Nolo
A U.S. publisher and legal-information brand that produces plain-language do-it-yourself legal books, software, and online resources.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Nolo is a Berkeley, California-based legal-information publisher best known for making selected legal subjects more understandable to consumers and small-business owners. Its core proposition is that people should be able to address straightforward legal tasks themselves when doing so is reasonably practical, while recognizing that contested, specialized, or high-risk matters generally require professional legal advice. The brand’s publications and digital products have therefore occupied a space between general reference publishing and consumer legal services. The company began in 1971 after family-law attorney Ed Sherman wrote How to Do Your Own Divorce in California. Established publishers declined to release the manuscript because of concerns that publishing practical legal instructions might expose them to accusations of unauthorized practice of law. Sherman and Ralph Warner, a University of California, Berkeley law graduate, responded by creating their own publishing operation in an attic. Initially called Nolo Press, the company subsequently expanded its catalog of self-help legal guides. The name “Nolo” was drawn from the Latin expression commonly translated as “I would prefer not to,” reflecting the founders’ decision to publish the rejected work themselves rather than abandon it. Nolo’s subject coverage has included immigration, family law, employment, landlord-tenant matters, wills and trusts, business formation and partnerships, and intellectual property. Its books are generally written in accessible language and are intended to explain procedures, forms, terminology, and practical considerations that can otherwise be difficult for nonlawyers to navigate. The company has also developed legal software, including Quicken WillMaker, a do-it-yourself estate-planning product that can help users prepare wills, powers of attorney, and related documents. Its online presence extends the same consumer-oriented approach through legal articles, educational material, tools, and attorney-directory services. The brand’s approach has periodically brought it into tension with legal organizations concerned that practical legal publications could amount to the unauthorized practice of law. The first Nolo title attracted condemnation from the Sacramento Bar Association, but the controversy also increased public attention and sales. A more significant dispute emerged in Texas in 1997, when the Texas Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee investigated Nolo and similar publishers. Nolo sought a declaratory judgment, arguing that its books and online materials were protected informational publications rather than legal representation. The dispute contributed to legislative action in Texas that exempted websites and textbooks from unauthorized-practice accusations when they clearly stated that the materials were not substitutes for an attorney’s advice. Nolo broadened its activities in 2006 by launching an attorney directory. The directory was described as emphasizing a relatively limited group of participating lawyers within particular categories and providing information that allowed consumers to compare them. That same year, during the company’s 35th anniversary, Nolo retired an unofficial shark mascot that had appeared in older publications wearing a tie and carrying a briefcase. The playful imagery and slogans such as “LAW for ALL” helped distinguish Nolo from more formal legal publishers. In 2011, Nolo was acquired by Internet Brands, an online-media and services company. Under that ownership, Nolo remained associated with consumer legal information, do-it-yourself document tools, software, and lawyer-directory content. Its enduring identity is that of a legal self-help brand: it lowers the barrier to understanding routine legal matters without presenting its products as a replacement for counsel in difficult or disputed cases.
History
Nolo’s history began with a problem in legal publishing rather than with a conventional publishing launch. In 1971, California family-law attorney Ed Sherman prepared How to Do Your Own Divorce in California. Established publishers were reluctant to publish the manuscript because they feared that practical instructions for handling a divorce could expose them to claims that the publisher was engaging in the unauthorized practice of law. Sherman and Ralph Warner, a UC Berkeley law graduate, decided to publish the work themselves. They established Nolo Press in an attic and used the first book as the foundation for a broader legal self-help publishing business. The word “Nolo” came from the Latin expression generally understood as “I would prefer not to.” The founders considered the name appropriate because they had entered publishing only after other publishers declined their manuscript. The company went on to produce additional guides intended to explain routine legal matters to nonlawyers in direct, accessible language. Its coverage expanded across family law, immigration, employment, landlord-tenant questions, wills and trusts, business arrangements, and intellectual property. The brand’s materials were designed to help readers understand procedures and prepare documents, but they also emphasized that legal representation should be sought for complex, disputed, or otherwise difficult matters. The boundary between legal publishing and legal practice remained an important issue throughout Nolo’s development. The company’s first book was criticized by the Sacramento Bar Association, a response that nonetheless generated publicity and helped sales. In 1997, the Texas Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee opened an inquiry into Nolo and similar publishers. The committee questioned whether legal books and related materials crossed the line into unauthorized practice. Nolo filed suit seeking a declaration that its publications were lawful informational products. The American Association of Law Libraries and the Texas Library Association joined the action. Texas lawmakers subsequently enacted HR 1507, which expressly protected qualifying textbooks and websites from unauthorized-practice accusations when they clearly and conspicuously stated that the material was not a substitute for advice from an attorney. The committee then dropped its challenge to Nolo’s suit. Nolo also developed products beyond conventional books. Its legal software portfolio included Quicken WillMaker, a do-it-yourself estate-planning program supporting the preparation of wills, powers of attorney, and related documents. The company’s online materials extended its reference-publishing model to the web, providing legal explanations and practical resources. In 2006, Nolo added an attorney directory. The directory was presented as a selective comparison service, with participating lawyers grouped by areas such as business law and real estate and accompanied by information intended to help consumers make side-by-side assessments. Nolo cultivated an informal identity alongside its serious subject matter. Older publications used an unofficial shark mascot, sometimes depicted wearing a necktie and carrying a briefcase. The character expressed the company’s willingness to make fun of the legal profession, while slogans such as “LAW for ALL” communicated its accessibility agenda. Nolo retired the shark in 2006 during its 35th-anniversary period. In 2011, Internet Brands acquired Nolo. The transaction shifted the company into a larger digital-media and online-services ownership structure while preserving its association with legal self-help publishing. Nolo’s present brand identity rests on the combination of consumer legal education, do-it-yourself documents and software, and online connections to legal professionals. Its central distinction is not that it replaces lawyers, but that it seeks to make ordinary legal information and routine preparation more approachable before, or instead of, professional assistance where the situation is straightforward.
- 2011
Acquired by Internet Brands
[1]Internet Brands purchases Nolo and adds the publisher to its online-media and services portfolio.
- 2006
Attorney directory introduced
[1]Nolo adds an attorney-directory service designed to support comparison of participating lawyers by practice area.
- 2006
Unofficial shark mascot retired
[1]Nolo retires the humorous shark mascot used in earlier publications during the company’s 35th-anniversary period.
- 1997
Texas unauthorized-practice dispute
[1]A Texas committee investigates Nolo’s publications, leading to litigation and legislative clarification protecting qualifying legal books and websites with appropriate disclaimers.
- 1971
Nolo Press is founded
[1]Ed Sherman and Ralph Warner establish Nolo Press after conventional publishers decline Sherman’s do-it-yourself divorce manuscript.
- 1971
First do-it-yourself legal guide is published
[1]How to Do Your Own Divorce in California becomes the foundation of Nolo’s consumer legal publishing model.
Products and positioning
Accessible, plain-language legal information and do-it-yourself tools for consumers and small businesses, with explicit boundaries advising professional counsel for difficult or contested matters.
Legal publishing · 1971
Nolo legal self-help books
Nolo’s principal product line consists of practical legal guides written for consumers and small-business owners. The books address subjects including divorce, immigration, employment, business relationships, landlord-tenant issues, wills and trusts, and intellectual property. They explain legal concepts, procedures, and document preparation in plain language, while directing readers toward professional legal help when a matter is contested, unusually complex, or otherwise unsuitable for self-help.
Legal software
Quicken WillMaker
Quicken WillMaker is Nolo’s best-known software offering. It is designed to help individuals prepare routine estate-planning documents, including wills and powers of attorney, through a guided do-it-yourself process. The product extends Nolo’s publishing philosophy into document software: it offers structured information and preparation tools for ordinary situations while not purporting to replace legal advice in complicated estates or disputed circumstances.
Online legal reference
Nolo online legal information
Nolo’s web presence provides online explanations and practical resources covering many of the same areas as its books. The service makes consumer-oriented legal information available in a searchable digital format and supports the brand’s broader goal of helping people understand routine legal questions before deciding whether professional representation is needed.
Attorney directory · 2006
Nolo attorney directory
Introduced in 2006, the attorney directory connects Nolo’s self-help audience with participating lawyers. Its stated approach emphasizes a comparatively short list of attorneys within practice categories and provides information intended to allow consumers to compare providers. It complements, rather than replaces, Nolo’s educational and do-it-yourself resources.
Controversies
1997
Texas unauthorized-practice-of-law inquiry
The Texas Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee investigated Nolo and comparable publishers over whether their legal publications constituted unauthorized legal practice. Nolo pursued a declaratory lawsuit, joined by two library organizations. Legislative action subsequently clarified that qualifying books and websites could be protected when they prominently disclosed that they were not substitutes for attorney advice.
1971
Criticism of the first do-it-yourself divorce guide
The Sacramento Bar Association condemned Nolo’s first publication, How to Do Your Own Divorce in California. The criticism reflected concerns about nonlawyers receiving practical legal instructions, but it also generated publicity and a substantial increase in sales.
Brand decisions
2011
Join Internet BrandsM&ABackground
Nolo operated as an established legal-information publisher with books, software, and online resources.
Action taken
Internet Brands acquired Nolo.
Aftermath
Nolo became part of Internet Brands while continuing to operate under its established legal-information identity.
2006
Expand into attorney directoriesProduct launchBackground
Nolo had built an audience seeking practical legal information and tools, including guidance on when professional help might be necessary.
Action taken
The company launched an attorney directory organized around practice categories and comparison-oriented information.
Aftermath
The directory broadened Nolo’s offering from legal publishing and software toward lawyer discovery and referral-related services.
1971
Self-publish practical legal guidanceStrategyBackground
Established publishers declined Ed Sherman’s divorce manuscript because of concerns about unauthorized practice of law.
Action taken
Sherman and Ralph Warner created Nolo Press and published the work themselves, establishing a consumer legal self-help model.
Aftermath
The first book became the basis for a larger catalog of legal guides and the Nolo brand.
Recent events
Nolo partners with Turo on the Turo Seed Initiative[2]
Reported:
Nolo announced a partnership with Turo to provide legal services at special pricing to applicants to Turo's Seed Initiative. The initiative, launched by Turo in partnership with Kiva, offers funding to support small car-sharing businesses.
China Unicom and partners form a 5G XR terminal ecosystem alliance[3]
Reported:
China Unicom and 21 partners formed a 5G XR terminal ecosystem alliance during the China Unicom 5G XR industry forum and alliance founding event.
Sources3 sources
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