Linn Legal is a Cincinnati law firm that helps business owners, real estate investors, and families navigate business transactions, commercial real estate, probate, and estate planning. The firm’s four-person team includes two lawyers, a paralegal, and a summer clerk.
After an accountant introduced Doug Linn to the Profit First method, he turned to Relay to separate payroll, taxes, annual expenses, operating costs, and profit—rather than managing the firm from one checking balance. Cash Insights added a current view of money in, money out, and net cash across those accounts. When Linn saw $100,000 set aside for payroll, he had the information he needed to hire and expand the firm.
Company outcomes
$100,000 set aside for payroll before expanding the firm
$4,000 reserved for annual expenses, including malpractice insurance
30-, 60-, and 90-day cash flow views through Cash Insights
Before Relay: One balance, too many unknowns
When Doug Linn returned to private practice in 2021, Linn Legal was a one-person firm with one checking account. Each week, he logged in, looked at the balance, and decided whether things were “great” or “terrible.” He knew what he would pay himself. Beyond that, the firm’s upcoming costs were “rather opaque.”
As the firm grew and took on payroll, annual expenses, taxes, and operating costs, that weekly number stopped being enough. The account showed an absolute balance, while monthly bar graphs only captured the firm’s inflows and outflows. Neither could answer the question behind the number: What could Linn Legal actually afford next?
Linn could not tell whether the firm had 16 weeks of payroll covered or only 3. He could not confidently assess whether an estimated tax payment, a new hire, or a larger expense would stretch the months ahead.
“If you asked me to give a letter grade on my cash flow, I couldn’t,” Linn says. “All I saw was in and out.”
His previous bank also required a branch visit to open every additional account. Linn Legal needed a way to separate money by purpose and get a clearer, more current read on what the firm could support.
The solution: A Profit First system the firm could actually run
An accountant Linn knew introduced him to Profit First, which gave him a clearer way to organize Linn Legal’s money. Relay gave him the mechanics to put that structure into practice.
“I think [Profit First is] an enormously helpful book for thinking about what you’re going to spend your money on, and it has helped me be a little bit more disciplined here in my business,” he says.
Linn opened separate accounts for payroll, taxes, annual expenses, operating costs, and profit. He set auto-transfer rules around the firm’s allocation percentages, took a profit share, and kept tax money set aside before estimated payments came due. When Linn Legal’s needs changed, he could adjust the rules instead of trying to rework one general balance.
Cash Insights, Relay’s built-in cash view of inflows, outflows, and net cash by account and time period, showed Linn how those rules were landing. He compares the firm’s trailing 30-, 60-, and 90-day periods with earlier periods, then uses the include-transfers view to inspect net cash across individual accounts.
In 2025, that view confirmed that payroll was intentionally overfunded during a hiring period, while operating expenses were only about 1% below target. By seeing net cash across each account, Linn could tell whether his auto-transfer rules were putting the right amount of money into payroll, operating expenses, taxes, and the firm’s other priorities.
The impact: Bigger decisions with money already assigned
Hiring with payroll already covered
Last year, Linn Legal hired and expanded after Linn saw $100,000 in the payroll account. Because that cash had already been separated from taxes, annual expenses, and operating costs, he could make the decision without guessing what the firm’s overall balance still needed to cover.
“I think that was only possible by me seeing that I’ve got $100,000 in payroll right here to be able to dedicate to this,” Linn says.
Large case payments without a spending free-for-all
Some cases bring in $20,000, $40,000, $60,000, or even $80,000 in one payment. Instead of treating that deposit as one larger operating balance, Linn can direct it across the accounts already set aside for the firm’s priorities.
“Using Relay has really helped me put those in the right buckets and be disciplined about it,” he says.
Annual expenses funded before they arrive
Linn keeps $4,000 in a dedicated account for the firm’s $3,200 malpractice insurance premium each June. Anything above that amount moves into operating expenses.
The firm can pay the premium from money already reserved for it, leaving payroll, rent, and day-to-day operating cash intact.
Relay: A clearer way to stay ahead
Ultimately, Relay gives Linn Legal a cash system that can keep up with the firm’s decisions. The accounts hold money for the commitments Doug already knows are coming, while Cash Insights gives him a clear, current view of what’s moving through the firm and whether the numbers still match the firm’s needs.
“I just love Relay,” Linn says. “There are no surprises. It makes budgeting things very easy. The more you use it, the more intelligent your splits get. And you never come up short on rent, you never have to skip payroll or try to come up with money for taxes. There’s always money there if you can predict it.”
