Linea Law: Redefining the Brand of a Family Office Law Firm
Timeline: April 2024 – October 2024
Client: Linea Law – A family-run law firm specializing in real estate services for foreign clients, with offices in San José and Guanacaste, Costa Rica.
Challenge: Redesign the Linea Law brand and create a modern, content-rich website that showcases their expertise and professionalism, aligning with their reputation in the industry.
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The problem:
Linea Law’s logo needed a modern refresh while retaining its core identity. Their outdated website lacked engaging content and design, failing to convey their professionalism and expertise.
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Objective:
Redesign the brand identity and create a responsive, modern website that reflects Linea Law’s expertise and client-centric approach.
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My role:
Led user research, created the site map, refined content, designed wireframes and prototypes, developed the visual design, and collaborated with the developer to ensure quality control.
Understanding the user
Personas.
Business needs.
Personas
Don Mario: Business Owner Protecting His Family’s Legacy
Don Mario, a 50-year-old business owner from San José, Costa Rica, balances his thriving business with family life, including his wife and two kids. He enjoys traveling with his family to luxurious hotels. After bad experiences with legal teams, he seeks trustworthy professionals to handle his legal needs efficiently.
😡 Main Frustration: Don Mario struggles to find a legal team he trusts, feeling overlooked by big firms and confused by legal jargon. He values professionals who prioritize his needs and communicate clearly.
Real Estate Development Company: Seeking Reliable Legal Partners
An American real estate company with a large project in Costa Rica, relying on both local and international providers. They are accustomed to American standards and prioritize finding reliable, efficient service providers who meet their expectations.
😡 Main Frustration: Uncertainty about trusting legal teams, feeling deprioritized by big firms, and struggling to understand complex legal explanations.
Business Needs
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Primary Language
The website's main language is English to cater to the majority of clients from the United States. However, it also accommodates Costa Rican clients who prefer Spanish.
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Client Privacy
Protecting client privacy is a top priority, so their logos or names will not be included on the website.
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Focus on Nature
Most of the business revolves around real estate in Costa Rica’s coastal and mountainous regions. Using nature imagery will reflect this focus without displaying specific projects or mentioning names.
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Legal Document Support
We assist clients with legal documents that require submission throughout the year. While we currently use email notifications, we aim to implement a calendar feature to serve as a helpful guide for clients.
Re-Branding
Logotype Redesign.
Branding.
Logotype Redesign
Old Logotype
New Logotype
Branding
A brandbook was developed, along with designs for various printed materials tailored to the law firm's specific needs.
Website Design
Competitive Audience.
Site Map.
Design Iterations.
Competitive Audience
Typography as the Hero of Design
This reference website shows how prioritizing typography creates a clean, elegant, and minimalist aesthetic. This approach keeps the design visually appealing while ensuring content remains the focus.
Picture Highlight
This reference website prioritizes stunning images of land and nature, creating an inspiring yet simple and engaging aesthetic.
Site Map
Design Iterations
Protecting Client Privacy
Linea Law’s clients include high-profile individuals and companies with a strong need for anonymity. To ensure their privacy, no logos, names, or project details are included anywhere on the website.
Luxurious Minimalism
To maintain a minimalist aesthetic, we avoided using icons for each service. Instead, typography was utilized as the standout design element, reflecting elegance and simplicity.
Refining the Website Design
Final Design.
Final Design
Calendar of Responsibilities
A dedicated section was created featuring a calendar for Linea Law’s clients to use as a reference. Clients can easily add due dates directly to their personal calendars for better organization.
*This feature isn't public yet.
Highlighting Costa Rica
The website design emphasizes simplicity, giving prominence to carefully selected images featured in the header of each section. A collaborative process with the client ensured the perfect image was chosen for each area.
For the Future
Impact.
Lessons Learned.
Impact
“The redesign of our law firm’s brand and website was key to modernizing and staying up to date with market trends and the growing demand for content from our clients. The service was well-structured, and communication was clear, guiding us through the transition process. The team’s extensive knowledge provided a great sense of security throughout the experience as clients."
—Ricardo Batalla, partner at Linea Law
Lessons Learned
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Wait for All Assets
Do not proceed to the development phase until all assets (pictures, videos, texts, etc.) are received from the client.
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Prioritize Accessibility
Design with accessibility in mind, even if it's not the primary focus for the client’s users.