t something that happens through clever marketing or one-off initiatives. It requires deep, consistent commitment to being more open, more human, and more client-focused. This is the moment for small firms to lead. With their agility, authenticity, and connection to community, they can not only meet rising client expectations but set a new standard. By prioritising transparency, embracing modern tools, and building relationships that go beyond transactions, small firms can shift perceptions and elevate the entire profession.
Businesses that rise to this challenge will do more than grow their practice. They’ll build stronger reputations, deeper client loyalty, and a lasting legacy of trust—at a time when it’s needed most.
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