Answering services for law firms in Australia, compared
A buyer's guide for Australian law firms choosing who answers the phone when the lawyers cannot. Twelve services, grouped by who is on the line, with each provider's published price and what it leaves behind on the matter file.
Every service here will stop the phone ringing out. They differ in who speaks to the caller, how the price moves with volume, and whether the call reaches the practice management system without someone retyping it.
We make one of the products on this page
EzyBiz LEX is ours, and it appears below. Everything said about the other services is taken from their own websites as at 3 October 2026, and each source is listed at the foot of the page.
- A person on the line: OfficeHQ, Virtual Headquarters, Virtual Reception and BusinessVR answer with receptionists in Australia, from $25 a month plus a charge for each call or minute.
- An AI agent on your existing number: Trillet and Voxworks start at $49 a month, Hey Jodie at A$99 with unlimited minutes, and Frontly, Valory and AiDial sit higher with more setup done for you.
- The call on the matter: EzyBiz LEX files each call to the Smokeball matter or to SharePoint as a finished file note, and is also the lawyer's business phone.
- For US firms: Smith.ai and LEX Reception are built for North America. Smokeball's marketplace lists Smith.ai for the USA, and LEX Reception says it supports clients in the US and Canada.
How we compared them
Each service was assessed on five questions that matter on a legal line. Who speaks to the caller, a person or software, and where. What the firm receives afterwards: an email, a summary, or a record on the matter. Whether it connects to Smokeball, LEAP, Clio or Actionstep, in the provider's own words. How the price is built, because a fee for each call rises in the months a firm most wants the phone to ring. And whether the firm can reach the caller back on the same number.
Nothing here was tested by placing calls. It is a reading of what each provider publishes, so it tells you what each says it does and what it charges, and a firm should still ring the two or three that fit and hear them answer.
The comparison table
| Service | Who answers | Published price | Legal practice management | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EzyBiz LEX | An automated service that says so, or the lawyer directly | A$79.99 a lawyer a month, GST included, no per-call fee | Files each call to the Smokeball matter or SharePoint. Clio in development | Firms that want the call on the matter and a business number for each lawyer |
| OfficeHQ | Receptionists, mostly in Australia | From $25 a month for message taking, $33 for a receptionist plan, plus GST, with calls or minutes on top | Clio is shown among its integrations. Smokeball, LEAP and Actionstep are not listed | Firms that want a person and take few calls |
| Virtual Headquarters and Virtual Reception | Receptionists in Australia | From $25 a month plus $2.50 a call, or $33 a month plus $3.89 a call, plus GST | None listed | Firms that want an Australian person at any hour |
| BusinessVR | Receptionists in Australia | From $70 a month plus GST for 25 calls on its pricing page | None listed | Firms that want a bundle of calls and a 1300 number |
| Hey Jodie | An AI agent | A$99, A$199 or A$399 a month before tax, unlimited minutes | Through Zapier on its top plan, or its API | Firms that want a flat price and a simple message |
| Frontly | An AI agent | From $199 a month on annual billing for 200 minutes, plus GST | Clio available. LEAP, Smokeball and Actionstep need the software company's approval first | Clio firms that want an Australian-hosted AI agent |
| Voxworks | An AI agent | From A$49 a month for 60 minutes, before GST | Names LEAP, Actionstep, Smokeball, Clio and FilePro, without stating the method | Firms comfortable configuring an agent themselves |
| Valory AI | A managed AI agent | From $149 a month for 100 minutes, with setup from $990 | Intake sent to the lawyer for manual entry where there is no direct integration | Firms that want an agent built and tuned for them |
| Trillet | A self-serve AI agent | $49 a month with 150 minutes, then $0.20 a minute | No native sync on the self-serve plan. Enterprise is scoped separately | Firms that want the cheapest way to stop calls ringing out |
| AiDial | A configured AI agent | From $149 a month for 60 calls, with setup scoped separately | None named | Firms with a phone system they like and call paths to configure |
| Smith.ai | An AI agent, or receptionists in North America | From US$300 a month for 30 calls with receptionists | Smokeball, listed for the USA, and Clio | Firms comfortable with US pricing and North American receptionists |
Prices and integrations are as published by each provider on 3 October 2026. "None listed" means the provider's website does not name one, which is not the same as not offering one.
Answering services staffed by people
A receptionist answers in the firm's name, takes a message or transfers the call, and sends the firm an email or a text. Price is a monthly fee plus a charge for each call or minute.
OfficeHQ
An Australian answering service with a legal industry page and a large customer base. Receptionists answer mostly from Australia, with overflow teams overseas. Plans start at $25 a month for message taking and $33 for its receptionist plan, plus GST, with calls or minutes charged on top or bought in bundles, month to month, with a seven-day free trial. Clio is shown among its integrations, and Smokeball, LEAP and Actionstep are not listed. It suits a firm that wants a person answering and takes a modest number of calls. The full comparison is here.
Virtual Headquarters and Virtual Reception
Virtual Reception is run by Virtual Headquarters Pty Ltd, and the two sites publish the same rate card: $25 a month plus $2.50 a call for message taking, $33 a month plus $3.89 a call for the receptionist plan, or bundles such as 20 calls for $80 and 50 calls for $185, all plus GST. Receptionists are in Australia and answer around the clock, month to month, with a seven-day trial. No legal practice management integration is listed. It suits a firm that wants an Australian person at any hour and only needs the message passed on. The full comparison is here.
BusinessVR
A Canberra-based service with Australian receptionists and a legal page. Its pricing page lists bundles from $70 a month plus GST for 25 calls, and a 1300 number as an add-on. Its legal page shows lower figures than its pricing page, so confirm the price before signing. No legal practice management integration is listed.
AI receptionists
An AI agent answers on your existing number, asks the questions it has been configured to ask, and sends a summary. Price is a monthly fee with an allowance of minutes or calls.
Hey Jodie
An AI receptionist with a lawyers page and three plans at A$99, A$199 and A$399 a month before tax, each with unlimited minutes, month to month with a seven-day trial. The A$99 plan does not include appointment bookings or call transfers. It captures the matter type, urgency and contact details and sends a summary by text and email. Practice management connections run through Zapier on the top plan or its API, and Smokeball, LEAP and Actionstep are not named.
Frontly
An Australian AI receptionist with a legal page, full transcripts and Australian hosting. Plans start at $199 a month on annual billing, or $239 monthly, for 200 minutes, plus GST, with a $299 setup fee on monthly plans. It says Clio is available and is set up during onboarding, and that LEAP, Smokeball and Actionstep need the software company to approve the connection first.
Voxworks
An Australian-built AI receptionist with a law firm page. Plans start at A$49 a month for 60 minutes and A$149 for 250, before GST, with extra minutes at A$0.99 and a 14-day trial. It says transcripts are stored on Australian servers, and it names LEAP, Actionstep, Smokeball, Clio and FilePro among the systems it works with, without stating how each connection is made.
Valory AI
A managed service that designs, launches and tunes an AI agent for the firm. Plans are $149 a month for 100 minutes, $299 for 250 and $499 for 700, with one-time setup from $990. Its law firm guide says that where direct practice management integration is not available, the intake is sent to the lawyer for manual entry. The full comparison is here.
Trillet
A Melbourne AI voice platform with a self-serve receptionist at $49 a month including 150 minutes, then $0.20 a minute. Its own guide for law firms says the self-serve plan does not natively sync with LEAP, Actionstep, Smokeball or Clio, and that its enterprise service connects to them under a separate scope and quote. The full comparison is here.
AiDial
A Sunshine Coast provider that configures an AI agent to the firm's call paths. Plans are $149 a month for 60 calls, $249 for 150 and $449 for 400, with setup fees set in a scope of work. No legal practice management system is named on its integrations page. The full comparison is here.
Smith.ai
A mature US service offering an AI agent and receptionists in North America, priced per call in US dollars, with virtual receptionists from US$300 a month for 30 calls. Smokeball's marketplace lists its integration for the USA. An Australian firm should weigh the currency, the location of the receptionists and where the data is handled. The full comparison is here.
One more name comes up in searches. LEX Reception is a US legal answering service that supports clients in the United States and Canada, and it is unrelated to EzyBiz LEX.
Phone and answering in one
EzyBiz LEX
EzyBiz LEX is a business phone for each lawyer with an automated answering service on the same line. When the lawyer is free, calls ring them directly with the client's matter on screen. When they are not, the service answers in the firm's name, tells callers it is automated when they ask, takes a legal intake and books the consult. Every call, including the ones the lawyer took, is written up and filed to the Smokeball matter as a completed task or to SharePoint as a document, and Clio filing is in development. It does not file into LEAP or Actionstep. It has no human receptionists, so a firm whose callers need a person at first contact should look at the services above. The price is A$79.99 a month per lawyer with GST included and nothing charged per call. The full comparison is here.
How to choose
What each option costs at different call volumes is worked through in what an answering service costs, and the case for and against an automated service is in AI receptionist or answering service.
Questions about choosing an answering service
It depends on what the firm wants left behind after the call. For a person on the phone at a low entry price, OfficeHQ and Virtual Headquarters are the established Australian services. For an AI agent on an existing number at the lowest cost, Trillet and Voxworks start at $49 a month. For calls that reach the lawyer directly when they are free and are filed to the Smokeball matter or SharePoint when they are not, EzyBiz LEX is the one built for that, and it is the one we make.
As at 3 October 2026, Smokeball's marketplace lists EzyBiz LEX for Australia, and lists Smith.ai and Clerx AI for the USA. LEX Reception also has a Smokeball integration and serves the United States and Canada. Frontly says a Smokeball connection needs Smokeball's approval first, and Voxworks names Smokeball among the systems it works with without describing how. OfficeHQ, Virtual Headquarters, Virtual Reception, BusinessVR and AiDial do not list a Smokeball integration.
Receptionist services publish a monthly fee of $25 to $49 plus $2.45 to $3.99 a call or $2.99 a minute, before GST. AI receptionists publish $49 to $499 a month with a minute or call allowance, and some add a setup fee. EzyBiz LEX is A$79.99 a month per lawyer with GST included and nothing charged per call. The cost guide works these through at three call volumes.
A person is the better answer where callers are often distressed or will not speak to an automated service. An automated service is the better answer where the firm wants every call written up and filed without retyping, at a price that does not move with volume. Some firms use both: calls ring the lawyer first, and the automated service takes what is left.
No. EzyBiz LEX is our product and it is on the list, so read our description of it as you would any maker's claim. Everything said about the other services comes from their own websites on the review date, each is linked in the sources, and where a site is silent this page says so and draws no conclusion from it.
It was last reviewed on 3 October 2026. Prices and integrations change, so check the provider's own page before relying on a figure, and tell us if something here is out of date so we can correct it.
Primary sources and further reading
Every section reference and figure in this guide traces to one of these. They are listed so you can check the guide rather than take its word for it.
- OfficeHQ legal answering service and pricing, OfficeHQ. Prices exclude GST.
- Virtual Headquarters call answering pricing, Virtual Headquarters. Prices exclude GST.
- Virtual Reception pricing, Virtual Reception. Prices exclude GST.
- BusinessVR pricing, BusinessVR. Prices exclude GST. Its legal page shows different figures from its pricing page.
- Hey Jodie pricing and lawyers page, Hey Jodie. Prices exclude tax.
- Frontly legal page and pricing, Frontly. Prices exclude GST.
- Voxworks AI receptionist for law firms and pricing, Voxworks. Prices exclude GST.
- Valory AI for law firms, Valory AI. How intake reaches the lawyer where there is no direct integration.
- Valory AI pricing, Valory AI. Plans, included minutes, extra-minute rates and the setup fee, in Australian dollars. The page does not state whether prices include GST.
- Trillet: AI answering service for Australian law firms, Trillet. The pricing page does not state a currency or GST treatment.
- AiDial legal answering service, AiDial. Its pages do not state whether prices include GST.
- Smith.ai pricing, Smith.ai. Prices are in US dollars.
- LEX Reception FAQs, LEX Reception. States that it supports clients in the US and Canada, and lists Smokeball among its integrations.
- Lex Reception integration, Smokeball Support Hub. What the LEX Reception integration creates in Smokeball.
- Smokeball Marketplace, virtual reception, Smokeball. The answering services Smokeball lists an integration with, and the regions each is listed for.
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