Artificial Intelligence as a Path to Closing the Justice Gap: - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Artificial Intelligence as a Path to Closing the Justice Gap: Electronic Civil Gideon

Kate Norton

Betty Comes to Court

• Access to justice remains an issue in family court
• Betty
• Grandmother
• Kids lived with her for over a year
• Dad – historic problems with drugs and alcohol
• Mom – inpatient rehab
• Dad comes and takes kids
• Grandmother files for custody
• Court wants to know how she has standing
• After hearing, Court denies standing

• 5325. Standing for partial physical

custody and supervised physical custody

• …grandparents and great-grandparents may file an

action under this chapter for partial physical custody or supervised physical custody in the following situations:

• ….(3) when the child has, for a period of at least 12

consecutive months, resided with the grandparent or great-grandparent, excluding brief temporary absences

• f the child from the home, and is removed from the

home by the parents, an action must be filed within six months after the removal of the child from the home.

Doing it by herself is no big deal …right?

• Custody Appeals in PA
• Simultaneous filing:
• Notice of Appeal & 1925b Statement
• Failure to do correctly results in:
• Waiver
• Now what…
• Betty is out!

We Can Do It!

Tech Ethics Justice

ACCESS TO JUSTICE AND THE JUSTICE GAP

Access to Justice/Justice Gap

• Right to Counsel
• No constitutional right to counsel for civil cases that deal

with fundamental rights.

• No Civil Gideon

Access to Justice/Justice Gap

• What types of cases does this mean, no

guaranteed lawyer for?

• Child custody cases
• Terminations of parental rights*
• Civil contempt (possible incarceration)
• Housing
• Income maintenance
• Education
• Health
• Disability
• * Just because the constitution does not guarantee, does not mean the

states have not addressed

Access to Justice/Justice Gap

• What does this mean for low income litigants…
• The Justice Gap 2017:
• 71% of low income households experiences a civil legal

problem within past year

• Types of cases:
• 41% health related
• 29% housing
• 27% of those were about children or child custody
• 26% education
• 23% disability
• 22% income maintenance
• 86% of those that experienced a civil legal problem feel

that they received inadequate or no legal help

Access to Justice/Justice Gap

• “7 in 10 low income Americans with recent personal

experience of a civil legal problem say a problem has significantly affected their lives”

• The Justice Gap 2017

Up to 90% of litigants are pro se… Betty

HOW WE ADDRESS JUSTICE GAP

Least involvement to most involvement … from experience

Least involved

Forms Self Help Materials Hotlines Self Help Centers Limited Representation Pro Bono Attorneys Legal Aid Offices Court Reform

Most involved

A helpful boost

• Forms
• Other self

help materials

IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA FAMILY DIVISION ______________________________, Petitioner v. Case Number: FD ________________ ______________________________, Respondent MOTION FOR CONTINUANCE The within Petitioner, who is not represented by an attorney, is appearing before the court to request a continuance, and states in support thereof: 1. A hearing on_____________________________________________ is scheduled for the _____day of _____________, 20___ at _______ ___ M. 2. Petitioner is unable to attend the hearing because 3. No prejudice will result to the opposing side in the rescheduling of this matter. WHEREFORE, Petitioner respectfully requests this Court enter an order continuing the matter set forth above to the next available date. ________________________________

Petitioner

A middle ground

• Limited representation
• Representing a litigant in a very limited scope
• for a single appearance
• draft a single pleading
• Allows guidance and assists through specific

proceedings

Full case coverage

• Legal Aid Offices
• Funding
• Capacity
• Volunteer Attorneys
• “Approximately 1 out of 5 attorneys has never

undertaken pro bono service of any kind.” à Supporting Justice: A Fourth Report on the Pro Bono Work of America’s Lawyers, 2018.

Need more Band-Aids

TECH/AI AND LEGAL FIELD TODAY

Current Solutions

• Movement forward to include technology
• In 2018, LSC indicated in the Annual Report Pro Bono

and Tech that they funded 26 Technology Initiative Grants (TIG) granted to 24 legal service organizations.

• Nearly $4 Million dollars awarded.
• Examples:
• Legal Services Alabamaà
• create a comprehensive tech assess and develop strategy
• Legal Services of Greater Miamià
• Enhance Florida’s statewide online client intake and legal triage

system

EXAMPLES OF AVAILABLE USES TODAY

Examples of technology/AI for law

• Community Legal Services (CLS) – Michael

Hollander’s Expungement Generator

• Intake systems
• Law Schools:
• University of Arizona’s Innovation for Justice
• Course every year: project basedà Fall 2018 project to tackle

eviction

• Vanderbilt’s Law and Innovation
• Curriculum integrating tech & legal services & entrepreneurship

Examples of technology/AI for law

• Form preparation
• nline
• Self-help
• Connect with lawyers
• https://lawhelpinteractiv

e.org/

• https://www.palawhelp.
• rg
• Sponsored by

TECH/AI AND ETHICS

Is it the unauthorized practice of law

• ABA Taskforce on Model Definitions of the Practice
• f Law proposed:
• It’s the ”application of legal principles and judgment with

regard to the circumstances or objectives of a person that require the knowledge and skill of a person trained in the law.”

• Presumed if:
• Giving advice on legal rights
• Selecting, drafting or completing legal documents
• Representing in court
• Negotiating legal rights
• Too difficult so abandoned in 2003

Maybe?

• LegalZoom
• Indicated no … because say they are not giving legal

advice etc.

• This was in response to a PA Ethics Opinion
• PA says:
• Nope … a person may sell “forms” or provide solely

clerical assistance in completing.

• “There is a reasonable factual basis that legal document

preparation services, whether online or in person at a specific site, are engaging in the unauthorized practice of law”

• PA Bar Ass’n Unauthorized Practice of Law Comm. Formal Op.

2010-01 (2010).

Other ethical concerns and more:

• Confidential communications
• LegalZoom
• Disclaimer: Communications between you and

LegalZoom are protected by our Privacy Policy but not by the attorney-client privilege or as work product.

Other ethical concerns and more:

• Zealous advocate
• Fee sharing
• Conflict of interest
• Other concerns:
• Our jobs…
• Knowledge/access to available technology
• Litigants
• Lawyers
• Judges

LegalZoom Disclaimers…

• Disclaimer: Communications between you and LegalZoom

are protected by our Privacy Policy but not by the attorney- client privilege or as work product. LegalZoom provides access to independent attorneys and self-help services at your specific direction. We are not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. We cannot provide any kind of advice, explanation, opinion, or recommendation about possible legal rights, remedies, defenses, options, selection

• f forms or strategies. Your access to the website is subject

to our Terms of Use. Read more at: https://www.legalzoom.com/personal/estate- planning/compare.html#/questions-1 LegalZoom.com

SO…TECH/AI AND JUSTICE GAP - IS IT A GOOD IDEA

Area of need where tech/AI can help:

• There are links between procedural technicalities

and the success of a pro se litigant

• Self-represented litigants “are prone to committing

administrative, procedural and substantive errors that add to the burden on courts, placing demands

• n court personnel and resources, delaying the

progress of cases and the clearing of dockets, and increasing administrative costs.”

• Ayelet Sela, Streamlining Justice: Now Online Courts

Can Resolve the Challenges of Pro Se Litigation, 26 Cornell J.L. & Pub. Pol’y 331, 339-40 (2016)

Benefits of Technology/Artificial Intelligence

• Help avoid procedural problems
• Alleviate the demand on legal aid/pro bono

attorneys

• Make them available for more complicated work
• Help alleviate litigant frustration à clear and

concise approach

• Another Band-Aid for justice gap/access to justice

issues

K.I.S.S. (Occam's Razor) Approach

• We know the pit-falls

and ethical issues.

• Ex. Conflict of Interest
• K.I.S.S.
• Simple technology
• (avoid confidential

communications)

• Focus on areas of

greatest hindrance

• (procedural … avoid

judgment based issues)

• Lawyer

review/partnerships

• (zealous advocacy)
• Court adoption/pro bono
• (avoid fee sharing)
• Appropriate trainings
• Lawyer * Litigant * Court

(avoid knowledge base issues)

BETTY AND TECH/AI SOLUTION

Design

• Appeals and custody
• Working with Crivella

Technologies

• Decisions trees
• At the end produces:
• Notice of Appeal
• Concise Statement
• Have lawyers review

End Result

Future Applications

• Application to:
• Other states
• Other areas of law
• Before the appeal …
• Stop the judge from dismissing on standing in the first place
• Data collection à viable appeals

Conclusion

• Tech:
• Viable option
• Projects like Betty’s:
• Helps those without lawyers
• No procedural dismissals
• Allows legal aid and volunteer attorneys focus on

substantive matters

• Helps to close justice gap à lawyers and tech/ai working

together

• Betty:
• Her appeal gets heard on the merits

Thank you!