Seal
How might early-career freelance designers protect themselves from exploitation without becoming legal experts? Suvina Wahane’s work is driven by the belief that designers can find playful, social, and accessible empowerment in the legal system. Seal challenges intimidating legal tools by embedding legal literacy within creative, community-centered, and emotionally supportive experiences.
“I completed the entire rebrand, and then they ghosted me.” This designer’s experience isn’t unique. Several individuals interviewed in Wahane’s research expressed frustration with the vulnerability many freelancers face early in their careers. Freelance designers often experience delayed payments, scope creep, and vague client expectations. Despite contributing over $1.4 trillion to the U.S. economy, many lack access to accessible or supportive legal tools. 71% of freelancers face payment issues, and 60% work without contracts, often due to confusion, fear, or isolation.
Wahane designed Seal, a legal confidence ecosystem built around storytelling, play, and community to address these challenges. It features three integrated
components:
Contract Tool (Empowers with Action): An AI-powered web platform that flags contract risks, translates legal jargon into plain language, and helps freelancers create fair agreements—transforming legal prep into an act of self-advocacy.
Seal Adventures (Teaches Through Play): A board game and mobile app that simulates real-world freelance scenarios. Players practice negotiation and build legal confidence through low-stakes interactive roleplay.
Red Flags & Story Jar (Sparks Awareness): A physical activity where designers share horror stories, red flags, and lessons learned to build community. It creates peer awareness and emotional support through collective reflection.
Seal reimagines legal literacy as a creative act. Designers who tested the system said it made them feel “less afraid to talk about money,” “more in control,” and better able to “understand what they’re signing up for.” Seal empowers freelancers to protect their work, time, and well-being.
