Technically Legal - A Legal Technology and Innovation Podcast

AffiniPay's Evolution: From Payment Platform to Practice Management Software and Beyond (Dru Armstrong, CEO)

Aug 28, 2024

Dru Armstrong, CEO of AffiniPay, a key player in legal fintech, dives into her journey from aspiring lawyer to leading a groundbreaking practice management software company. She outlines AffiniPay's transition from payment processing to acquiring MyCase, creating an all-in-one solution for law firms. Dru also discusses innovative offerings like Affirm's buy now, pay later service, touches on AI integration plans, and shares insights on the unique challenges and surprises of being a CEO in the evolving legal tech landscape.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

ANECDOTE

Family of Lawyers

Dru Armstrong's family, including her father and uncle, are lawyers.
This inspired her to study law at the University of Chicago, aiming to become a prosecutor.

ANECDOTE

Leaving Law

Dru Armstrong realized law wasn't for her after working at law firms.
She found law school isolating and big corporate law different from her father's smaller firm experience.

ANECDOTE

Restaurant Experience

Dru Armstrong took a year off to work in high-end New York restaurants.
She likens the intense, team-based kitchen environment to a football match meets ballet.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

AffiniPay is historically a fintech company with a big presence in legal. Their flagship product is LawPay used by law firms to bill clients and accept payments. Dru joined the company in 2021 and right around that time, the company ventured beyond the world of payment software and acquired MyCase, which is law practice management software used by law firms to keep all case details and documents in a single location, keep track of tasks and streamline client communications.

Growing up, Dru wanted to be a lawyer because she comes from family of lawyers, including her father. She studied law at the University of Chicago, but after a couple of gigs with law firms, she figured out that maybe the law wasn’t for her.

So, she finished her MBA and went to work for Boston Consulting. After a few years as a consultant, she needed a break, and, being somewhat of a foodie, she went to work in the kitchens of some of New York's finest dining establishments.

She took lessons learned from the kitchen into her later work as a co-founder of a baby monitor start-up and ultimately roles as CEO of the property management company Grace Hill and now AffiniPay.

In this episode, Dru talks about:

Joining AffiniPay and its mission
The company’s acquisition of MyCase and expansion into practice management software
Affirm, AffiniPay’s Buy now, pay later product and its impact
The company’s AI plans and integration within the platform
Core responsibilities of a CEO and what has surprised her in her role as a CEO

Want to keep up to date about new episodes? Technically Legal Update List.
Want to learn more about Percipient (percipient.co)?
Follow Chad on Linkedin: Chad Main | LinkedIn
Follow the podcast on LinkedIn: Technically Legal | LinkedIn
Follow the podcast on Instagram: Technically Legal | Instagram
Follow the podcast on X: Technically Legal | X

Episode Credits

Editing and Production: Grant Blackstock

Theme Music: Home Base (Instrumental Version) by TA2MI