Calculist
Case Study
Web-based SaaS product for attorneys offering case management, Child Support Guidelines calculations & property division calculations
At a Glance
Client
Calculist
Project Phase 1
Design and build MVP of product, with billing mechanism and all calculations for child support guidelines and division of property worksheets.
Project Phase 2
Add a Pro tier with enhanced features to increase revenues for power users.
Services Provided
UX Blueprint, UX Focus Sprint, roadmapping, quality assurance, project management, custom web app development, ongoing support.
Services Provided
UX Blueprint
UX Focus Sprints
Security management
Roadmapping
Custom web app development
Custom Stripe integration
Ongoing support
0% User-initiated Churn
All churn due to firms no longer practicing family law.
90% Lower Total Churn
As compared with industry average. 3% total annual churn for Calculist vs. 31% industry average.
The Client
Calculist is a cloud-based software platform that helps family law attorneys calculate child support, divide property equitably, and generate court-ready documents—quickly, accurately, and with confidence.
The Situation
Calculist founder Joslyn Sailer, a respected family law attorney, came to us with an idea to create software that would make the practice of family law easier. She recognized that most attorneys were not comfortable with the complex child support calculations required by law.
At the time, many attorneys were relying on software that was not cloud-based and was cumbersome to use, leaving data siloed on one attorney’s computer. She envisioned a world in which attorneys could collaborate with their teams by securely storing case data in the cloud and providing a user-friendly experience that would encourage attorneys to harness efficiencies and produce more accurate, attractive, and organized case documents.
It was critical, first and foremost, that the calculations for child support (and property division, another key feature) be rock-solid. She knew that was critical to earn trust from attorneys and judges. The system also had to make it easy for legal teams to stay organized. A case may span months or even years, with multiple revisions and touchpoints with the client. Joslyn knew there was an opportunity to make management easier.
Finally, Joslyn also recognized that understanding the multi-page worksheets required by the state was challenging for clients, and even some attorneys and judges. She recognized the need for a new kind of document that would summarize the key information so anyone -- attorney, judge or client -- could understand at a glance.
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The Solution
We worked with Joslyn to design, architect and build the MVP of Calculist, as well as support, upgrade and maintain it post-launch.
Highlights:
Conducted stakeholder research sessions, discussing important priorities
Mapped the logic for complex calculations required by state law, which includes calculations for state and federal taxes
Designed a proprietary Case Summary document, highlighting key inputs and figures so that all interested parties could understand calculations at-a-glance
Designed all screens
Used brand assets developed by Happy Medium to develop software styles
Modeled team strategy, allowing legal teams to collaborate on cases
Built billing function with Stripe integration
Coded, reviewed, and tested product
Maintained and supported product on an ongoing basis
The Results Up Close
Results: In the client’s words
“I approached People-Friendly Tech a couple of years ago to help me develop a child support software. I chose to work with the PFT team after meeting with various developers and I am so glad I did. Erin and her team are smart, creative, accurate, and reliable. My project was fairly complex to create, but the team has been attentive and thorough since day one. I have a great relationship with the team and I would highly recommend People-Friendly Tech.”
Joslyn Sailer
Founder
Calculist
The Transition: Graduation, Not Goodbye
After 3 years, Calculist had achieved enough success to enter a new phase: bringing development in-house. We saw this not as an ending, but as a graduation.
We have a specifically tailored program for clients who reach this impressive milestone, called our Graduation Program. Over the course of a few weeks, we worked side by side with their new in-house developer—hosting learning sessions, sharing documentation, and answering questions—to make sure they felt confident taking the reins. The collaborative spirit that defined our work together carried through to this transition, and we continue to cheer them on as they take their next steps forward.
Security and compliance
Calculist knew a secure, compliant solution was critical to achieve trust from brands and social media platforms. That’s why we partnered with them to secure the platform so they -- and their users -- could feel confident.
A listing of our available services is provided below. We do not share specifics of particular clients’ security posture.
HIPAA Compliance
We’re fluent in HIPAA requirements and design our applications to protect personal health information from the ground up.
From secure authentication flows to careful handling of user data, our team is trained to recognize and respect protected health information (PHI) throughout the product lifecycle.
ADA Compliance
We follow WCAG 2.2 guidelines to ensure accessibility is built into every screen we design—not retrofitted later. Our designers and engineers are trained in accessible interface practices, and we routinely test for keyboard navigation, screen reader compatibility, and color contrast to make sure your app works for everyone.
Security
Security isn’t just a checklist—it’s part of our engineering culture. We implement secure coding standards, have every pull request double-peer reviewed, and integrate with trusted identity providers. Our team is trained in secure development practices and routinely collaborates with client IT and compliance teams to meet or exceed enterprise security standards.
What sets us apart
Clients come back again and again because we offer:
Speed of delivery: We offer startup pace, with enterprise quality.
Empathetic UX research: We are skilled facilitators and researchers who will make the process easy for you.
Interdisciplinary collaboration: We emphasize a collaborative approach, bringing together UX, operations, security, compliance, marketing and data teams to quickly iterate on the best solutions.
Onshore development team: We are a fully remote team proudly located 100% in the United States.
Design QA discipline: We QA not only for functionality, but also for smoothness of use and aesthetic beauty. You deserve to be proud of your application.
Security & Compliance rigor: Security and compliance are an integral focus of our training and design from day one.