Introduction
process serving business acquisition is the story of how Raj Kankaria bought Lonear Attorney Service, a $1.3M regional legal services company, using a seller-financed deal and deep operational insight from being a certified process server himself.
Founder Success Story QnA
Raj, you are very recently into ownership of the business you bought. Start us off with some quick background on you, please.
I started my career in the army. I was an army engineering officer for five years. I moved back to Houston, Texas after I finished my time with the army. I got an MBA down here, worked as an investment banker for about three years, moved over to a legal services company, helped sell that company, found myself out of a job as a result, and now I’m the owner of Lonear Attorney Service.
How did you go from helping that business sell itself to being out of a job to turning your attention to buying a business?
In 2023, I was working in a strategy role. The company sold, and they didn’t need any of the staff in Houston. I found myself out of a job and had to think about what to do next. At the same time, my wife filed for divorce. A process server came to my door, handed me documents, and I asked him how much he charged to serve each paper. The number was higher than I expected. I got certified and started serving papers door to door for lawsuits, divorces, and personal injury cases. I got really close with the owner of Lonear Attorney Service.
Why weren’t you going back to the same track in finance?
I was interviewing and figuring out what I wanted to do next—entrepreneurship or corporate. In the interim, I served papers as a side thing. I have a sense of adventure, and it was different. Instead of driving Ubers for five or ten bucks a trip, serving papers was over a hundred, and I could do five or ten a day. I wasn’t anticipating buying a process service company at that point.
How did you proceed to do this on your own?
I contracted with various process service companies in Houston. The next step was to find legal firms and lawyers as clients. It was meant to be interim while I interviewed at corporations and banks. My heart wasn’t in those interviews. I was also introduced to ETA and buying a business. I wasn’t expecting to buy the company I was contracting with.
Were you doing this as a single-person LLC contracting to larger process service companies?
Exactly. Larger national and regional companies. They’d call or email or use a platform queue, and I’d pick off jobs and get paid per serve.
Why did you end up pursuing buying this business?
I learned about ETA and separately developed a relationship with Patrick Yoder, owner of Lonear Attorney Service. He had bought it in 2022 from the founder (started in 1996). His plan was a 3–5 year hold. I helped him with business development, growing revenue, and finding new clients. He got involved with another company in litigation finance, Osage Capital, and got busier than expected. He didn’t have time to focus on Lonear. His sale fell through. He asked me to run it, and instead I offered to buy it and sent an LOI. He accepted.
How did you negotiate the deal and valuation?
I knew performance and asked for detailed financials. For 2025, projections were about $1.3M in revenue and $250k–$300k SDE (he said EBITDA, but essentially SDE). Typically, companies of this scale don’t sell for more than 3x, but he had interest around 5x with earnout and a requirement to stay. I offered a 4x multiple, structured favorably at $1M, and got him the LOI first. He accepted.
Is there growing acquisition interest in process serving companies?
Yes, interest is heating up from private equity and strategics. Legal and litigation services are highly fragmented—largely mom-and-pop. I believe it’s the next target for roll-ups and consolidation. Big names exist, but 90% of the industry is small operators.
What does Lonear Attorney Service look like—jobs, team, clients?
We’re a large regional provider and the largest in Harris County. Four employees in Houston and two in the Philippines. We do a little over 10,000 papers a year. Clients are law firms and national process service companies. We’re becoming a preferred partner with our tech provider, which will refer jobs. We farm jobs to a network of process servers.
How do you manage contractors and technology?
We use Serve Manager by Infotra. It lets us receive and farm jobs, track service, download/print documents, capture photos, annotate attempts, and e-sign affidavits. The industry tech has improved a lot over the last five years. Now servers can do everything from home rather than coming into the office for notarization and filing.
Do process servers need certification and how much can they make?
Yes. It’s typically an 8-hour course, then state licensing (in Texas via DPS) with background check and fingerprinting—about six weeks. Earnings vary by area and workload. Some make $50,000 and up. Many also have full-time jobs and serve as a side income. If they have law firm clients, that’s a reasonable range too.
What’s the day-to-day like—does it get confrontational?
It’s less dramatic than movies. We never say, “You got served.” De-escalation is key. Many recipients expect documents; sometimes it’s not bad news (e.g., child support adjustments). I identify the person politely and deliver, then leave immediately. If someone refuses, we can leave documents in plain view and record it—considered good service.
What drew you to the work beyond pay?
The adventure—driving around Houston, seeing new places, and the variety. I’ve served at a rapper’s party and served CEOs of oil and gas companies. Every job is different and gives exposure to all kinds of people and areas. It’s a good mix across demographics and case types (divorce, debt collection, car crashes).
Any ethical concerns with process serving?
I see service of process as integral to the justice system. People must be personally notified. If there’s an ethical question, it’s more about how easy it is to sue or practices in debt collection—not the act of serving itself. Serving ensures people know legal action is pending and can respond.
Is the industry growing and how do you grow market share?
The industry itself is relatively stable; growth comes via consolidation and capturing market share. We focus on integrating technology, streamlining client workflows, and offering equal or better pricing. For example, I’m working on a contract with a tax protest company by offering a streamlined tech-enabled process with our provider, at the same price they pay now, but with fewer clicks and higher efficiency.
What growth strategies did you use before buying Lonear?
Mostly marketing and growth: handing out brochures to law firms, networking, and positioning Lonear Attorney Service as a reliable provider or backup. We saw results.
Walk us through the final deal structure.
Valuation: $1,000,000. Patrick kept 30% equity. $600,000 seller financing over 7 years (1 year interest-only with option for two), then a 5–6 year amortization. I brought in a partner; we contributed $100,000 total ($50,000 each). No bank; it’s an asset purchase. I signed a personal guarantee. This aligned both sides and de-risked due diligence since Patrick retained equity. If things went south, the business would revert to him rather than a bank.
How did you justify seller financing to Patrick?
I showed that with interest payments he’d make more overall than taking cash upfront, and he could defer capital gains over seven years. I did a time value analysis using a 7% discount rate (matching the interest rate) to show the value of deferred taxes and interest income exceeded his alternatives. Trust from working together 18 months and his desire to focus on Osage Capital made it workable.
What about your compensation versus opportunity cost?
The SDE was about $250,000. Servicing the seller note reduces that. I’m paying myself $120,000 now. I used to make $300,000–$500,000 in banking and up to $800,000–$900,000 in a prior role with risk. I’m trading salary for flexibility and equity. I’m confident in growth and can adjust as needed.
What are your growth targets for Lonear?
I believe this can be a $5M business. By the end of this year, I want a $2M run rate, then grow ~30% annually, as it did under Patrick. I’ll also look at acquisitions and adjacent litigation services. The industry is fragmented, technology-poor, and increasingly interesting to private equity. There’s counter-cyclicality with debt collection, recurring-like revenue, and many boomer owners retiring.
How is AI impacting your operations?
AI helps back-office processes, not the in-person serving. For example, our data entry clerk emails documents to an AI address that returns pre-filled fields. It augments efficiency; it doesn’t replace service of process.
How has the transition and implementing changes gone?
I came in with growth plans but found inefficient processes and an absentee-owner culture. I implemented swift policy changes—like standardizing work hours and curbing overtime—to improve client service. The emotional impact on employees was real. I was advised to make changes in the first 30–60 days when teams expect change. I focused messaging on what’s best for clients and the organization. It was uncomfortable at first, but the culture has shifted toward excellence.
Any final philosophy on opportunity?
I believe when one door closes, another opens. This opportunity appeared at a low point in my life. By being curious—even asking a process server about his pay—and following through to get certified, I unlocked a path I never expected. There’s no shame in making a buck. I loved the work and kept pushing.
Raj Kankaria Method
I focused on building trust, integrating technology, and structuring a seller-financed acquisition to align incentives and de-risk both sides—then executed fast operational changes and targeted BD.
- Build trust with the seller by contributing to growth pre-deal.
- Leverage Serve Manager and tech partnerships to streamline client workflows.
- Structure a seller-financing deal with equity rollover for alignment.
Raj Kankaria Tools
I use Serve Manager by Infotra to manage intake, dispatch, tracking, and affidavits. AI-assisted data entry speeds back-office accuracy and turnaround, supporting higher throughput and better client experience.
- Serve Manager (Infotra): Job intake, dispatch, tracking, e-affidavits.
- AI data extraction: Pre-fills petition fields to reduce manual entry.
- Texas eFile: Filing proofs and documents efficiently.
Key Notes
Acquiring a process serving firm benefits from pre-existing operator knowledge, seller trust, and clear tech-enabled differentiation for clients seeking efficiency without higher costs.
- Highly fragmented industry with roll-up potential.
- Recurring-like revenue from law firm relationships.
- Seller financing aligned incentives and eased closing.
Get Started in Just 5 Steps
If you’re exploring a process serving business, start with certification, learn the operations firsthand, and build relationships with owners and law firms before structuring a win-win acquisition.
- Get certified as a process server in your state.
- Contract with regional/national firms to learn workflows.
- Adopt Serve Manager and streamline with AI-backed processes.
- Build trust with an owner by contributing to growth.
- Pitch seller financing with clear tax and interest benefits.
Conclusion
This process serving business acquisition shows how Raj Kankaria transformed a tough life moment into ownership of Lonear Attorney Service using seller financing, technology leverage, and disciplined operational change.