Christopher Nicolaysen of Springs Law Group took an unconventional route into law. Nicolaysen spent a decade in restaurants and retail establishments in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he learned customer service before transitioning into teaching elementary school.

A dedication to customer service is at the core of the law firm Nicolaysen and his partner, Jacob Kimble, have built.

“Most law firms and lawyers are pretty terrible at customer service, a lot of attorneys feel that when people call us that they should feel blessed to hear all the magic words coming out of our mouths,” Nicolaysen said. “The reality for me is, having waited tables … we are blessed if a client picks up the phone to call us. We want to do a better job than what we have seen at other firms. We are constantly asking ourselves … what differentiates us and what makes us better not only from a customer service standpoint but as a team?”

Nicolaysen and Kimble have implemented multiple strategies like text message communications with a client routing automatically into the client’s file, and a level of constant communication that they believe sets them apart from other law firms.

The team is also equally determined to build a work environment that values its employees just as highly as the clients they serve.

Springs Law Group is where people are treated like people according to Nicolaysen. The work is stressful, as many of their clients have been severely injured in accidents, but the firm partners make sure that their employees are also treated with respect and care and given the time away they need.

“We don’t micromanage, we are intentional about honoring their time as humans and letting them step away when they need to,” Nicolaysen said. “I have no desire as an owner to go in and micromanage and do the job for everybody else, we want people to become skilled and own their positions.”

A strong commitment to community activism has always been central to both partners.

“We could have been Kimble Nicolaysen Law Firm, like every other law firm,” said Nicolaysen, “but we wanted to be a community law firm in that sense.”

Springs Law Group gives out multiple awards and scholarships every year, honoring teachers, restaurant workers, first responders, safe drivers and providing funds for the Bikes for Kids program.

“No one loses when you give back,” Nicolaysen said. “With all the community marketing we’ve done, like the Santa Run, there’s never been a moment when we look back and think we shouldn’t have done it.”

Kimble and Nicolaysen bring the same attitude to the way they treat their employees: providing multiple avenues for their workers to have a voice and celebrating team monthly and quarterly goals with rewards the employees actually want.

“There are plenty of open positions, it’s an employee market right now,” Nicolaysen said. “They could choose to go anywhere. What we do ups the game a bit, not everyone does that, we are intentional about the culture we are creating.”

Nicolaysen calls Springs Law Group “the Island of Misfit Toys” and says the team that’s been created is his finest achievement as a business owner.

“There are spots in business where you end up in slow-down moments where things just click,” Nicolaysen said. “We’re in one of those now.”