The Arizona State Law Journal has reported on a significant development in the legal community with an article titled “Arizona Alternative Business Structures – What KPMG Law US Could Mean for the Future of the Legal Community” by Courtney Czochara. KPMG, one of the “Big Four” accounting firms, is set to enter Arizona’s legal market through its subsidiary KPMG Law US, marking the first instance of a Big Four firm offering legal services in the United States. This move is facilitated by Arizona’s Alternative Business Structures (ABS) program, established in 2021 by the Arizona Supreme Court, which allows entities with nonlawyer owners and decision-makers to provide legal services, fostering innovation, investment opportunities, and increased access to legal assistance. As of February 2025, over one hundred ABSs have been approved in Arizona, combining legal practice with various industries, though KPMG Law US represents an unprecedented scale.
KPMG’s entry leverages Arizona’s ABS framework, one of only three states permitting such structures, contrasting with many states that uphold ethical prohibitions against lawyer-nonlawyer partnerships due to concerns over potential conflicts of interest and compromised professional judgment. Critics argue that existing ethics rules suffice to prevent misconduct, while Arizona’s program has yet to face major ethical issues. Globally, KPMG already provides legal services in eighty jurisdictions, focusing on areas like tax and transactional support, and in Arizona, it plans to extend its financial and consulting services with offerings like post-transactional contract integration. This multidisciplinary approach gives KPMG an edge over traditional law firms, though it claims its services will complement rather than compete with them.
The legal community is abuzz with speculation about the implications. KPMG Law US could prompt other Big Four firms to enter the U.S. market, potentially pressuring more states to adopt ABS models and intensifying competition for traditional corporate and tax law firms, both for clients and talent. This might drive traditional firms to enhance benefits to retain attorneys, though widespread ethical concerns, exemplified by California’s 2022 rejection of corporate law firm ownership, suggest a national shift may be slow. KPMG’s focus on existing clients and avoidance of litigation services further limits its immediate threat to traditional firms. While the long-term impact remains uncertain, KPMG Law US’s entry signals a potential evolution in the U.S. legal landscape, urging legal professionals to stay adaptable.