A lawsuit has been filed against Donotpay, an online legal service provider, for operating without a license. The lawsuit was filed by Jonathan Faridian, a resident of California, who claims that the services he received from Donotpay were “poor-quality and poorly executed”.
The Edelson Law Firm of Chicago, which filed the lawsuit on Faridian’s behalf, alleges that Donotpay is not a robot, lawyer or law firm. The company does not possess a legal education degree, is not prohibited in any jurisdiction and operates without the supervision of any lawyer.
The lawsuit has been filed in the district court of San Francisco, where Faridian claims to have used Donotpay’s services for the preparation of letters, applications for small litigation and operating agreements with legal entities.
Donotpay was originally launched in 2015 as an application to fight against fines for parking, but has expanded its services to help customers overcome bureaucracy, find hidden money and “sue with everyone”. The company claims to provide legal services using artificial intelligence, eliminating the need to hire a lawyer.
Joshua Browder, the CEO of Donotpay, has dismissed the claims as “unfounded” and has promised to fight the lawsuit in court. Browder also expressed admiration for Jay Edelson, the founder of the law firm Edelson, who filed the lawsuit against Donotpay.