A recap of the series: “How to Modernize the Justice System for under $1000/yr”
Let’s recap the series “How to Modernize the Justice System for under $1000/yr” before starting my new series next week. And if you’ve liked what you’ve been reading, please RT, share and follow me here.
A website that is well-designed serves as the foundation for modernizing the justice system. It takes the place of physical steps leading up to the courthouse and provides a base for most other #legaltech products mentioned in this series.
As discussed, your website should contain (1) each Judge’s contact information, online calendar & video court link; (2) their standing orders; (3) forms used on a daily basis; (4) hyperlinks to other justice partners; (4) a FAQs page; (5) an SRL page & (6) general information about the court. It should also be multilingual.
Your website should have embedded online calendars that send text and email reminders, which are complete game changers. You can create “appointment types” for any type of hearing, and you can limit the number of cases heard per hour. For example, I offer 25 PTC civil hearings at 9 a.m. and 10 motion hearings at 10 a.m. on my civil days and I offer 50 general hearings at 9 a.m., 10 a.m. & 11 a.m. on my criminal days. Our case managers offer 4 counseling sessions per hour for our specialty court probationers. Using online calendars will also allow you to stagger your dockets and cut down on FTAs. BTW, they are completely customizable to your workflow so you don’t have to follow my model.
Form builders can help simplify complex workflows, and keep everyone organized and informed. By digitizing your paper forms and adding them to your Court’s website, you can provide lawyers and litigants with a convenient way to access the forms your Court uses on a daily basis. You can even add features that would allow the parties to e-sign and deliver completed forms to Chambers before appearing in court. And as a bonus, form builders offer Courts the opportunity to keep all forms up to date and to get creative. Your Court could build a form that provides a way for lawyers & litigants to deliver courtesy copies to chambers by simply dragging & dropping their pleadings online; your Court could create a virtual sign-in sheet for video court so you know who is present and which case to call first; or your Court could create an app that makes it even more convenient for everyone to access your Court. https://www.jotform.com/app/judge_schlegel/court
Any Judge or court administrator in the country can implement these tools within 30 days without the need for any new legislation, additional budget or replacement of the current system. All that is needed is a decision and a desire to modernize the justice system. I am proof that anyone can do this; I’m not a coder nor do I have a background in graphic design. Instead, I have spent years understanding how the justice system works and building relationships with our justice partners — just like you.
