Empowering Single Parents: The Journey of Family Shield
- V Khanna
- Jun 8
- 2 min read
At Sbur Decision Lab, we feature entrepreneurs sharing their stories and decision-making to help others achieve success. In this episode, we speak with Akila, the founder of Family Shield, a legal tech platform designed to bridge the enforcement gap in family law.
The Inspiration: From the Classroom to the Courtroom
Akila's journey began with a background in music education, teaching at an international school in India. During this time, she observed how struggles at home, specifically child support and custody issues, directly impacted a student's engagement and future potential.
Later, while attending Suffolk Law School, a family law class highlighted a glaring systemic issue: litigation is often only accessible to those with significant financial resources. This inspired her to create a solution for the "underserved middle"—families who earn too much for legal aid but cannot afford $350-an-hour attorneys.
Key Learning: Navigating Sensitive Customer Discovery
One of the most significant challenges Akila faced was customer discovery. While the need for the platform is high—with 15 million custodial parents in the U.S. and $33 billion in unpaid child support annually—the topic is deeply personal and sensitive.
Insight: Building trust is paramount when dealing with sensitive legal and personal data.
Strategy: To overcome this, Akila is conducting trauma-informed interviews and partnering with legal aid organizations and nonprofits to reach parents in a supportive environment.
The Solution: Closing the Enforcement Gap
Family Shield is a comprehensive platform that combines violation tracking, evidence organization, and document generation. It serves two primary pathways:
For Parents: A guided interview helps parents track violations, which then auto-organizes evidence (like texts and receipts) into court-ready exhibits and affidavits.
For Attorneys: A B2B SaaS tool automates intake and generates draft filings, significantly reducing the hours needed per client and increasing efficiency.
Future Roadmap and Strategic Decisions
Akila has been actively building Family Shield since March and currently has a working prototype. Her immediate next steps include:
Validating the MVP: Continuing parent interviews and legal feedback to ensure documents are jurisdiction-specific and court-accurate.
Building a Team: Transitioning from a solo founder to building a team of advisors in family law and marketing.
Fundraising: Raising seed funding, with a priority on $200k for MVP development and pilot testing in Massachusetts before expanding nationwide.
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