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There is a clear case for the use of tech to improve our civil justice system. While there’s a huge legal accessibility gap in our nation, the use of tech and innovation can play a pivotal role to increase the capacity of legal services providers to address the unmet legal needs in many poor communities across the nation.

Continue Reading Legal Aid Drupal Hackathon to Address Underlying Issues with A2J Tech

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SEATTLE, November 3, 2016 – Avvo, today announced that Tom Breitling, entrepreneur and author of “Double or Nothing,” will deliver the keynote at Lawyernomics 2017, its annual legal marketing and business conference for lawyers. The conference will be held April 20 – 22, 2017 at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas.
Breitling will discuss the art and science of placing bets to grow a business. He was a co-founder of Travelscape.com, a pioneer in the online travel space that was acquired by Expedia, and was the first to bring regulated real-money online poker to the United States with a later company, Ultimate Gaming. Breitling previously owned the Golden Nugget Casino in Las Vegas, where his unique business style was featured in the FOX TV reality show, “The Casino.”

Continue Reading Lawyernomics 2017: Avvo Explores the Marketing Bets that Grow Great Businesses at the 8th Annual Conference in Vegas

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A hackathon is an event, typically lasting 24-48 hours, in which a large number of people (software programmers, user experience designers, data scientists, project managers, and subject matter experts) meet to engage in competitive collaborative computer programming around a specific set of challenges. Teams that create the most meaningful and innovative solutions under the specific judging criteria are rewarded at the culmination of the event.

Continue Reading On the Fence about Legal Hackathons? Try one out for Yourself!!

Screen Shot 2016-08-14 at 5.28.12 PMIn an earlier post, I set out a bold vision for the launch of the Access to Justice Technology Fellowship Program. This fellowship program will provide law students with an experiential understanding of the access to justice issues facing Americans and the knowledge to critically assess how innovation in the justice system can and is being used to address legal accessibility issues.

Continue Reading Crowdfunding Legal Innovation: The Access to Justice Technology Fellowship Program

Screen Shot 2016-09-05 at 11.25.51 PMIn 2004, The Washington State Supreme Court adopted Washington State Access to Justice Technology Principles, which now guides the use of technology in the Washington State justice system. The first of its kind in the nation, the Principles ensure that “[u]se of technology in the justice system … serve[s] to promote equal access to justice and to promote the opportunity for equal participation in the justice system for all.” Since their inception, many states around the nation have adopted similar principles to provide a framework which creators of technology products and projects may use to extend access to the justice system.

Continue Reading Revisiting the Washington State Access to Justice Technology Principles

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This summer, I had the privilege to intern with the Self-Represented Litigation Network, a Washington, D.C. based non-profit comprised of lawyers, judges, and allied professionals. Together, they are “creating innovative and evidence-based solutions, so that self-represented litigants have meaningful access to the courts and get the legal help they need”. Continue Reading A Bold Vision for Legal Innovation: The ATJ Tech Fellows Program

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“Law is too important to be left to lawyers alone.”  Eddie Hartman, Cofounder of LegalZoom stated this past weekend at Stanford CodeX Future Law Conference as he made a compelling case for non-attonrey ownership for law firms in the U.S. The ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct 5.4 versions of which have been enacted in most states. Under these rules:

“Non-lawyers are prohibited from creating, owning or managing law firms, either alone or in partnership with lawyers. (Only the District of Columbia allows minority-nonlawyer ownership of U.S. law firms.)” Continue Reading A Compelling Argument for Non-Attorney Ownership of Law Firms

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Our civil justice system is facing a crisis. Millions of poor Americans have legal needs that go unmet. From domestic violence, unlawful evictions, to the loss of veterans’ health or disability benefits. Without the proper legal attention, these legal issues can have a downward spiraling effect, triggering even more legal issues. Many are left to navigate this complex legal terrain on their own, leaving them almost no chance to prevail and entrenched in poverty traps. The consequences of this bleak state has disproportionally devastated poor communities of color throughout major U.S cities.

Continue Reading Moving Beyond A Legal Solution: The Houston/Marshall Plan for Community Justice

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Great lawyers are master writers and communicators. Lawyers must translate thoughts and opinions into clear and precise English. Legal writing is a technical type of writing lawyers and others use to express legal analysis and legal rights and duties. Much of a lawyer’s role is writing legal documents, responses, briefs, letters and emails. Continue Reading Concision Course 101: Why Law Students Should Embrace WordRake!

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There’s no shortage of sitcoms and movies that fantasize the law school experience. While not as dramatic as sitcoms like “How to get away with Murder” portray, law school is time-consuming. From juggling class readings, journal obligations, student organizations, and internships. With so many moving pieces, it’s hard to ever feel a sense of control. The uneasy feeling of the next deadline is an all too common experience for many law students.

Continue Reading Life on the KanBan: What Law Students could learn from Agile Law Practice