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Brian Liu

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Brian P.Y. Liu (born 1967)[1] is an American lawyer who was a co-founder of LegalZoom,[2][3][4] and the founder of BizCounsel and Overture Law.[5][6]

Biography

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He was born in Taipei, Taiwan and moved to Bellevue, Washington at the age of 5.[7] Liu graduated with a B.S. in Biochemistry from UC Berkeley and earned his J.D. from UCLA School of Law in 1996.[8] He began his career in corporate law at Sullivan & Cromwell, where he specialized in IPOs and mergers & acquisitions. He later moved to an in-house legal role at Oaktree Capital Management, a global investment firm.[9]

He conceived LegalZoom in 1999 after planning it with Brian Lee, his college friend from UCLA Law School.[10] Their goal was to create an online resource that would make basic legal resources available to anyone through the Internet.[5][11][12] 

He launched the company in 2001 with Robert Shapiro, Edward Hartman and his friend Brian Lee, whom he met at UCLA Law School.[13][14][15][16] Liu and Lee bootstrapped the company from their own funds.[17] Liu served as chief executive officer of LegalZoom until 2007 and was chairman of the Board of Directors until 2018.[1][18]

LegalZoom went public in 2021 under symbol Nasdaq: LZ.[19] After LegalZoom, Liu started BizCounsel, which offers legal plans and general counsel memberships for startups and growing businesses.[6] Liu officially launched BizCounsel in October 2018.[20]

Liu launched Overture Law in 2022, which is an attorney referral platform.[21][22][23] The platform allows independent business attorneys to ethically earn a fee when they refer cases to each other.[23][24]

Liu has served as a guest on the nationally syndicated radio talk show Business Rockstars.[25]

Liu is a panel member of Lawtech UK, a public/private collaboration in the United Kingdom whose aim is to aid the digital development of the legal sector.[26][7]

Following his tenure at LegalZoom, Liu founded L&F Brown, where he advises legal tech startups and entrepreneurs.[2]

Outside the legal sector, Liu is on the board of Da Zen Theranostics, a biotech company focused on oncology therapeutics and diagnostics. He also manages two real estate investment funds.[9]

Liu is a keynote speaker and panelist on legal innovation, entrepreneurship, and access to justice. He has appeared at global conferences such as FutureLaw Estonia, and was featured on the DealMakers Podcast, where he shared insights on his entrepreneurial journey, startup struggles, and transitioning from corporate law to tech founder.[27]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Brian P. Liu Profile". www.martindale.com. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  2. ^ a b Huspeni, Alyson Shontell, Andrea. "The 23 Hot Los Angeles Startups You Need To Watch". Business Insider. Retrieved 2023-03-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Childress, Steven Alan (2012-01-29). Hot Topics in the Legal Profession - 2012. Quid Pro Books. p. 20. ISBN 978-1-61027-111-0.
  4. ^ Cohen, Barry H.; Rybarski, Michael (2009-12-18). Start-Up Smarts: The Thinking Entrepreneur's Guide to Starting and Growing Your Business. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4405-1291-9.
  5. ^ a b "LegalZoom – Democratizing Law through Innovation and Perseverance". IVP. 2021-06-30. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  6. ^ a b "LegalZoom Co-Founder Applies SAAS to Legal Services". bizjournals.com. 2019-05-21. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  7. ^ a b "AI and law sector expert appointed to LawtechUK Panel". liverpool.ac.uk. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  8. ^ "Dean's Roundtable" (PDF). UCLA Law. 28 (2): 33. Spring 2006.
  9. ^ a b Cremades, Alejandro. "This Entrepreneur Built A $2 Billion Business With 1,000 Employees By Disrupting The Legal Industry". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-06-16.
  10. ^ John, Daymond; Paisner, Daniel (2019-03-26). Rise and Grind: Outperform, Outwork, and Outhustle Your Way to a More Successful and Rewarding Life. Crown. p. 142. ISBN 978-0-8041-8997-2.
  11. ^ "Money Dreams: Start a Business - content.2". money.cnn.com. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  12. ^ "Case Study: LegalZoom". Justice Dashboard. 2021-02-04. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  13. ^ "For BizCounsel's Brian Liu, Tough Times Can Spell Opportunity for Startups. He Knows Because He's Been There". bam.vc. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  14. ^ "15 years later, LegalZoom still fighting to fix 'a quiet crisis'". builtinaustin.com. 2016-05-23. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  15. ^ "Legal Evolution". Character Media. 2007-06-02. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  16. ^ Fisher, Daniel (2011-10-05). "Entrepreneurs Versus Lawyers". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  17. ^ "Atrium—A Cautionary Tale". Legal Innovation & Technology Today (29): 10. March 2021.
  18. ^ "LegalZoom Co-Founder Joins Prenup Co. As Adviser, Investor". law360.com. 2022-09-20. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  19. ^ Singh, Pia (30 June 2021). "LegalZoom shares jump 35% in market debut; CEO sees further opportunity in online legal services". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  20. ^ Beaver, Dennis (7 June 2019). "You and the Law: BizCounsel Promises Affordable Access to Legal Services for Business". Hanford Sentinel. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  21. ^ "Overture Law, P.C. Trademark Registration". USPTO.report. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  22. ^ "LegalZoom Co-Founder's Newest Venture: Overture Law, an 'Invite-Only' Referral Platform". Legaltech News. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  23. ^ a b "How Legal Tech Pros Built New Small Atty Referral Platform - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  24. ^ "LegalZoom Co-Founder's Newest Venture: Overture Law, an 'Invite-Only' Referral Platform". Legaltech News. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  25. ^ Zarczynski, Andrea (2015-08-07). "Business Rockstars: Expanding the Brand by Growing the "Band"". C-Suite Quarterly. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  26. ^ "The LawtechUK Panel". Tech Nation. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  27. ^ "🇺🇸 Brian Liu". FutureLaw 2025. Retrieved 2025-06-16.
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