Legal Marketplace Platform

Overview

A two-sided marketplace platform that connects individuals and businesses seeking legal services with verified attorneys and law firms, streamlining the process from initial consultation to case resolution.

The platform's Node.js backend manages user profiles for both clients and legal professionals, practice area categorisation, availability scheduling, and a review system. MySQL handles core relational data — cases, contracts, billing records, and user accounts — while Redis powers session management, real-time notification queues, and rate limiting.

Couchbase is used as a document store for unstructured case materials, correspondence threads, and legal document templates, enabling flexible schema evolution as new document types are introduced. A search feature allows clients to filter lawyers by practice area, location, rating, and fee range.

The escrow-based billing system holds client funds in trust until predefined milestones are approved, reducing payment disputes. An integrated document signing workflow (via a third-party e-signature API) allows contracts and retainer agreements to be executed entirely within the platform. The system onboarded over 300 legal professionals in its first six months.