Access to Justice Board
Technology Committee
Mission
The ATJ Board Technology Committee comprises representatives of various organizations whose common goal is to promote equal access to legal information and services for vulnerable, low and moderate income people.
The ATJ Board Technology Committee promotes efficient inter-agency technology needs assessment, planning, collaboration and evaluation.
Equal access to justice is a fundamental right in a democracy. Technology can be a tool to increase access to justice by linking vulnerable, low and moderate income people to legal information and services and by increasing the responsiveness and effectiveness of legal services providers.
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The Access to Justice Board and the Access to Justice Network have made technology a high priority in response to the Washington State Equal Justice Communications and Technology Vision, the Revised State Plan (Word) and the Access to Justice Conference Recommendations.
Initiatives
The following major initiatives are currently underway in Washington State, under the coordination of the ATJ Technology Committee:
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Advocate Resource Center (ARC) Website
Advocate resources are not easily accessed and shared as they reside in individual file cabinets, storage boxes and computer hard drives. Northwest Justice Project TIG money will go toward a statewide ARC website hosted through probono.net. The statewide website will be a tool that will help our state build a more integrated justice community.
This project will use the highly flexible and customizable probono.net template with advocate tools including online libraries of training materials, model pleadings and links, a current news page, a training and events calendar, and postings of new cases for volunteers. Administrative tools allow content producers to input and update content without the need for a webmaster or significant technical staff. The state administrator will also be able to create individual organizational web sites and virtual workspaces for task forces and other smaller groups of advocates.
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Statewide Technology Support
Since completing the task of securing hardware, software and Internet access for every program in the legal services provider network, the ATJ Board's Technology Committee has been working to provide technology support to pro bono and speciality legal services providers statewide.
The ATJ Board's Technology Committee has been examining options to implement a case management software upgrade for the volunteer and staffed legal services programs.
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Online Interactive Forms Project
The Administrative Office of the Courts in partnership with the ATJ Board's Technology Committee and the state's domestic violence community developed document assembly software to enable pro se litigants to to obtain domestic violence protection orders online. This "document assembly" software prompts the pro se litigant with a series of questions that, when answered, result in the production of pleadings which meet the mandatory form requirements, and which can be filed immediately in court. This application will shortly be available for public access online.
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Planning Subcommittee
Through its Planning Subcommittee, the ATJ Board's Technology Committee is developing a statewide vision of ATJ technology as well as a state technology plan.
Collaborating Projects
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Gateway Web Site
The Technology Committee collaborates with the Council on Public Legal Education which, in cooperation with the larger Access to Justice community, is developing a "gateway website" for Washington State that will provide the public with a comprehensive and comprehensible guide to law and government resources. The website will direct visitors to the best existing law-related websites, explain how they can find an affordable attorney, provide up-to-date information and commentary on current issues in law and government, and include special resources for teachers, journalists, community leaders and others who educate the public.
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Committee Chair:
Don Horowitz
Joan Fairbanks, Staff Liaison
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