It was a long wait… but it was worth it.

Each year since November 2018, AMK Law has entered the Australian Small Business Champion Awards Legal Services category, which recognises the hard work of the best small businesses around the country.

“Our team is pleased to reach finalist status every year, but we have never taken the top prize.  At the 2021 awards ceremony, we were fortunate enough through our hard work and dedication to achieve the award. Persistence and effort are always worth it in the end”, says Founder and Director Matthew Karakoulakis.

AMK Law is officially an Australian Small Business Champion. It was such a surprise to receive the phone call on Sunday morning letting us know we were winners and that our trophy was on the way.

What makes a champion law firm?

AMK Law was established in 2014 to deliver excellent value and personalised legal services for Australian small businesses. A big part of our mission is to contribute to the Aboriginal community and our team acknowledges our responsible approach towards our community objectives.

While the  AMK Law team strives to deliver the best support to our clients, it is the services we deliver to the community that really sets our firm apart.

As a proud Aboriginal-owned business, AMK Law is incredibly motivated to support and promote others in the Aboriginal business community. We do this in a range of ways, including taking on pro bono clients, sub-contract work, external purchases and travelling out of our way to deliver workshops.

Last year, we were involved in developing materials with the sole purpose of providing a range of governance and training services to help First Nations Boards of Directors. This means understanding the legal obligations as well as the requirements for good governance.

Our Founder and Director Matthew also achieved his qualification as an accredited mediator during the 2020 year.  This accreditation means delivering results as a mediator, with the view to helping business owners avoid otherwise costly and time-consuming legal conflicts.

By sharing articles, hosting webinars and appearing as a guest on podcasts, Matthew is always working towards his goal of educating business owners so they are clear on the legal requirements of running their business. This way, business owners can rise together, become stronger and continue to provide employment opportunities for all Australians.

Innovation and forward-thinking

As a modern, boutique law firm, AMK Law is always looking for ways to reduce costs and make life easier for our clients.

Part of the reason we finally made it to the top of the Small Business Champion list was that we have demonstrated a unique approach to innovation. We are prepared to invest time and effort in building strong relationships and offer a convenient, cloud-based service that is efficient and organised.

To keep things as affordable as possible, we have also developed a series of precedent documents for our Australian small business clients. They can fill out a simple and smart questionnaire to generate a top-tier quality legal document almost instantly. As a result, they can avoid having to pay the hour-by-hour premiums of a commercial lawyer.

We are really proud of the way AMK Law uses technology to streamline our services and are always keeping an eye out for ways to make things even easier.

Communication is key

Last year was a big year for everybody and it really brought home the importance of keeping in touch.

At AMK Law, we see our clients as people, not numbers, and we want to know they are ok. This is why we spend so much time on the phone!

In 2020 in particular, Matthew and the team spent many hours reaching out to current and prospective clients, helping them overcome the challenges caused by COVID and sharing as much advice as we could.

Truth be told, while it is such an honour for AMK Law to be recognised as so much more than your everyday law firm, we have always felt like winners.

Whether we are supporting and promote Aboriginal business owners, teaching entrepreneurs how to avoid the pitfalls of starting a business or mentoring young Aboriginal people, witnessing the positive change that comes from our efforts is the biggest reward of all.

You can view the 2020 Small Business Champion Awards Winners here

AMK Law acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which we are fortunate to live and work. We pay our respects to Elders, both past and present and further acknowledge the important role that Indigenous people continue to play within our communities.