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The Legal Services Corporation’s 2020 Innovations in Technology Conference is being held January 15-17 at the Portland Hilton Downtown, 921 SW Sixth Avenue, Portland, OR, 97204 . All attendees must register using the conference registration website.
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Wednesday, January 15
 

10:30am PST

Content: Are You Making Something Useful?
As we put more self-help information and interactive tools into the world, let’s make sure that target users can successfully use them. This interactive session will cover the core concepts around content strategy, content design, and visualization in the development of products and materials designed for low- and middle-income Americans. Attendees will look at UX/UI, psychology, marketing, and visual design to rethink the design and delivery of written legal information for clients and unrepresented individuals.
Speakers
avatar for J. Singleton

J. Singleton

Program Manager, MN Legal Services State Support
J. Singleton is the Program Manager of Legal Services State Support. She has led many successful development and redesign projects that have improved access to justice for Minnesotans statewide, including the redesign of LawHelpMN.org, creation of Minnesota’s Legal Organizations... Read More →
avatar for Hallie Jay Pope

Hallie Jay Pope

Founder + President, Graphic Advocacy Project
Hi there! I'm a legal information designer at the Graphic Advocacy Project, a nonprofit that uses visual communication tools---like comics, graphic design, and animation---to explain legal concepts. My work focuses on sharing legal knowledge with communities that are systemically... Read More →
avatar for Virtual Law Clinic

Virtual Law Clinic

Theory and Principle, LLC
Virtual Law Clinic is a modern pro bono management, volunteer training, and multi-party collaboration platform. VLC is designed to provide a modern and easy-to-use experience for pro bono teams to manage matters, training materials, and volunteers, as well as allowing for volunteer... Read More →
avatar for Erika Rickard

Erika Rickard

Senior Officer, Civil Legal System Modernization, Pew Charitable Trusts
Erika Rickard leads Pew’s work to modernize the nation’s civil legal system, a project to pilot and evaluate the most promising technologies and tools to assist people without access to a lawyer. These include online dispute resolution, which brings the entire court process online... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Court Online Dispute Resolution: Bane or Boon for Self-Represented Litigants?
As courts are increasingly considering, planning, and launching online dispute resolution (ODR) systems, how well are they addressing the needs of self-represented litigants (SRLs)? ODR holds great promise for improving access to justice, but if not developed carefully it could also increase barriers. The three presenters all have decades of experience in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and view ODR from differing perspectives – state court, tech company and non-profit. They will describe the ways in which state courts are currently offering ODR, the challenges in developing systems that improve access to justice and the ways in which ODR can improve access for SRLs.
Speakers
avatar for Sharon Sturges

Sharon Sturges

Director, Colorado Office of Dispute Resolution, Colorado Office of Dispute Resolution
Sharon Sturges is the Director of the Office of Dispute Resolution and Access & Visitation Program Coordinator for the Colorado court system. Prior to joining the State Court Administrator’s Office in 2015, she engaged in private civil practice for over fifteen years in Western... Read More →
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Susan Yates

Executive Director, Resolution Systems Institute
Susan Yates has been Executive Director of Resolution Systems Institute since 1997 and a mediator since 1983. As RSI Executive Director, she is responsible for implementing RSI's mission of strengthening access to justice by enhancing court alternative dispute resolution systems... Read More →
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Colin Rule

Vice President, Online Dispute Resolution, Tyler Technologies
Colin Rule is Vice President of Online Dispute Resolution for Tyler Technologies. In 2011 Colin co-founded Modria.com, an ODR provider based in Silicon Valley, which was acquired by Tyler Technologies in May 2017. From 2003 to 2011 he was Director of Online Dispute Resolution for... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Improving Access to Legal Services with Insights from the Legal Trends Report
The Legal Trends Report leverages aggregated and anonymized data from the tens of thousands of Clio legal software customers in the United States, supported by extensive survey research of the legal industry. The report offers unique insights into the most important issues faced within the legal profession. This year, Clio uncovered new insights into how consumers are searching for lawyers, how lawyers are missing the mark when it comes to delivering legal services in the ways consumers need, and what that means for access to justice.
Speakers
avatar for Joshua Lenon

Joshua Lenon

Lawyer in Residence, Clio
I'm Clio's Lawyer in Residence, helping explain the law to a technology company and vice versa.

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Leveraging Existing Technologies to Advance Medical-Legal Partnership
Medical-Legal Partnerships (MLPs) in both urban and rural settings are adapting existing technology to screen for and respond to health-harming legal needs and to strengthen relationships between legal, health care, and public health partners. In this session, panelists from an MLP funded by the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services will demonstrate how they use an online portal to accept referrals and requests for technical assistance from Community Health Workers and others. Panelists will also demonstrate how the Montana Health Justice Project and Iowa Health & Law Project integrate legal screening questions into the electronic health record systems of community health centers to identify health-harming legal needs and refer patients. All panelists will discuss how they analyze data and respond to trends in client needs.
Speakers
avatar for Alison Paul

Alison Paul

Executive Director, Montana Legal Services Association
Alison Paul has been the Executive Director of the Montana Legal Services Association in Helena, Montana since 2011, and with the program since 1998. Alison attended law school at the University of Kansas, and was in private practice in Chicago, Illinois, primarily advising tax-exempt... Read More →
avatar for Mallory Curran

Mallory Curran

Principal, Mallory Curran Consulting
Mallory Curran supports institutions that improve community health, increase access to justice, and work to end poverty. Through her consulting, she partners with non-profits around the country on a broad range of activities involving technology, legal services, and medical-legal... Read More →
avatar for Ronnette Ramos

Ronnette Ramos

Managing Attorney, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles
Ronnette Ramos (she/her) oversees the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles’ attorneys and paralegals working with healthcare professionals to identify and help patients reach their optimal health. As Managing Attorney of Medical-Legal Partnerships, Ronnette oversees our clinics located... Read More →
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Gerson Sorto

Supervising Attorney, Medical Legal Community Partnerships, Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County
Gerson Sorto is an Associate Supervising Attorney with Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County overseeing the program’s five Medical Legal Community Partnerships (MLCPs). He has led NLSLA’s efforts as the lead agency implementing the “MLCP–LA” project with the... Read More →
avatar for Erin Planalp

Erin Planalp

Managing Attorney, Iowa Legal Aid
Erin Planalp is the Managing Attorney for Iowa Legal Aid’s Southwest Regional Office and its Health & Law Project. Erin began her career with Iowa Legal Aid as an AmeriCorps attorney shortly after graduating from Creighton University School of Law in 2011. Her poverty law practice... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Forum Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Managing a Large Document Assembly Catalog: A Michigan Case Study
Automated document assembly projects are a tried and true tool for bridging the access to justice gap. However, they can be cumbersome to manage and keep up to date. Michigan Legal Help manages a catalog of over 100 A2J Guided Interviews and HotDocs Templates. Each year they help 40,000 people using these automated forms. Managing and growing this large catalog takes a coordinated mix of staff and contractor time. In this session, the Michigan team will talk about how they decide which document assembly software to use based on the projected end user and the form that’s being automated. They’ll talk about how they review and prioritize interviews for upkeep and maintenance. Attendees will hear from a developer on how his time as a consultant fits into the larger document assembly process. The Michigan team will share the tools (a combination of shared spreadsheets, calendars, Google docs, training materials, and video chats) and tricks that they use to increase their organization’s impact on Michigan’s access to justice gap.
Speakers
avatar for Jessica Frank

Jessica Frank

A2J Author Project Manager, Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI)
Jessica Frank is the A2J Author Project Manager for the Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI). She oversees the development team for A2J Author and provides community outreach, technical support, and training resources to the automated document development community... Read More →
avatar for Brett Harrison

Brett Harrison

Grand Master of All Things, Maverick & Mitchell LLC
Brett is a contract developer with 10 years of experience in the legal realm of document assembly. Having partnered with organizations working on their first document assembly projects to veteran organizations with dozens of active tools, he is familiar with the trials of managing... Read More →
avatar for LaDierdre McKinney

LaDierdre McKinney

Staff Attorney, Michigan Legal Help Program
LaDierdre McKinney is a staff attorney at Michigan Legal Help (MLH) Program. MLH maintains 18 affiliated Self-Help Centers around Michigan and a statewide website, MichiganLegalHelp.org, for self-represented litigants. LaDierdre utilizes her expertise in developing plain language... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Council Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Preparing Legal Services Organizations to Harness Technology through Tech Assessments
This session will highlight how legal services providers are using technology assessments to improve their technology infrastructure and management. The session will provide an overview of technology assessments, looking at the issues commonly encountered as well as some unique challenges and how they can be addressed. Additionally, this session will review factors that should be included in technology assessments and road maps including technology planning goals, staff's technology needs, and how these needs can best be addressed with the available resources.
Speakers
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Jon Miller

Director of Technology, Legal Assistance of Western New York
Jon Miller is the Technology Director for Legal Assistance of Western New York. He began working as an IT Specialist for LawNY in June of 2015 where he supported the organization’s IT systems and training efforts. As the Technology Director he manages the day-to-day operations of... Read More →
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Joseph Melo

Director of Engineering, Just-Tech
As the director of engineering, Just-Tech's clients and team rely on Joseph for clear communication and an ability to lead and teach everything from simple concepts to complicated setups. He was especially recognized for implementing a VOIP solution for Legal Services NYC. Some of... Read More →
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Guy Lescault

Executive Director, Legal Services Alabama
In December 2018, the Legal Services Alabama Board of Directors announced the appointment of Guy Lescault to serve as Executive Director effective January 1, 2019. Guy has over 40 years of experience in the legal services community, including serving as Program Counsel for the Office... Read More →
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Larry Clark

CIO in Residence, TechBridge

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Pro Bono Innovation Fund Shark Tank: Technology Edition
The Pro Bono Innovation Fund Shark Tank will invigorate entrepreneurship and replication in legal aid pro bono. Four Pro Bono Innovation Fund grantee “Innovators” have been selected to inspire you to use technology to do pro bono more efficiently and effectively with meaningful client impact. Innovators will pitch a technological breakthrough product, concept, or service from their Pro Bono Innovation Fund projects. Audience members will be the Sharks, whose job it is to identify the most promising replications that the Pro Bono Innovation Fund has to offer. Sharks will bring the perspective of diverse pro bono models, technological experience, and communities across the country, and will sink their teeth into Innovators’ ideas to test the strength and viability of replication. This session will use Poll Everywhere to capture live results to select the Shark Tank winner and allow the audience to provide feedback to each Innovator.
Speakers
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Katherine Harris

Economic Fairness Project Coordinator, Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Boston Bar Association
avatar for Angie Wagenhals

Angie Wagenhals

Director of Pro Bono Program, MT Legal Services Association
Angie Wagenhals works as the Director of Pro Bono at Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA). She is responsible for the management of MLSA's statewide pro bono program and is involved in a number of different technology projects as part of that grant. Angie has been with MLSA for... Read More →
avatar for Mytrang Nguyen

Mytrang Nguyen

Program Counsel, Pro Bono Innovation, Legal Services Corporation
Mytrang Nguyen is part of a team that manages LSC’s Pro Bono Innovation Fund, a $5 million competitive grant program that invests in efforts to creatively leverage pro bono and private resources in the delivery of legal services in low-income and underserved communities. To date... Read More →
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Sandhya Kidd

Program Counsel, Legal Services Corporation
TBD
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Tony Lu

Director of Pro Bono, Community Legal Aid SoCal

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

The Challenges of Ensuring Substantive Quality in Online Tools
Online interviews and templates - such as those built with A2J Author, DocAssemble, Guide & File, HotDocs, and Neota Logic - help people get legal work done. They embody a great deal of information. How can we make sure that the substance of the guidance they communicate and the documents they generate are 'right'? That folks can reasonably trust and rely on them? Even beautifully presented and highly usable applications can be wrong, inconsistent, or incomplete. Yet inventorying and verifying the legal know-how expressed in even relatively basic applications can be fiendishly difficult. It's hard enough to build something that works at all! This session will review the challenges of ensuring substantive quality, including when you inherit someone else's work. We'll discuss ways in which developers and their collaborators can address those challenges through testing, documentation, and standard practices.
Speakers
avatar for Marc Lauritsen

Marc Lauritsen

President, Capstone Practice Systems
Marc Lauritsen, president of Capstone Practice Systems, practiced and supervised in legal aid offices for seven years, then served as an instructor, director of clinical programs, and a senior research associate at Harvard Law School. Marc directed Project PERICLES there, which focused... Read More →
avatar for Angela Tripp

Angela Tripp

Co-Executive Director, Michigan Statewide Advocacy Services
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Kevin Mulcahy

VP, Education & Community Programs, Neota Logic
Kevin is VP of Education and Community Programs at Neota Logic, which provides a software development platform for creating expertise-automation applications that replicate the thinking and actions of lawyers and other types of experts. He's also an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown... Read More →
avatar for Quinten Steenhuis

Quinten Steenhuis

Senior Attorney/Network Administrator, Greater Boston Legal Services
Quinten Steenhuis is a senior housing attorney, systems administrator, and developer at Greater Boston Legal Services, where he has worked since 2008. Quinten has practiced housing and eviction defense law since 2008, and has been a professional programmer and web application developer... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Broadway - Plaza Level 921 SW 6th Ave, Portland, OR 97204, USA
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

All Aboard! Let's Collaborate with SharePoint Online
Does your current information management system address the needs of management, staff, and clients? Has it streamlined and improved your business and document management processes? This session is for anyone seeking to change their information management structure and business processes or interested in key success factors and lessons learned during South Carolina Legal Services’s (SCLS) successful implementation. Assessing organizational needs and committing to change what is not working can be challenging. SCLS used its strategic planning process to look at the use of technology and its capability to address organizational needs including: business processes, provision of client services, and document management challenges. With management leading the way, SCLS implemented its SharePoint Online Intranet. This session will show how the Information Management Intranet is changing the way SCLS works, enhancing and improving the delivery of client services, collaboration and productivity of staff, and the automation of business processes and workflows.
Speakers
avatar for Kenneth Elliott

Kenneth Elliott

Webmaster/IT Support Specialist, South Carolina Legal Services
Kenneth Elliott is the Webmaster, IT Support Specialist and Template Developer at South Carolina Legal Services (SCLS). Joining SCLS in 2009, Kenneth has been lending his expertise in the latest web development and marketing technology trends and strategies. He is also an experienced... Read More →
PM

Pat Muller

IT Manager, South Carolina Legal Services
Pat Muller has managed the technology for South Carolina Legal Services (SCLS) since 2004. Pat has an Associate Degree in Computer Programming Technology, a Bachelor of Science in Business Information Systems and a Master’s Degree in Information Systems. Pat has successfully managed... Read More →
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Thomas A. Trent

Intake Managing Attorney, South Carolina Legal Services
I graduated from University of South Carolina Law School in 1984 and began working for South Carolina Legal Services (SCLS) in 1986. I have been involved in management since 1992.  I have been the Intake Managing Attorney of SCLS since 2002. I supervise staff in local offices and... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

Building and Sustaining Statewide Access Innovations: Insights from Current Portal Initiatives
How can statewide technology initiatives spark new forms of collaboration, both online and off? This workshop will highlight how the Legal Navigator initiatives in Alaska and Hawaii and portal projects in other states are testing new strategies to build, govern, and maintain cross-sector legal education, triage, and referral innovations.
Speakers
avatar for Glenn Rawdon

Glenn Rawdon

Senior Program Counsel for Technology, Legal Services Corporation
Glenn Rawdon is Senior Program Counsel for Technology with the Legal Services Corporation. He is responsible for helping legal services programs with their technology efforts and with the administration of the Technology Initiative Grants (TIG) program. S
avatar for Gwen Daniels

Gwen Daniels

Director of Product Development, Illinois Legal Aid Online
Gwen is Director of Product Development at Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) and has been with ILAO since 2004. She is responsible for product strategy, leading the organization in research of new products, product enhancements, and redesigns. She oversees engineering, design, user... Read More →
avatar for Bob Glaves

Bob Glaves

Executive Director, The Chicago Bar Foundation
Bob Glaves has been Executive Director of The Chicago Bar Foundation since 1999, prior to which he had a successful nine-year career as a civil litigator in private prac-tice. As Executive Director, Bob is responsible for leading and overseeing the CBF’s work that brings Chicago’s... Read More →
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Nikole Nelson

Executive Director, Alaska Legal Services Corporation
Nikole Nelson is the executive director of Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC), Alaska's only LSC-funded program and the only statewide provider of free civil legal assistance to low-income Alaskans. Nikole oversees ALSC's 11 offices and a staff
avatar for Nalani Fujimori Kaina

Nalani Fujimori Kaina

Executive Director, Legal Aid Society of Hawaii
Nalani Fujimori Kaina is the executive director of the Legal Aid Society of Hawai‘i. Born and raised in Hawai‘i, Ms. Kaina began her career as an attorney on Molokai, an island of 7,500 residents, in a one attorney office and also served as a managing attorney and deputy director... Read More →
avatar for Amy Clark

Amy Clark

Director of Strategic Partnerships, Illinois Legal Aid Online
Amy Clark is the Director of Strategic Partnerships at Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO), which increases access to justice for lower-income Illinois residents through the innovative use of technology. Amy directs ILAO’s outreach and engagement with users of ILAO’s statewide legal... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

Legal App Teardowns: Do's & Don'ts of Designing Apps for A2J
Session participants will collaboratively "teardown" apps in the Access-to-Justice space. A "teardown" is an in-depth exploration of how effectively a particular design meets – or doesn't meet – its goals. During the first part of the session, you'll hear from panelists with direct experience building and deploying apps for courts and legal aid as they conduct example teardowns. Afterwards attendees will work together to review apps that have been submitted for feedback. The session will end with an open discussion of how the A2J community can establish a positive, open, and collaborative space for evaluating and sharing feedback about each other's work.
Speakers
avatar for Thomas Officer

Thomas Officer

Desiner, Cofouonder, Community.lawyer
I lead Design at Community.lawyer, a "no code" app builder and marketing platform for legal service professionals. Designing legal services means rethinking (1) people; (2) process; and sometimes (3) tech. If tech is part of your legal design work, you should leverage off-the-shelf... Read More →
avatar for Jack Madans

Jack Madans

Digital Service, Principal, Judicial Council of California
digital self help, user testing, procedural justice, metrics for portals, why brevity need not be the enemy of legal accuracy, and snowshoeing :)
avatar for Claire Johnson Raba

Claire Johnson Raba

Clinical Teaching Fellow, UCI Consumer Law Clinic
see linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-johnson-raba-3626191/
avatar for Dave Guarino

Dave Guarino

Principal, FIDG Labs
Dave Guarino is the former founding engineer and Director of GetCalFresh at Code for America, an online application tool for SNAP that today assists 1/4 of all applications statewide. He currently consults on technology strategy for serving low-income users, particularly around government... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

Made by Legal Aiders for Legal Aiders: A How-To Manual for Website Accessibility
Do you have non-accessible PDF documents scattered through your website? Can you only use your keyboard to get around your website? Do your link colors have enough contrast against backgrounds and surrounding text? Atlanta Legal Aid and Legal Services Vermont have been asking these questions and many more. They've worked with an accessibility consultant to create a manual that will help other legal aid organizations assess their websites and improve accessibility. Learn about the process they used to make their statewide websites accessible, including the top issues and solutions. Learn about setting a goal for accessibility, using tools and user testing to assess your website, and a checklist of common issues and step-by-step solutions — with a focus on Drupal and Pro Bono Net websites.
Speakers
avatar for Mike Grunenwald

Mike Grunenwald

Senior Program Advisor, Pro Bono Net
Mike joined Pro Bono Net in 2015 after several years at the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center, where he served as the lead on a variety of technology initiatives, including management of the probono.net/dc and LawHelp.org/DC websites and development of interactive interviews on the LawHelp... Read More →
avatar for Kris Surette

Kris Surette

Web Manager, Legal Services Vermont
See our website accessibility toolkit for legal aid organizations: https://www.lsntap.org/node/300/web-accessibility-toolkit-legal-services-websitesKris Surette manages web content and web projects for the statewide VTLawHelp.org website at Legal Services Vermont. She has been coordinating... Read More →
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Kristin Verrill

Director of Grants & Innovation, Atlanta Legal Aid Society, Inc.
Kristin Nelson Verrill is the Director of Grants & Innovation at Atlanta Legal Aid Society. For over 14 years, she has been developing and implementing technology tools to increase and improve legal advocacy for low income clients. She is Atlanta Legal Aid’s Legal Server administrator... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
Forum Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

Perspectives on Artificial Intelligence and Access to Justice
The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) presents an opportunity to re-imagine and improve our civil justice system. How could legal aid programs use AI to help more people? How can courts use AI to optimize and improve services? How can attorneys and judges benefit from this new technology while fulfilling their professional duties and protecting the public? What role can technology companies play? How can AI be used to close the access to justice gap and help the growing number of self-represented litigants? These discussions have begun to take place around the country. For example, the State Bar of California appointed a task force to study how to improve access through innovation of legal services (ATILS). Arizona, Utah, and Illinois have similar initiatives. In this session we will bring together a diverse panel of experts to explore legal AI from different perspectives.
Speakers
avatar for Abhijeet Chavan

Abhijeet Chavan

Consultant
Abhijeet Chavan has over 25 years of technology consulting experience with public-sector, higher education, and non-profit clients. Mr. Chavan was named to the Fastcase 50 list of global legal innovators in 2017. He regularly presents at conferences on access to justice and technology... Read More →
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Alan Carlson

consultant, retired from Orange County (CA) Superior Court
Alan Carlson has worked as a court executive and management consultant in state trial courts for 43 years. He was the Court Executive Officer (court administrator, clerk of court, and jury commissioner) of the Orange (CA) Superior Court, Court Executive Officer of the San Francisco... Read More →
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Joshua Walker

Chief Product Officer, Aon
Joshua Walker is the author of “On Legal AI” (Fastcase / Full Court Press, summer 2019). With over 20 years of experience in this and allied fields, as well as over 15 as an IP attorney, he is seeking to deploy the next next generation of advanced legal solutions. Walker is also... Read More →
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Wendy Chang

Judge, Superior Court of Los Angeles County, California
Wendy Chang is a judge on the Superior Court of Los Angeles County in California. She previously served as partner and associate at various law firms. Chang received a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Los Angeles and a J.D. from Loyola Law School. (Judge Chang... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

Pro Bono Innovation Fund: What’s New and What We’ve Learned
Since 2014, the Pro Bono Innovation Fund has awarded more than $18 million to 67 projects in 28 states and the District of Columbia. In the upcoming 2020 grant-making cycle, the Legal Services Corporation will continue to focus on transforming the delivery of pro bono, either through project or transformation grants. Presenters will offer information and updates about the Pro Bono Innovation Fund grant-making process for FY2020. The session will also provide strategies to approach project creation and development when thinking about innovative pro bono delivery. This session will use Poll Everywhere to allow the audience to participate in the discussion and presentation.
Speakers
avatar for Mytrang Nguyen

Mytrang Nguyen

Program Counsel, Pro Bono Innovation, Legal Services Corporation
Mytrang Nguyen is part of a team that manages LSC’s Pro Bono Innovation Fund, a $5 million competitive grant program that invests in efforts to creatively leverage pro bono and private resources in the delivery of legal services in low-income and underserved communities. To date... Read More →
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Sandhya Kidd

Program Counsel, Legal Services Corporation
TBD

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
Council Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

Self-Help, Reimagined
The American legal system is designed for use by highly trained professionals, but most people who engage with the system do so on their own behalf without formal legal training. Numerous examples of legal self-help materials have grown out of this reality. What experience has shown, however, that while there is wide-spread access to legal self-help information and materials, users have difficulty deploying such information. In order to be effectively used by those who need them, self-help materials must acknowledge and address the barriers to deployment in the context in which they are faced. These barriers include users’ overtaxed bandwidth, their anxiety and feelings of threat, their unfamiliarity with the details of the legal system, and self-help materials’ excessive focus on conceptual understanding and well as the materials’ lack of analogies and visual imagery. This session will discuss the development of an ongoing randomized control trial in which we are testing the effectiveness of re-imagined self-help materials. This field trial has the potential to transform the experience of self-represented users of the legal system.
Speakers
avatar for Natalie Anne Knowlton, J.D.

Natalie Anne Knowlton, J.D.

Director of Special Projects, IAALS
Natalie Anne Knowlton is a director of special projects at IAALS. She focuses on legal and empirical research and analysis, facilitating collaboration among stakeholders, and undertaking national outreach and advocacy to enable continuous improvement in practices and procedures for... Read More →
avatar for Lois Lupica

Lois Lupica

Maine Law Foundation Professor of Law, University of Maine
Lois R. Lupica is the Maine Law Foundation Professor of Law at the University of Maine School of Law. She was a Fulbright Senior Scholar Senior at the University of Melbourne Law School in 2019. While in Australia, she worked with the legal services sector on a variety of projects... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

1:30pm PST

“Pajama Court”: Closing the Justice Gap in the Lone Star State
More than 30 million people annually attempt to navigate civil legal issues in state courts without a lawyer. Recognizing that simple cases should not need a lawyer if people have the right tools, courts are utilizing technology to allow people to resolve their disputes entirely online without ever setting foot inside a courtroom. In Texas, judges, mediators, court administrators, legal aid attorneys, and technology personnel joined forces to pilot an emerging tool: online dispute resolution. This panel highlights how Collin County officials engaged stakeholders in the private and public sectors, developed a sustainable funding model, and produced plain-language legal information for litigants, effectively challenging “politics as usual” by revealing both the economic and public benefits of civil justice innovations.
Speakers
avatar for Amie Lewis

Amie Lewis

The Pew Charitable Trusts, Senior Associate, Civil Legal System Modernization
Amie Lewis is currently with The Pew Charitable Trusts’ Civil Legal System Modernization Project, where she works to make the nation’s civil legal system more accessible and affordable by implementing the most promising technologies and tools to assist self-represented litigants... Read More →
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Charles "Chuck" Ruckel

Judge, Collin County Justice Court 3-1
Judge Charles “Chuck” Ruckel is the presiding Judge for Collin County Justice Court 3-1 located in Plano, Texas. His precinct population is approximately 350,000 and includes parts of the city of Dallas that are located in Collin County. In fiscal year 2019, he will see approximately... Read More →
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Ben White

IT Senior Manager, Collin County Information Technology
Ben White is currently a Senior Manager in the Information Technology Department for the government offices of Collin County, Texas. He is responsible for the Courts and Justice project implementations for Collin County and presides over the Odyssey Change Control Board, which is... Read More →
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Melvin Thathiah

Owner, The Law Office of Melvin Thathiah
When Melvin was a child, at age 2, his parents immigrated to the United States. Melvin grew up in Mesquite, Texas and graduated from North Mesquite High School. He then graduated from Texas A&M University and attended Florida Coastal School of Law. Melvin’s career took him to Dallas... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 1:30pm - 2:45pm PST
Broadway - Plaza Level 921 SW 6th Ave, Portland, OR 97204, USA
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

A Strategic Blueprint for Eviction and Housing Law Innovation
There is a flurry of innovative technology and policies to respond to the eviction crisis in America's cities. This includes new web applications to give strategic guidance, new policies giving tenants right to counsel, new programs to provide paralegals or volunteers' services, and new education to train people on their rights. But how can legal advocates and technologists be more strategic, coordinated, and impactful with our work? In this session, participants will be guided through a Strategic Mapping session, to envision how lawyers, technologists, and policymakers can foster solutions that can fix the various dysfunctions of the eviction system and be replicated among various jurisdictions. Attendees will learn about the current landscape of technology, services, and policy innovations that has emerged to address the eviction crisis and work to map out how local jurisdictions might coordinate, replicate, and improve upon these innovations for their specific contexts. The goal is to weave together multiple interventions – among legal aid providers, courts, policymakers, community leaders, and beyond – to envision system change.
Speakers
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Daniel Bernal

Fellow, Stanford Law School
Daniel is a recent law graduate from Stanford, a PhD candidate at the University of Arizona, and an affiliate member of Harvard Law's A2J Lab. His research focuses on language access, self-help, and the role that information plays in cases of summary eviction.
avatar for Margaret Hagan

Margaret Hagan

Executive Director, Stanford University Law School, Legal Design Lab
Executive Director of Stanford Legal Design LabMargaret Hagan is the Executive Director of the Legal Design Lab at Stanford University, as well as lecturer at the Law School and d.school. She is a lawyer, and holds a J.D. from Stanford Law School, a DPhi
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Robert Wall

Director of Help Center, Univ. of Cincinnati Hamilton County Municipal Court Help Center
Robert Wall is the director of the Hamilton County Municipal Court Help Center, which opened in September 2017. The Help Center's mission is to increase access to justice by providing self-represented litigants with education, information and limited legal advice to help them become... Read More →
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Aftab Pureval

Clerk of Courts, Hamilton County Clerk of Courts
Aftab Pureval is the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts, and is the first Democrat to hold this office in more than 100 years. During his tenure, Aftab has brought modern and professional reforms to the Clerk’s office. He has also invested in the people who serve us at the courthouse... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

Delivery Model Innovation: Scaled Pro Bono, Self-Sustaining Revenue, and Agile Management
This case study explores the successes and challenges of implementing new legal services delivery models by examining The Commons Law Center, a nonprofit law firm serving Oregonians of modest means. The session will highlight its origins and how a board member’s private law firm leveraged financial and in-kind support to launch and support the nonprofit. The organization uses charitable revenue as seed capital to launch new legal verticals that should become self-sustaining within a year. The firm has a three-part mission: 1. Expand access to legal services; 2. Train new attorneys to run a revenue-positive practice; and 3. Educate the public. Its Pro Bono Partner model leverages experienced private-sector attorneys to volunteer expertise, early case assessment, and quality assurance, while lawyer fellows and interns handle day-to-day case work. The session will cover how the firm uses Agile Project Management, Lean Process Improvement, and Design Thinking—coupled with empowering technology and analytics—to optimize workflows and promote efficient service delivery.
Speakers
avatar for Kimberly Pray

Kimberly Pray

Partner, Catalyst Law, LLC
Kimberly is co-founder of Catalyst Law LLC, a women-owned law firm and certified B Corporation based in Portland, Oregon. She serves as the Board President of The Commons Law Center, a non-profit law firm launched in 2016 to revolutionize access to basic legal services, education... Read More →
avatar for Amanda Caffall

Amanda Caffall

Executive Director & Staff Attorney, The Commons Law Center
Amanda is the founding executive director and staff attorney at The Commons Law Center, where she brings together law students, experienced pro bono lawyers, and community partners to expand legal access. She has a J.D. with honors from Lewis and Clark Law School, a B.A. with honors... Read More →
avatar for John Grant

John Grant

Founder, Agile Attorney Network
John E. Grant is a legal operations and strategy consultant who helps legal teams build practices that are profitable, scalable, and sustainable. A fourth-generation lawyer, he works at the intersection of legal practice, process improvement, and technology to improve the delivery... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
Forum Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

Hacking For Lawyers
What does hacking truly mean? We hear the term every day, but what does it actually look like? One of the biggest impediments to cybersecurity is the confusion around what the bad guys are really doing. During this session, three legal technologists who have built dozens of applications and had to protect against hackers, will demonstrate how people actually “hack” into something. From simple JavaScript manipulation to SQL injection, the speakers will hack a fake website set up to show just how easy it is and how damaging the results can be. Audience members are encouraged to bring a laptop and attempt some of the exploits along with the presenters. All audience members will walk away with a better understanding of what “hacking” looks like as well as various methods of preventing the exploits they just witnessed. Audience members will also be able to see if some of their own websites contain the same vulnerabilities and be able to talk confidently with their IT staff/vendors.
Speakers
avatar for Jonathan Pyle

Jonathan Pyle

Contract Performance Officer, Philadelphia Legal Assistance
Jonathan Pyle is the Contract Performance Officer at Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA), where he is responsible for LSC compliance, reporting, and implementing new uses of technology to analyze, streamline, and expand service delivery. Before joining PLA, he practiced law in the... Read More →
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Matthew Stubenberg

Associate Director of Legal Technology, Harvard Law School - A2J Lab
Matthew Stubenberg graduated from Maryland Law School in 2013. Interested in using technology to change how the law is practiced, he has developed numerous software applications. Matthew’s first big success was MDExpungement.com, a website that automates the expungement process... Read More →
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Nate Vogel

Director of Law and Technology, Community Legal Services of Philadelphia
Nate Vogel is Director of Law and Technology at Community Legal Services (CLS) in Philadelphia. His work focuses on integrating data and technology into CLS’ legal and policy advocacy. Before joining CLS, Nate served as a law clerk for the Honorable Judge Gerald Austin McHugh of... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

How the Justice For All Framework Can Help Maintain Tech Ready Content
As the maxim goes, "content is king," but whether developing a portal or app, the quality of the content must reflect coordinated information among providers. This session will explore how the Justice for All coalition framework enables a local community to create and harmonize tech- ready self-help content, as well as offers a pragmatic structure for addressing the governance challenges that can undermine the success of technology projects. After a general presentation, attendees will break into facilitated groups to problem solve specific examples that illustrate the power of aligning technology and trusted intermediaries.
Speakers
avatar for J. Singleton

J. Singleton

Program Manager, MN Legal Services State Support
J. Singleton is the Program Manager of Legal Services State Support. She has led many successful development and redesign projects that have improved access to justice for Minnesotans statewide, including the redesign of LawHelpMN.org, creation of Minnesota’s Legal Organizations... Read More →
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Gordon Shaw

Director of Client Access, Community Legal Aid
In January 2014, Gordon Shaw became the first Director of Client Access at Community Legal Aid following the merger of the Massachusetts Justice Project (MJP), where he had been Executive Director, into Community Legal Aid. After he received his law degree in 1990 from Northeastern... Read More →
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Emy López

Access to Justice Consultant, National Center for State Courts
Emy López a consultant for the National Center for State Courts’ Justice for All Initiative helping states reach the goal of 100% meaningful access to justice. She has also worked as the coordinator for the implementation phase of Colorado’s Justice for All Triage Pilot Project... Read More →
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Amanda Kool

Director of Legal Ops; Lead Consultant, C3Kentucky; KY Access to Justice Commission

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
Council Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

Technology Innovations for Civil Legal Aid Clients and Victims of Crime: Stronger Together
Over the past two decades, the Legal Services Corporation’s Technology Initiative Grants program has seeded legal aid technology innovations in nearly every state in the country. The Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime and State Victims of Crime Act Administrators have been catalysts for technology initiatives to expand assistance for underserved victims of crime, often in partnership with legal aid and other community-based nonprofits. What is the relationship between these efforts within state justice communities, and how can programs build complementary digital strategies? This workshop will highlight examples of technology collaborations between legal aid and victim-serving organizations to increase access to assistance for sexual and domestic violence survivors and victims of elder abuse, financial exploitation, and other crimes. Panelists will share how these legal-technology partnerships were formed and funded, what challenges were overcome to ensure victim privacy and client privilege, what we are learning from them, and how to stay abreast of developments in this arena.
Speakers
avatar for Liz Keith

Liz Keith

Program Director, Pro Bono Net
Liz is State and National Justice Communities Program Director with Pro Bono Net, a national nonprofit bringing the power of the law to all through innovative technology solutions and expertise in mobilizing justice networks. Liz has played a key role in Pro Bono Net’s program strategy... Read More →
avatar for Rochelle Hahn

Rochelle Hahn

Co-Director, Mass. Legal Aid Websites Project, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute
Rochelle Hahn is the co-director of the Massachusetts Legal Aid Websites Project, which seeks to improve access to justice for low-income and disadvantaged persons in Massachusetts through innovative use of technology. Through our websites, we provide Massachusetts residents with... Read More →
avatar for Meg Garvin

Meg Garvin

Director and Clinical Professor of Law, National Crime Victim Law Institute at Lewis & Clark Law School
Meg Garvin, M.A., J.D., is the Executive Director of the National Crime Victim Law Institute and a Clinical Professor of Law at Lewis & Clark Law School. Ms. Garvin is recognized as a leading expert on victims’ rights. She has testified before Congress, state legislatures, and the... Read More →
avatar for Quisquella Addison

Quisquella Addison

LawHelpNY Program Director, Pro Bono Net
Quisquella, (pronounced Keese-kay-ya) joined Pro Bono Net as the LawHelpNY Program Director in July 2016. LawHelpNY, powered by Pro Bono Net, is an online platform for helping low-income New Yorkers solve their legal problems. Our mission is to provide and promote access to high-quality... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
Broadway - Plaza Level 921 SW 6th Ave, Portland, OR 97204, USA
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

The Computer Did It – Automation, Evaluation, and the Creation of National Justice Index Standards
Algorithmic decision-making has enormous potential to help vulnerable people in our society. By reducing the role of human decision-makers, Artificial Intelligence (AI) promises to increase efficiencies, reduce biases, and simplify processes. States want AI to decide eligibility for Medicaid, public housing, SNAP benefits, and more. But, with all this promise and potential, why are we seeing litigation challenging automated decision-making in Arkansas, Colorado, Michigan, New York and other states? The lawsuits are contesting applications that have gone awry with erroneous outcomes, embedded biases, and wrongful findings of fraud, and are insisting, among other things, that government adjust processes and standards, and re-do adverse decisions. AI applications are going awry with erroneous decisions, embedded biases, wrongful findings of fraud, and requirements to re-do decisions. Will AI systems, including portals and online dispute resolution, work as hoped? Due process, equal protection, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and statutory challenges are proceeding against AI models, and are on the rise. What are the consequences of saying to ourselves and to others “the computer did it”? Our community needs advocacy tools, including national standards, to hold government, tech firms, and other powerful interests, accountable to the rule of law. We must preserve the rights of people against the new tyranny of presumptions of accuracy. Join this group conversation about the promise, the perils, and the national standards that are defining the entry of AI into the justice sphere.
Speakers
avatar for David Udell

David Udell

Executive Director, National Center for Access to Justice
David Udell is Founder and Executive Director of the National Center for Access to Justice, ncforaj.org, a research and policy organization based at Fordham Law School that relies on data and advocacy to build a more just and equitable society. David guides NCAJ’s initiatives, including... Read More →
avatar for Julia Simon-Mishel

Julia Simon-Mishel

Supervising Attorney, Unemployment Compensation Unit, Philadelphia Legal Assistance
Julia Simon- Mishel is the supervising attorney of the Unemployment Compensation Unit at Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA), where she represents low-wage workers in unemployment matters. She has represented more than 800 clients and has an active appellate practice pursuing impact... Read More →
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͍de Gulotta

Komenge Consulting, Partner & Chief Knowledge Officer
Íde Gulotta is a partner at Kōmĕngé LLC organizational consulting offering planning, evaluation, technology, and coaching services. Íde Gulotta has an undergraduate education focusing on philosophy of mathematics, logical systems, systematic methodology, and computer science... Read More →
avatar for David Curle

David Curle

Director, Enterprise Content - Technology and Innovation, Thomson Reuters
David supports Thomson Reuters’ Legal business with research and thought leadership about the legal technology and innovation ecosystem, and the changing legal services industry. Prior to joining Thomson Reuters in 2013, he led coverage of the global legal information market for... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

To LMS or Not? The A-Z of Learning Management Systems
Deciding to adopt a Learning Management System (LMS) for your training needs can be a big decision with long-term implications. According to researchers, organizations invested $1.85 billion into various types of learning and training companies in 2016 alone, and the number has since grown. Though many organizations are jumping on the bandwagon and quickly adopting these systems for their training needs, the first question they should ask is what are the essential factors when considering an LMS, including finances, technology, and current organizational capacity? This tactical session will guide you through the A-Z’s of adopting an LSM for your legal training needs. This session will present the process that the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) undertook and will introduce the future vision of LSC's training platform. Additionally, participants will be provided resources for deciding if an LMS is right for them including: LMS comparisons, budget guides, implementation guidelines, and other documents for general reflections when considering an LMS.
Speakers
avatar for Dina Shafey Scott

Dina Shafey Scott

Legal Services Corporation, Legal Services Corporation
Dina is the Training and Technical Assistance Manager with the Legal Services Corporation. While at LSC, Dr. Shafey Scott creates, manages, and evaluates all organizational training resources and develops the new Legal Services Corporation learning platform. 
avatar for Jennifer Rivers

Jennifer Rivers

Legal Services Corporation, Legal Services Corporation
Jennifer Rivers is the Training and Technical Assistance Program Analyst with the Legal Services Corporation. Jennifer is assisting in developing and implementing learning materials for grantees and other stakeholders in the Legal Aid field. 

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

3:30pm PST

Utilizing Your Case Management System to Improve Communication with Clients
Tired of leaving message after message on your client's voicemail? Spending too much staff time trying to reach the clients you serve? This session is for you! Join a variety of legal services programs to learn how to use existing or easy-to-add features in your case management system to improve communication with clients. Presenters will show how they've used a variety of case management systems – LegalServer, Pika, and Kemps – to remind clients of appointments, send text messages, collect digital forms, and more. Presenters will demonstrate tools, discuss development process, and provide feedback on pros and cons of each tool so that attendees walk away with ideas to put into action.
Speakers
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Craige Harrison

Chief Information Officer, Utah Legal Services
Craige Harrison has worked at Utah Legal Services since 1993 in many capacities. He is currently working as Chief Information Officer. His primary responsibilities include a wide variety of strategic technology issues such as governance and policy, resource allocation, information... Read More →
avatar for Angie Wagenhals

Angie Wagenhals

Director of Pro Bono Program, MT Legal Services Association
Angie Wagenhals works as the Director of Pro Bono at Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA). She is responsible for the management of MLSA's statewide pro bono program and is involved in a number of different technology projects as part of that grant. Angie has been with MLSA for... Read More →
avatar for Raquel Bonilla

Raquel Bonilla

Director of Grants Management, Legal Services of Northern Virginia
Raquel Bonilla is the Director of Grants Management & Special Projects at Legal Services of Northern Virginia (LSNV). She has been with LSNV for 21 years. Her current responsibilities include grant writing, grant reporting and resource development. She also participates in the planning... Read More →
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Amy Williams

Deputy Director, Legal Services of Northern California
Amy Williams has devoted her career to serving low-income people in urban and rural northern California focusing particularly on expanding access to income maintenance programs and health care. Since graduating from UC Davis Law School in 2005, Amy has worked for Legal Services of... Read More →

Wednesday January 15, 2020 3:30pm - 4:45pm PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session
 
Thursday, January 16
 

8:45am PST

Are we there yet?: Integrating AI and Triage in MA, ME, & IL
Artificial intelligence (AI) may be the wave of the future – but how is that going to work with what we have today, on a legal aid budget? Legal aid programs in Massachusetts, Maine, and Illinois have all been working since 2018 to integrate AI components into their existing logic tree based triage tools. Each organization has taken a distinct path toward achieving this goal, but have collaborated and communicated throughout the process. This session will explore the differences and similarities in their triage tools, AI solutions, and processes. Members from each team will share lessons learned, progress, the benefits of their collaborative efforts, and next steps.
Speakers
avatar for Gwen Daniels

Gwen Daniels

Director of Product Development, Illinois Legal Aid Online
Gwen is Director of Product Development at Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) and has been with ILAO since 2004. She is responsible for product strategy, leading the organization in research of new products, product enhancements, and redesigns. She oversees engineering, design, user... Read More →
avatar for Rochelle Hahn

Rochelle Hahn

Co-Director, Mass. Legal Aid Websites Project, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute
Rochelle Hahn is the co-director of the Massachusetts Legal Aid Websites Project, which seeks to improve access to justice for low-income and disadvantaged persons in Massachusetts through innovative use of technology. Through our websites, we provide Massachusetts residents with... Read More →
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Gordon Shaw

Director of Client Access, Community Legal Aid
In January 2014, Gordon Shaw became the first Director of Client Access at Community Legal Aid following the merger of the Massachusetts Justice Project (MJP), where he had been Executive Director, into Community Legal Aid. After he received his law degree in 1990 from Northeastern... Read More →
avatar for Jack Haycock

Jack Haycock

Client Focused Technology Innovator, Pine Tree Legal Assistance
Jack received their Juris Doctor from Northeastern University School of Law in 2016. At PTLA, Jack drafts and publishes plain language client education content of all types, administers PTLA's three Drupal websites, leads client-facing technology projects, heads social media efforts... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

8:45am PST

Bring a Laptop and Create an Online Classroom!
There are many tools available to improve limited scope services or self-representation for individuals that legal aid organizations are not able to represent fully. In this workshop, participants will learn how to create online classrooms in the area of law of their choosing using the Learn the Law classroom platform. The presenters will first give a short demonstration of the five classrooms created by South Carolina Legal Services. Next, participants will take part in a “hands on” workshop, getting a head start on creating a classroom of their own. Bring a laptop and whatever resources you have on your topic such as slide presentations, fact sheets, video presentations, pleadings, and other documents and get ready to help pro se litigants. Attendees will also learn how to collaborate with a creative media project partners throughout the stages of the production process of an animated video: content mapping and scripting, style, storyboards, animatic (which serves as a “rough draft” of the animation), and final animation.
Speakers
avatar for Adam Stofsky

Adam Stofsky

CEO, Briefly
Adam Stofsky is a lawyer, manager, and social entrepreneur. His career has focused on building strong organizations – most notably founding an innovative law and technology non-profit, the New Media Advocacy Project, and growing it into a successful international social enterprise... Read More →
avatar for Nicole Perez

Nicole Perez

Managing Attorney, Legal Aid Foundation of los Angeles
Nicole M. Perez is the managing attorney of the Veterans Justice Center at Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA). As a disabled Latina from a marginalized community, Nicole has dedicated her career to fighting for economic and racial justice. At LAFLA, Nicole works passionately... Read More →
avatar for Susie Ingels

Susie Ingels

Consumer Unit Head, South Carolina Legal Services
Susan Ingles is a Sr. Staff Attorney and Consumer Law Unit Head for S.C. Legal Services (SCLS), a statewide non-profit law firm where her practice is devoted to consumer law and she launched the SCLS Constitution Day Legal Forum in 2012. Before coming to SCLS in September 2004, she... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
Broadway - Plaza Level 921 SW 6th Ave, Portland, OR 97204, USA
  Workshop Session

8:45am PST

Earning Staff Buy-in When You are Upsetting the Applecart
Long-term legal aid staff are the bedrock of legal aid programs. With their wisdom and years of practice comes decades of documents, articles, and forms, plus the gems hidden away in their heads that are never transcribed. This session will focus on the use of SharePoint Online as an internal solution to mine the gems of long-term legal aid staff, while also accommodating the demands of the new generation who need a collaborative work space to thrive. The way we work becomes part of our professional identity. The various workarounds and quirks that employees develop when they have outdated technological systems can feel very personal. Being sensitive to the working styles of individuals while also overhauling the work space for efficiency is a delicate balance to strike. It takes authentic listening, understanding, training, and a sense of humor. Do not let fear of change dictate future growth. Legal aid organizations should be using tools employed by major companies to enhance the provision of legal services.
Speakers
avatar for Ashley Holliday

Ashley Holliday

General Counsel, West Tennessee Legal Services
Ashley Holliday is General Counsel at West Tennessee Legal Services, Inc. She manages the program’s Technology Initiative Grants, the intake unit, the Senior Citizens Law Project, and the consumer law unit. Prior to joining WTLS, Holliday was in private practice handling consumer... Read More →
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Catherine Clayton

Executive Director, West Tennessee Legal Services
Cathy Clayton, Executive Director of West Tennessee Legal Services (WTLS), returned to WTLS in 2015 after 27 years in private practice as a litigator where she volunteered her time and skills as a past board president for WTLS and as a pro bono attorney and mediator. As a seasoned... Read More →
avatar for Tara Saylor

Tara Saylor

Principal, Tara Saylor & Company LLC
Dr. Tara Saylor is a research and evaluation consultant located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is Principal of Tara Saylor & Company, joined by professors Ryan Saylor (Univ. of Tulsa) and Camille Bryant (Johns Hopkins Univ.). All three consultants have PhDs from the University of Virginia... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

8:45am PST

Enhancing Collaboration through Technology
Collectives form to bring together cross sector organizations focused on solving common community problems. California-based Eviction Defense Collaborative and Health Consumer Alliance target two separate, but equally important, legal issues that contribute to poverty. They do so using the same technology: JusticeServer. JusticeServer is a unique TechBridge solution built on the Salesforce.com Nonprofit Success Platform as a case management solution for legal services organizations. In this session, learn how the Eviction Defense Collaborative used JusticeServer to create an algorithm to ensure clients connect with the right organization to meet their needs through a single entry point. Also hear how the Health Consumer Alliance used JusticeServer to engineer a solution which serves the needs of the Alliance's individual programs, while providing excellent data validation, anonymization, and flexible and consistent reporting capability.
Speakers
avatar for Bryan Babcock

Bryan Babcock

Data Manager, TechBridge, Inc.
JD

Jack Dailey

Dir. of Policy and Training/HCA Coordinator, Legal Aid Society of San Diego, Inc.
Jack Dailey is a 2004 graduate of the USD School of Law, where he participated in the academic program of the Center for Public Interest Law and the Children's Advocacy Institute.  After graduating from law school, Jack was awarded an Equal Justice Works fellowship for his legal... Read More →
avatar for Samantha Sanchez

Samantha Sanchez

Legal Technology Leader, TechBridge
Samantha Sanchez serves as Legal Technology Leader for TechBridge, a national nonprofit that provides technology solutions and services to other nonprofits. Samantha advises legal service nonprofits on where technology can increase their effectiveness and efficiency. Prior to joining... Read More →
avatar for Rachel Stober

Rachel Stober

Senior Tenant Right to Counsel Coordinator, The Eviction Defense Collaborative
Rachel Stober is a Senior Tenant Right to Counsel Coordinator at the Eviction Defense Collaborative (EDC). Rachel has played a key role in the implementation of the organization’s new referral system, training staff, developing protocol for the legal clinic, working directly with... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

8:45am PST

Overcoming Barriers to Media Coverage for Your Tech Innovation
Media can be a powerful tool for educating key audiences, including intended users of an innovation, potential funders, and policymakers. But lack of knowledge about when and how to pursue media coverage can be a significant barrier. The goal of this session will be for advocates who are interested in pursuing media coverage to hear from peers who are successful media advocates for tech innovations, and from civil justice media/communications strategy experts. While there has been some strong media coverage of legal aid tech innovations, we believe there is significant potential for more, and hope that demystifying the process will result in greater confidence and increased media outreach.
Speakers
avatar for Carl Rauscher

Carl Rauscher

Director of Communications and Media Relations, Legal Services Corporation
Carl Rauscher had a long career in print and broadcast journalism before becoming the Legal Services Corporation’s Director of Communications and Media Relations eight years ago. He was political editor and Washington bureau managing editor for Cox Newspapers; Washington editor... Read More →
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Matthew Stubenberg

Associate Director of Legal Technology, Harvard Law School - A2J Lab
Matthew Stubenberg graduated from Maryland Law School in 2013. Interested in using technology to change how the law is practiced, he has developed numerous software applications. Matthew’s first big success was MDExpungement.com, a website that automates the expungement process... Read More →
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Rohan Pavuluri

CEO, Upsolve
Rohan Pavuluri is the co-founder and CEO at Upsolve, a technology-enabled national legal services nonprofit that provides low-income people with free bankruptcy assistance across the country. Rohan is a member of the Legal Services Corporation's Emerging Leaders Council and the American... Read More →
avatar for Sam Scarrow

Sam Scarrow

Executive Director, Voices for Civil Justice
Sam Scarrow oversees media strategy, message development, and strategic partnerships with a growing network of more than 1,700 civil justice advocates in all 50 states as Executive Director of Voices for Civil Justice. He works to give a platform in national and local media to people... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

8:45am PST

Overcoming Document Assembly Challenges for New Developers
This session will discuss the challenges facing organizations and developers that are new to the process of automating documents. Topics covered will include: deciding what automation software is best for the project, developing from scratch versus modifying an existing form set, working with subject matter experts, getting commitment and buy-in from external partners and stakeholders, testing best practices, and finding support as solo developers.
Speakers
avatar for Natanya Pope

Natanya Pope

Automated Documents Producer, Illinois Legal Aid Online
In addition to automating documents for Illinois Legal Aid Online, Natanya Pope is a recent graduate of Chicago-Kent College of Law. She has extensive public service experience, having served two years as an AmeriCorps VISTA at ILAO and Legal Aid Chicago. Natanya's background includes... Read More →
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Michael Hofrichter

Executive Director, Houston Volunteer Lawyers
Michael Hofrichter’s current title at Houston Volunteer Lawyers is the Operations and Compliance Director, however his responsibilities go beyond that. In his Director role, he oversees the Program’s support staff; updates HVL training/policy/template libraries; manages the IT... Read More →
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Gregory Armstrong

Practice Group Director, Consumer, Inland Counties Legal Services, Inc.
Greg Armstrong is the managing attorney for the Consumer Defense Team with Inland Counties Legal Services, Inc. (ICLS) in Riverside and San Bernardino counties in California where he manages a team of 6 attorneys and 5 support staff. He represents consum
avatar for LaDierdre McKinney

LaDierdre McKinney

Staff Attorney, Michigan Legal Help Program
LaDierdre McKinney is a staff attorney at Michigan Legal Help (MLH) Program. MLH maintains 18 affiliated Self-Help Centers around Michigan and a statewide website, MichiganLegalHelp.org, for self-represented litigants. LaDierdre utilizes her expertise in developing plain language... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
Council Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

8:45am PST

The Law School Challenge: Gamification, Technology, & Law Students as a Resource
Volunteers are an important part of resource management. Engaging law students and law firms is increasingly important given the volume of cases needing representation. In an effort to engage more law students, the Florida Bar Foundation in partnership with SavvySuit developed the Florida Pro Bono Law School Challenge competition. But what makes a good competition? What gets law students excited about participating in legal services? How can legal aid organizations re-characterize pro bono recruitment into the form of a game? This session will explore the gamification of pro bono through the Law School Challenge by presenting practical technology applications to engage volunteers, lessons learned, obstacles overcome, and future plans. Session presenters will also discuss the importance of user feedback from project surveys both during the game and after its conclusion. Finally, a Florida law student will talk about law student volunteer recruitment and their experience with the Law School Challenge and beyond.
Speakers
avatar for Eli Mattern

Eli Mattern

SavvySuit, SavvySuit
Eli Mattern, Esq., is the CEO and general counsel for SavvySuit, a software company in Orlando, Florida. She serves on the Florida Bar’s Committee on Technology and the Self-Represented Litigant Network workgroup on Justice Tech. She is a former legal aid attorney and avid believer... Read More →
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Claud Nelson

Pro Bono Program Director, The Florida Bar Foundation
As thePro Bono Program Director for The Florida Bar Foundation, Claud works to foster pro bono relationships and collaborations with bar associations, law firms, courts, law schools, legal aid organizations and other groups. In this statewide role, Claud serves as a resource for low-income... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
Forum Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

8:45am PST

When Your Website Visitors Aren’t Who You Think They Are
How many visitors to your statewide website have a legal problem that isn’t in your state? How can you make sure out-of-state visitors get to the right resource, even if that resource is on a different statewide website? One of the strengths and weaknesses of online resources is that they are available to anyone with an internet connection. While this ensures broad access, it also means that people beyond your target audience are using your resources. Workshop attendees will learn how to identify situations in which their actual audience differs from their target audience. Focusing on one aspect of this problem—out-of-state website visitors—attendees will work together to develop strategies to share and use information about out-of-state visitors and how best to guide visitors to the right website. Attendees who know how to access Google Analytics data about visitor location are encouraged to bring their own statewide website analytics.
Speakers
avatar for J. Singleton

J. Singleton

Program Manager, MN Legal Services State Support
J. Singleton is the Program Manager of Legal Services State Support. She has led many successful development and redesign projects that have improved access to justice for Minnesotans statewide, including the redesign of LawHelpMN.org, creation of Minnesota’s Legal Organizations... Read More →
avatar for Emily Good

Emily Good

Pro Bono Project Manager, MN Legal Services State Support
Emily Good is the Pro Bono Project Manager at Legal Services State Support. She administers the MN Legal Advice Online and ProJusticeMN sites, plans trainings for legal aid staff, and helps support LawHelpMN. Emily worked on the site redesign and migration to Drupal for both mnlegaladvice.org... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 8:45am - 10:00am PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

A Tale of Two Washingtons: Launching Successful Court Form Automation Projects
Successful court form automation projects must involve court and community stakeholders, be accessible to unrepresented litigants, and plan for support post-launch. This workshop will highlight how projects in Washington State and Washington, DC are meeting these benchmarks. Participants will discuss the role of strong partnerships and agreements with stakeholders, planning frameworks, plain language, user testing, and other ingredients in project success. Presenters will share the challenges and lessons learned through implementing and supporting these forms initiatives. Participants looking to implement their own large-scale automation projects will take away helpful guidance and concrete tools to streamline this work.
Speakers
avatar for Mirenda Meghelli

Mirenda Meghelli

Partnerships Manager, Pro Bono Net
Mirenda Meghelli serves as the Partnerships Manager at Pro Bono Net. She previously worked as the Hotline Program Coordinator for Legal Information for Families Today (LIFT) in New York City, where she managed the organization's bilingual telephone and email family law information... Read More →
avatar for Reece Flexner

Reece Flexner

Staff Attorney, D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center
Reece is a staff attorney at the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center, where he leverages technological tools to increase access to justice for underserved populations in the District of Columbia. He develops and maintains the technological aspects of the Center’s programs, including LawHelp.org/DC... Read More →
avatar for Laurie Garber

Laurie Garber

Technology Assisted Forms Project Manager, Northwest Justice Project
Laurie Garber is an attorney and project manager at the Northwest Justice Project. She's building Washington Forms Online: free, accessible tools for people without lawyers to find and complete the forms they need to succeed in family court. Washington Forms Online is part of NJP's... Read More →
avatar for Rita Blandino

Rita Blandino

Director, DC Courts
Rita Blandino is the Director of the Domestic Violence Division of the District of Columbia Courts where she oversees the operations of the Clerk’s Office and manages civil and criminal domestic violence matters. She has led several initiatives to enhance access to justice including... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Broadway - Plaza Level 921 SW 6th Ave, Portland, OR 97204, USA
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Crossing Ponds: The Benefits of International Collaboration and How to Support More
This session will be led by an international panel composed of representatives from Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom who will discuss the increasing number of projects featuring international collaboration and inspiration. Examples will include the Families Change program developed in British Columbia, the Dutch Rechtwijzer online dispute resolution system, and the JusticeConnect Gateway portal in Australia. The speakers will make opening presentations and then lead a workshop-style discussion on issues where international cooperation and communication would be valuable – for example, by providing inspiration, sharing code, or offering other ways of approaching similar issues, like evaluation. There will be a structured brainstorming process around what ideal international collaboration spaces look like (online and offline) and how to provide them.
Speakers
avatar for Roger Smith

Roger Smith

Mr, Legal Education Foundation
Roger runs a website and blog for the UK Legal Education Foundation on law, technology and access to justice: law-tech-a2j..org. He has published a number of reports since 2014 on developments for the foundation as a resource for those working in the field. Roger is a lawyer with... Read More →
avatar for Dave Nolette

Dave Nolette

Director, BC and Digital Programs, Justice Education Society
Dave brings over 20 years of marketing communications experience to the Justice Education Society (Canada). He manages a dynamic team that maintains and promotes the resources of BC’s third largest publisher of legal education and information – including more than 25 legal information... Read More →
avatar for Kate Fazio

Kate Fazio

Head of Innovation and Engagement, Justice Connect
Kate Fazio is Head of Innovation and Engagement at Justice Connect, a legal services charity in Australia. Kate has 7 years of hands-on experience working at the intersection of law, design and technology, and regularly speaks at national and international conferences on the importance... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Council Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Following Up: Cost-Effective Tools for Helping Brief Service Clients Achieve Positive Outcomes
Legal services organizations provide advice and pro se assistance to large numbers of people, but often do not know what happens to these clients after the case is closed. Is there a way to efficiently measure brief service outcomes and provide follow-up support to clients who need it? This session showcases three programs that are doing just that. Rohan Pavuluri will explain how Upsolve is using docket monitoring software and machine learning to track clients who file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy after receiving pro se assistance, and help them overcome roadblocks in their case. Angela Tripp will describe how Michigan Legal Help sends text messages to clients who used the Guide to Legal Help (triage) in order to give them timely legal information, gather outcomes, answer questions, and evaluate whether the client needs more help. Anne Sweeney will discuss the work that the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland is doing to build upon their successful texting-for-outcomes project in order to gather more detailed outcome information.
Speakers
avatar for Jonathan Pyle

Jonathan Pyle

Contract Performance Officer, Philadelphia Legal Assistance
Jonathan Pyle is the Contract Performance Officer at Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA), where he is responsible for LSC compliance, reporting, and implementing new uses of technology to analyze, streamline, and expand service delivery. Before joining PLA, he practiced law in the... Read More →
avatar for Angela Tripp

Angela Tripp

Co-Executive Director, Michigan Statewide Advocacy Services
AS

Anne Sweeney

Managing Attorney for Community Engagement, The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland
Anne K. Sweeney is managing attorney for community engagement at the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland. Anne works with community groups, partner organizations, and staff on equitable community economic development, outreach and education, community lawyering, client support services... Read More →
RP

Rohan Pavuluri

CEO, Upsolve
Rohan Pavuluri is the co-founder and CEO at Upsolve, a technology-enabled national legal services nonprofit that provides low-income people with free bankruptcy assistance across the country. Rohan is a member of the Legal Services Corporation's Emerging Leaders Council and the American... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Machine Learning for Access to Justice: Digital Legal Needs Analysis + Tools
This session will present the Learned Hands project, which is building models and classifiers of how people talk about their legal problems in order to develop access to justice tools and conduct legal needs research. The presentation will demonstrate the labeling game Learned Hands, the classifiers that have been built using the learned data, and the next version of the National Subject Matter Index (NSMI v2) taxonomy tool. The technology demos in this session will be useful for people building chatbots, web platforms, and other digital tools. The presentation will also include discussion of governance and ethics of the datasets and tools, with audience discussion about coordinated strategies to best balance AI innovations with client and public protection.
Speakers
LB

Lester Bird

Principal Associate, The Pew Charitable Trusts
Lester Bird is a Principal Associate for the Civil Legal System Modernization team for the Pew Charitable Trusts where he focuses on bringing attention to online legal information portals and developing next-generation portal features. His current work with the Legal Navigator project... Read More →
avatar for Margaret Hagan

Margaret Hagan

Executive Director, Stanford University Law School, Legal Design Lab
Executive Director of Stanford Legal Design LabMargaret Hagan is the Executive Director of the Legal Design Lab at Stanford University, as well as lecturer at the Law School and d.school. She is a lawyer, and holds a J.D. from Stanford Law School, a DPhi
avatar for David Colarusso

David Colarusso

Practitioner-in-Residence and Director of the Legal Innovation and Technology Lab, Suffolk University Law School
David Colarusso is the Director of Suffolk University Law School's Legal Innovation and Technology Lab. An attorney and educator by training, he has worked as a public defender, data scientist, software engineer, and high school physics teacher. He is the author of a programming language... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Maximizing Case Management Systems in Times of Disaster
The historic disasters of the past few years have disproportionately affected low-income individuals throughout the country. The Legal Services Corporation is funding significant case management system improvement projects to better serve survivors after major disasters. After more than a year of progress, the panel will share how case management systems are a vital tool in the delivery of disaster legal services. These case studies will explore lessons learned about preparing and incorporating case management systems into disaster work as well as recommendations from the recent LSC Disaster Task Force Report.
Speakers
OG

Orlando Gutierrez

Technology Specialist, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid
I am up for conversation about anything. Even religion and politics. I can stay calm when listening to opposing views and I don't even feel the need to share my own! So knock yourself out, share your controversial views with me, or we can talk about the San Antonio Spurs. That... Read More →
avatar for Martin Costello

Martin Costello

Program Counsel, Disaster Grants Administration, Legal Services Corporation
Martin Costello serves as Program Counsel at Legal Services Corporation(LSC). As part of the disaster grants team, he focuses on working with LSC-funded programson disaster preparedness and recovery. Martin comes from Rebuilding Together where he served as the National Service Senior... Read More →
EN

Emily Nuñez Hunt

Principal Consultant, Bent Ear Solutions
TBD

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Forum Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Not as Boring as it Sounds: Effective Document and File Management
In this workshop, attendees will learn how electronic file organization strategies and effective electronic discovery management can enhance your ability to litigate. Basic tools like Microsoft Excel, File Explorer, and Adobe Pro can handle even complex litigation. We promise, this is not as boring as it sounds!
Speakers
ET

Emily Teplin Fox

Attorney, State Support Unit, Oregon Law Center
Emily Teplin Fox is an attorney in the State Support Unit of the Oregon Law Center where her practice focuses on complex, impact litigation on a diverse range of issues affecting low-income people. She frequently co-counsels with attorneys from OLC and Legal Aid Services of Oregon... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Overhauling a Statewide Website: Lessons Learned from the Ohio Legal Help Redesign
When you embark on a statewide tech project, the tech itself can be the least of your worries. Cross-organization collaboration is always a challenge, and this challenge is magnified each time a new stakeholder comes into the conversation. Add in the complexity of dealing with your state’s unique legal system, and it can feel impossible to implement new systems or significantly redesign existing solutions. This session will explore lessons learned from one state’s experience tackling the redesign of their statewide website—including perspectives from a legal aid director, a project director and former funder, and a user experience expert. This session will provide practical takeaways and insights, including: best practices for stakeholder engagement; how to keep your stakeholders focused on the end user; and strategies for developing a unified solution, even if your state’s court system is not.
Speakers
avatar for Joel Bush

Joel Bush

Partner, Capellic LLC
Joel brings over 20 years of experience in delivering impactful websites. He provides strategic counsel to nonprofits across United States and Canada, including Ohio Legal Help, ASPCA, Operation Smile, UNICEF Canada, Climate Reality Project, and more. He formed Capellic with his business... Read More →
avatar for Steven McGarrity

Steven McGarrity

Executive Director, Community Legal Aid, Ohio
Steven McGarrity is the executive director of Community Legal Aid Services in northeast Ohio. Mr. McGarrity started with Legal Aid as an attorney, focusing his practice on family law and consumer debt. In his time with Legal Aid, he has held various management positions, including... Read More →
avatar for Susan Choe

Susan Choe

Executive Director, Ohio Legal Assitance Foudation
Susan Choe is the Executive Director of Ohio Legal Help. Before her current role at Ohio Legal Help, she served as the Deputy Director & General Counsel at the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation where she managed the development of Ohio Legal Help starting in 2016. Ms. Choe has extensive... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

10:30am PST

Transitioning to Office 365
This session will unpack the process of transitioning to Office 365. Presenters will cover all stages of transition and offer advice about what to consider before making the switch and how to maximize Office 365 once you’re a user. Hear tips and strategies from an Office 365 migration specialist and a legal services organization who has recently made the transition. This session will cover email and include other functionality like Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, etc.
Speakers
avatar for John Harvey

John Harvey

Senior Solutions Architect, TechBridge, Inc.
John Harvey is a Subject Matter Expert for implementing Microsoft’s Office 365 Cloud, including SharePoint Online and Office Online, as well as a Salesforce Architect. John has been in the technology consulting profession for over 20 years with the last 11+ years spent as part... Read More →
avatar for Paul Swiney

Paul Swiney

Deputy Director of Operations, Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands
Paul Swiney is the Deputy Director of Operations for Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, responsible for “all things technology” while also having oversight of Finance, Human Resources and Operations. Prior to his arrival in late 2015, Paul spent a 25-year... Read More →
avatar for Christopher Jones

Christopher Jones

IT Director, Legal Services Alabama
Christopher “Chris” Jones joined the Legal Services Alabama (LSA) team in February 2018 and serves as IT Director after having served as IT Project Coordinator and Systems Administrator. During his time at LSA, Chris has overseen the completion of an LSC Technology Improvement... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 10:30am - 11:45am PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

A2J Startups Panel: #RealTalk from the Founders of New Startups Working to Improve Access to Justice
In this session, hear from the founders of four new startups working to improve access to justice. What was their inspiration to start their company? How did they fund their startup? How did they get their first clients and develop successful partnerships? What obstacles did they face and how did they overcome them? What advice do they have for future startups working to improve access to justice?
Speakers
avatar for Joseph Schieffer

Joseph Schieffer

Founder, A2J Tech Store
Joseph Schieffer is the founder of A2J Tech Store. Joseph can be found collaborating with advocates to develop user-centered solutions. Joseph has presented at the National Legal Aid & Defender Association Conference, the Legal Services Corporation Innovations in Technology Conference... Read More →
avatar for Kevin Gillespie

Kevin Gillespie

CEO, Text A Lawyer, Inc.
I march to the beat of a different drum. I do have a JD, but I never took the bar (signed up to take it Feb 2020). I was an entrepreneur before law school, so Text A Lawyer was a natural result afterwards. I am also working on other projects:- Fast Expunge - a scalable, virtual law... Read More →
avatar for Ericka Garcia

Ericka Garcia

CEO & Co-Founder, Collaborative Justice Partners
Ericka Garcia is the CEO and Co-Founder of Collaborative Justice Partners. CJP works with non-profits striving to reduce the justice gap by building collaborative relationships and breaking down barriers to promote social, racial, and economic justice to uplift communities. Ericka... Read More →
avatar for Dorna Moini

Dorna Moini

Founder, Documate
Dorna Moini is the CEO of Documate, a no-code, powerful document automation software. Documate can be used for internal automation, or to build public-facing web applications that gather data and generate complex PDF and Word documents. Prior to starting Documate, Dorna built an online... Read More →
avatar for Nick Rishwain

Nick Rishwain

VP of Business Development, Experts.com
Formerly a local government employee, Nick was frustrated with the inefficiency and bureaucracy that plagues government at all levels. With a passion for law and technology, he took a position with a legal tech company where he has been able to use his legal education to make litigation... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
Council Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

An Insider’s Tour of Ofice 365 and Office 2019
A fast-paced session covering features of Office 365 and Office 2019 that legal organizations can benefit from. Get an insider’s perspective from a Microsoft Office expert on new features and the best way to get the most from Office in your organization.
Speakers
BS

Ben Schorr

Senior Technical Writer, Microsoft
Ben M. Schorr is a Senior Content Developer at Microsoft. He is the author of several books and articles on technology including “The Lawyer’s Guide to Microsoft Outlook”, “The Lawyer’s Guide to Microsoft Word” and “The Lawyer’s Guide to Office 365”. He was a Microsoft... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

Changing the Unauthorized Practice of Law Rules in More than a Few Ways, Now.
For centuries, the Bar has said only a lawyer can engage in the practice of law: people shouldn’t charge for expertise they don’t have or people shouldn’t perform tasks for which they lack skills. But, do claims of harm prevention go too far? Do the unauthorized practice of law (UPL) rules harm people by preventing them from getting the help they need? Do they prevent people or computers from performing tasks that they can do well, even if these might be "the practice of law"? Are there best policies and practices that would protect librarians, social workers, organizers, counselors, navigators, "trained advocates," and even some computer software applications - especially in nonprofit settings (or, only in such settings) - from the UPL prohibitions? Join this discussion of necessities, pros, and cons, of the multiple models proposed for UPL rules reform. Reform efforts are moving forward across the country, often led by for-profit tech companies under the banner of expanding access to justice. But which reforms are good for people in need and which would truly expand access to justice? Join this discussion of the pros and cons of the multiple models proposed for UPL rules reform.
Speakers
avatar for Marc Lauritsen

Marc Lauritsen

President, Capstone Practice Systems
Marc Lauritsen, president of Capstone Practice Systems, practiced and supervised in legal aid offices for seven years, then served as an instructor, director of clinical programs, and a senior research associate at Harvard Law School. Marc directed Project PERICLES there, which focused... Read More →
NN

Nikole Nelson

Executive Director, Alaska Legal Services Corporation
Nikole Nelson is the executive director of Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC), Alaska's only LSC-funded program and the only statewide provider of free civil legal assistance to low-income Alaskans. Nikole oversees ALSC's 11 offices and a staff
avatar for David Udell

David Udell

Executive Director, National Center for Access to Justice
David Udell is Founder and Executive Director of the National Center for Access to Justice, ncforaj.org, a research and policy organization based at Fordham Law School that relies on data and advocacy to build a more just and equitable society. David guides NCAJ’s initiatives, including... Read More →
avatar for Matthew Burnett

Matthew Burnett

Policy Officer, Open Society Foundations
Matthew Burnett is a policy officer for legal empowerment and the migration project lead at the Open Society Justice Initiative, which pursues strategic litigation and legal advocacy in support of the mission and values of the Open Society Foundations. Previously, Burnett was director... Read More →
MK

Maura Kelly

Deputy Director, SRLN

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
Broadway - Plaza Level 921 SW 6th Ave, Portland, OR 97204, USA
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

Is Legal Education Doing Enough to Train the Equal Justice Warriors of the Future?
Across the country, a handful of law schools and law-school-based organizations have created innovation and technology labs, designed to expose law students to new and disruptive approaches to legal services and engage students in changing the way law is practiced with the goal of expanding access to justice. Attendees will hear what is happening in these labs and engage in an interactive design workshop to share their expertise from the field and answer the question: are these labs doing enough to train the equal justice warriors of the future?
Speakers
avatar for Dan Jackson

Dan Jackson

Executive Director, NuLawLab - Northeastern University School of Law
Dan Jackson directs the NuLawLab at Northeastern University School of Law, an interdisciplinary innovation laboratory that has been working since 2012 to merge creative arts and law to create new models of legal empowerment. Dan is a 1997 graduate of Northeastern Law and a 1990 graduate... Read More →
avatar for Stacy Butler

Stacy Butler

Director, Innovation for Justice, University of Arizona College of Law
Stacy Butler directs the Innovation for Justice Program at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, a social justice innovation lab that designs, builds and tests disruptive solutions to the justice gap. She has two decades of experience in community advocacy and... Read More →
MW

Miguel Willis

Director, Access to Justice Tech Fellows, Law School Admissions Councel
Miguel Willis currently serves as the inaugural Presidential Innovation Fellow at Law School Admission Council, where he oversees the Access to Justice Tech Fellows Program. The Tech Fellows Program pairs law students with legal services organizations to develop projects that support... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
Forum Suite 3rd Floor
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

Let’s 10x That! Driving Growth Through Increasing Online Visibility
The competition to be on the first page of Google search results is fierce. Private companies with marketing departments have hired search engine optimization (SEO) consultants. Will statewide websites and public interest organizations forever be relegated to page two of search results? No! In fact, nonprofits have many natural advantages in the SEO game – we just need to step up to the plate. This session will discuss ways that nonprofits can improve rankings by linking to one another, publishing more content, localizing content, tagging content with metatags based on a national schema, and other techniques.
Speakers
avatar for Jonathan Pyle

Jonathan Pyle

Contract Performance Officer, Philadelphia Legal Assistance
Jonathan Pyle is the Contract Performance Officer at Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA), where he is responsible for LSC compliance, reporting, and implementing new uses of technology to analyze, streamline, and expand service delivery. Before joining PLA, he practiced law in the... Read More →
RP

Rohan Pavuluri

CEO, Upsolve
Rohan Pavuluri is the co-founder and CEO at Upsolve, a technology-enabled national legal services nonprofit that provides low-income people with free bankruptcy assistance across the country. Rohan is a member of the Legal Services Corporation's Emerging Leaders Council and the American... Read More →
avatar for Margaret Hagan

Margaret Hagan

Executive Director, Stanford University Law School, Legal Design Lab
Executive Director of Stanford Legal Design LabMargaret Hagan is the Executive Director of the Legal Design Lab at Stanford University, as well as lecturer at the Law School and d.school. She is a lawyer, and holds a J.D. from Stanford Law School, a DPhi
avatar for Susan Choe

Susan Choe

Executive Director, Ohio Legal Assitance Foudation
Susan Choe is the Executive Director of Ohio Legal Help. Before her current role at Ohio Legal Help, she served as the Deputy Director & General Counsel at the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation where she managed the development of Ohio Legal Help starting in 2016. Ms. Choe has extensive... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

Security Tips and Policies for Client Data
Client information can be especially vulnerable when attorneys do not take proper steps to secure data on their network. According to the American Bar Association Model Rules, Rule 1.1 Comment 8 states that, “a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology…” An organization must work to secure its clients’ data and information using technology currently available, or risk facing bar discipline, or worse, loss of client information. Presenters will discuss various tips to secure client information, the risks, impact, and remedies for a ransomware attack, and the reasons to have a Bring Your Own Device (or BYOD) policy in place that will protect client data.
Speakers
MP

Meagen Peden Agnew

Chief Operating Officer, Legal Aid Society
MH

Michael Hofrichter

Executive Director, Houston Volunteer Lawyers
Michael Hofrichter’s current title at Houston Volunteer Lawyers is the Operations and Compliance Director, however his responsibilities go beyond that. In his Director role, he oversees the Program’s support staff; updates HVL training/policy/template libraries; manages the IT... Read More →
avatar for Sarterus Rowe

Sarterus Rowe

CTO & Lawyer, My Legal Pistop
Sart Rowe is working with MyLegalPitstop.com as CTO to help find technology solution to help LLLT’s server family law clients. He was formerly with Northwest Justice Project, managing the National Technology Assistance Project and teaching at the University of Washington and Seattle... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

Using Evaluation and Data-Driven Decision-Making to Improve Organizational Effectiveness
Nonprofit legal services organizations are increasingly being asked to embrace the use of data and evaluation. These innovations in thinking bring the promise of improved legal service delivery models, engaged employees and funders, and outcome-driven leadership. In reality, real organizational change is hard. Becoming a data-driven organization that can incorporate improvements based on evaluation is resource-intensive and requires ongoing commitment at all levels of the organization. Panelists will share best practices and what not to do on the path to becoming a high-performing, outcome-driven organization. Examples of how evaluation can be effectively integrated into legal services organizations, what level of investment is required, and strategies for change management to build a data-driven culture will fuel this engaging discussion. Panelists will challenge the audience to think more about how they can work smarter, not harder as they incorporate evaluation and evidence-based practices into their organizations.
Speakers
LJ

Lynn Jennings

Vice President for Grants Management, Legal Services Corporation
Lynn A. Jennings is Vice President for Grants Management at the Legal Services Corporation. Before joining LSC, she was principal of Jennings Solutions, LLC, a strategic consulting firm that provided expert advice and guidance on organizational efficiency, leadership development... Read More →
avatar for Kelly Shaw-Sutherland

Kelly Shaw-Sutherland

Director of Research and Evaluation, Legal Aid of Nebraska
As a trained social science researcher and evaluator, Kelly Shaw-Sutherland has spent the past 14 years working collaboratively with people across multiple disciplines and professional backgrounds on a wide array of research and evaluation endeavors. Joining Legal Aid of Nebraska... Read More →
HS

Holly Stevens

Director of Evaluation and Learning, Children's Law Center
Holly Stevens, Ph.D., is the Director of Evaluation and Learning at Children’s Law Center, a non-profit legal services organization in Washington, DC. At CLC, Holly conducts program evaluations and research projects to improve CLC’s services and build a data-informed culture of... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

2:30pm PST

Virtual Law Clinics: Making Pro Bono Flowers Bloom in Rural Legal Deserts
In many states with large rural areas, legal aid programs are often hard-pressed to find sufficient volunteers to handle pro bono cases locally. Rural attorney retirements are outpacing new recruits to small-town practice. This session will demonstrate how three states – Oregon, Ohio and Colorado – are using technology to connect urban attorneys and rural clients with virtual practice tools that give clients better access to pro bono help, even when the attorney is hundreds of miles away. The session will include live demonstrations of the "virtual practice" case placement and case handling tools currently in use in the Oregon project, and demonstrations of a virtual pro bono network in Ohio using Amazon Echo Show video devices to connect urban attorneys to clients in three rural courts. The panel also will feature a similar project in Colorado that connects Denver pro bono attorneys to rural clients.
Speakers
avatar for Steven McGarrity

Steven McGarrity

Executive Director, Community Legal Aid, Ohio
Steven McGarrity is the executive director of Community Legal Aid Services in northeast Ohio. Mr. McGarrity started with Legal Aid as an attorney, focusing his practice on family law and consumer debt. In his time with Legal Aid, he has held various management positions, including... Read More →
JC

Jennifer Cuesta

Rural Pro Bono Program Attorney, Colorado Legal Services
Jen Cuesta is the program coordinator for the Colorado Legal Services' Pro Bono Innovation Fund grant. Since 2015, she has worked to research, design, implement and evaluate 5 clinic models that will increase services to low-income communities in Colorado.
EM

Ed Marks

Statewide Pro Bono Manager, Legal Aid Services of Oregon
Ed Marks is Statewide Pro Bono Manager for Legal Aid Services of Oregon. Ed's mission includes working with law firms, Bar leaders and other partners to create user-friendly "virtual practice" environments that allow rural Oregonians to have access to pro bono help from urban-based... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 2:30pm - 3:45pm PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

4:15pm PST

LawHelp/probono.net Network Session: What's New and What's Next for 2020
This session will highlight activities and updates in Pro Bono Net's State Justice Communities Network, and provide an opportunity to connect with peers working on allied initiatives. Pro Bono Net staff will discuss new and upcoming developments for the LawHelp.org and probono.net platforms, including LawHelp projects funded by TIG and other sources driving accessibility, analytics, and user experience innovations, and initiatives that are leveraging the probono.net platform as a central hub for pro bono mobilization and advocate support. Several project coordinators will also share highlights of technology initiatives in their communities to bridge rural justice gaps, expand early intervention and outreach strategies through new issue-spotting tools and LiveHelp, and support local access to justice initiatives.  
Speakers
avatar for Liz Keith

Liz Keith

Program Director, Pro Bono Net
Liz is State and National Justice Communities Program Director with Pro Bono Net, a national nonprofit bringing the power of the law to all through innovative technology solutions and expertise in mobilizing justice networks. Liz has played a key role in Pro Bono Net’s program strategy... Read More →
avatar for Quisquella Addison

Quisquella Addison

LawHelpNY Program Director, Pro Bono Net
Quisquella, (pronounced Keese-kay-ya) joined Pro Bono Net as the LawHelpNY Program Director in July 2016. LawHelpNY, powered by Pro Bono Net, is an online platform for helping low-income New Yorkers solve their legal problems. Our mission is to provide and promote access to high-quality... Read More →
avatar for Jeanne Ortiz-Ortiz

Jeanne Ortiz-Ortiz

Senior Program Manager & ABA Disaster Legal Services Vice-Director, Pro Bono Net
Hello! Feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn (link above). Jeanne is a Senior Program Manager at Pro Bono Net, a national nonprofit in New York City dedicated to improving access to justice through technology. At Pro Bono Net, she helps drive innovation and the adoption of technology... Read More →
avatar for Shah’ada Shaban

Shah’ada Shaban

Rural Senior Project Coordinator, Legal Services of Northern California
Shah'ada Shaban is Legal Services of Northern California Shasta Regional Office's Rural Senior Project Coordinator. Shah'ada has worked in this position since 2015, cultivating relationships with community partners throughout the Shasta Office's multi-county service area through clinics... Read More →

Thursday January 16, 2020 4:15pm - 5:30pm PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

4:15pm PST

Legal Services Drupal Community Session
This affinity session brings people together to talk about updates and advancements in using Drupal in legal services.  Attendees will learn about the latest innovations and enhancements on the DLAW/Open Advocate template and from innovative Drupal-based websites like ptla.org and illinoislegalaid.org.  We will also talk about migration planning and what's coming next in Drupal as the end of life date for Drupal 7 and 8 approaches and Drupal 9 launches. Session leaders will discuss their challenges, key lessons learned, and visions for the future of their sites and projects. Attendees will also have an opportunity to share updates on their Drupal projects and ask questions.
Speakers
avatar for Gwen Daniels

Gwen Daniels

Director of Product Development, Illinois Legal Aid Online
Gwen is Director of Product Development at Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) and has been with ILAO since 2004. She is responsible for product strategy, leading the organization in research of new products, product enhancements, and redesigns. She oversees engineering, design, user... Read More →
avatar for Jack Haycock

Jack Haycock

Client Focused Technology Innovator, Pine Tree Legal Assistance
Jack received their Juris Doctor from Northeastern University School of Law in 2016. At PTLA, Jack drafts and publishes plain language client education content of all types, administers PTLA's three Drupal websites, leads client-facing technology projects, heads social media efforts... Read More →
avatar for Chris Steins

Chris Steins

null, Urban Insight
I'm interested in the intersection of open source technology and museums.

Thursday January 16, 2020 4:15pm - 5:30pm PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session
 
Friday, January 17
 

8:00am PST

Communication Tools and Practices to Optimize Internal Collaboration and Engagement
How can we work better together, leverage institution knowledge and expertise, and foster meaningful relationships to more effectively serve communities in need? By using communication tools to share, engage, and collaborate. This is especially important when working with a distributed team as more organizations provide the opportunity for staff to work remotely. In this session, you will hear from voices across a range of organizations about the tools, best practices, and processes used every day to communicate and collaborate, manage projects with internal and external stakeholders, and address security and privacy concerns and safeguards. Several tools will be discussed and demonstrated, including Slack for interoffice communication, G Suite (Google Docs and Sheets) for collaborating, Basecamp, JIRA and Trello for managing projects, and GoToMeeting, Zoom, and Slack Calls for video and audio chats.
Speakers
avatar for Kristen Sonday

Kristen Sonday

Co-founder & CEO, Paladin
Kristen Sonday, Co-Founder/CEO, Paladin: Kristen Sonday is the co-founder and CEO of Paladin, which helps legal teams run more efficient pro bono programs while increasing access to justice. In her role, she works with Fortune 500s, law firms, law schools, and bar associations to... Read More →
avatar for Tim Baran

Tim Baran

Technology Innovation Manager, Pro Bono Net
Tim Baran is the Technology Innovation Manger at Pro Bono Net. Prior to joining Pro Bono Net he served as a Law Firm Library Director, Chief Marketing Officer for a legal marketing agency, and writer and editor for an online legal magazine and a legal technology startup. He also founded... Read More →
avatar for Rodrigo Camarena

Rodrigo Camarena

Director, Immigration Advocates Network
Rodrigo Camarena is the Director of the Immigration Advocates Network, the largest network of nonprofit legal advocates committed to defending immigrants. Rodrigo was formerly Strategy Director at Purpose where he developed advocacy campaigns, digital pro
avatar for Susan Choe

Susan Choe

Executive Director, Ohio Legal Assitance Foudation
Susan Choe is the Executive Director of Ohio Legal Help. Before her current role at Ohio Legal Help, she served as the Deputy Director & General Counsel at the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation where she managed the development of Ohio Legal Help starting in 2016. Ms. Choe has extensive... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 8:00am - 9:15am PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

8:00am PST

Improving Statewide Website User Experience through Content Improvements
If you don't have the funding to do a full redesign of your statewide website, or you're planning a redesign that won't launch for a year or more, what can you do in the near term to improve user experience so it better meets user needs and expectations? In this session, panelists from Georgia, Louisiana, and Montana will share the strategies they employed in three TIG-funded projects to enhance their sites' user experience by focusing on content improvements including resources, navigation labels, and overall information architecture. We'll also discuss some lightweight, high-impact design changes you can make that don't require a full redesign of your site. Attendees should bring laptops and be prepared to take the first steps toward applying these strategies to improving user experience on their sites with the support of the panelists.
Speakers
avatar for Mike Grunenwald

Mike Grunenwald

Senior Program Advisor, Pro Bono Net
Mike joined Pro Bono Net in 2015 after several years at the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center, where he served as the lead on a variety of technology initiatives, including management of the probono.net/dc and LawHelp.org/DC websites and development of interactive interviews on the LawHelp... Read More →
avatar for Tara Saylor

Tara Saylor

Principal, Tara Saylor & Company LLC
Dr. Tara Saylor is a research and evaluation consultant located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is Principal of Tara Saylor & Company, joined by professors Ryan Saylor (Univ. of Tulsa) and Camille Bryant (Johns Hopkins Univ.). All three consultants have PhDs from the University of Virginia... Read More →
avatar for Alex Clark

Alex Clark

Community Outreach Assistant, Montana Legal Services Association
Alex has been with Montana Legal Services Association for over 4 years, beginning as an AmeriCorps Member and now managing TIG projects and state-wide outreach.
KV

Kristin Verrill

Director of Grants & Innovation, Atlanta Legal Aid Society, Inc.
Kristin Nelson Verrill is the Director of Grants & Innovation at Atlanta Legal Aid Society. For over 14 years, she has been developing and implementing technology tools to increase and improve legal advocacy for low income clients. She is Atlanta Legal Aid’s Legal Server administrator... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 8:00am - 9:15am PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

8:00am PST

Tips for Successful Technology Initiative Grant Projects
The Legal Services Corporation has awarded more than $65 million over the past 20 years to fund over 700 Technology Initiative Grant (TIG) projects. Grant recipients have used this funding to create new ways to serve clients, strengthen program capacity, and support the work of pro bono attorneys. The TIG team will share tips, best practices and lessons learned about what makes a TIG successful, including how to overcome the challenges inherent to technology projects. The session will also include a preview of the 2020 TIG cycle. Attendance required for all 2019 TIG Award Representatives.
Speakers
avatar for Glenn Rawdon

Glenn Rawdon

Senior Program Counsel for Technology, Legal Services Corporation
Glenn Rawdon is Senior Program Counsel for Technology with the Legal Services Corporation. He is responsible for helping legal services programs with their technology efforts and with the administration of the Technology Initiative Grants (TIG) program. S
avatar for David Bonebrake

David Bonebrake

Program Counsel, Legal Services Corporation
David Bonebrake is a Program Counsel at Legal Services Corporation and is responsible for helping manage LSC’s Technology Initiative Grants (TIG) Program. TIG funds innovative technology projects that improve quality and access to legal services across
avatar for Jane Ribadeneyra

Jane Ribadeneyra

Program Analyst for Technology, Legal Services Corporation
Jane Ribadeneyra joined the Legal Services Corporation in 2009 as a program analyst for the Technology Initiative Grant program. She oversees grant projects to develop and replicate technologies that improve client access to high-quality legal information

Friday January 17, 2020 8:00am - 9:15am PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

8:00am PST

Training Staff Using Technology and Adult Learning Techniques
Teaching adults is not a skill learned in law school. This session will acquaint participants with modern technology tools and adult learning psychology to help create great teachers in the legal aid community. Whether you are designing a public outreach session to help clients with name changes or an internal training on a new version of Word, this session will help you teach in a more interactive and collaborative way. Bring your questions and ideas – the session will include time for working groups to help you develop your ideas into successful curriculum.
Speakers
avatar for Daniel Ediger

Daniel Ediger

Legal Content/Media Editor, Northwest Justice project
Daniel Ediger is an attorney at the Northwest Justice Project (NJP), Washington’s primary civil legal aid provider. He also makes educational videos about common civil legal issues for NJP’s YouTube Channel and designs publications for NJP's free, informational website: Washi... Read More →
avatar for Sarterus Rowe

Sarterus Rowe

CTO & Lawyer, My Legal Pistop
Sart Rowe is working with MyLegalPitstop.com as CTO to help find technology solution to help LLLT’s server family law clients. He was formerly with Northwest Justice Project, managing the National Technology Assistance Project and teaching at the University of Washington and Seattle... Read More →
avatar for Elizabeth Shackney

Elizabeth Shackney

Director of Analytics and Research, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid
Lizzie Shackney currently serves as the Director of Analytics and Research at Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA). TRLA provides free civil legal services to residents in 68 Southwest Texas counties, and represents migrant and seasonal farm workers throughout the state and in six other... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 8:00am - 9:15am PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

9:30am PST

Connecting Imagination to Impact: Frameworks to Design and Measure Digital Innovations
This hands-on lab will explore two frameworks for establishing, tracking, and evaluating ambitious goals for digital innovations: 1.) a theory of change and 2.) objectives and key results (OKRs). The theory of change model has its roots in the social change sector, while the OKR framework has been popularized by Google and other private tech companies. Both frameworks are designed to help organizations set, measure, and manage goals. Presenters will share how these frameworks are adopted to justice tech innovations in elder justice, immigration, and other spaces; highlight the benefits and limitations of each; and lead a working session designed to help attendees apply these concepts to their own projects. A professional evaluator will share tips and resources that participants can use to think big about their tech innovations, while measuring and refining their strategy with impact in mind.
Speakers
avatar for Liz Keith

Liz Keith

Program Director, Pro Bono Net
Liz is State and National Justice Communities Program Director with Pro Bono Net, a national nonprofit bringing the power of the law to all through innovative technology solutions and expertise in mobilizing justice networks. Liz has played a key role in Pro Bono Net’s program strategy... Read More →
avatar for Claudia Johnson

Claudia Johnson

LawHelp Interactive Program Manager, Pro Bono Net
Claudia manages LawHelp Interactive, an award-winning document assembly platform and training program at Pro Bono Net. Claudia has been working on access to justice through technology for 15 years, starting at Bay Area Legal Aid in Oakland, California, to design and create the Legal... Read More →
avatar for Tara Saylor

Tara Saylor

Principal, Tara Saylor & Company LLC
Dr. Tara Saylor is a research and evaluation consultant located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is Principal of Tara Saylor & Company, joined by professors Ryan Saylor (Univ. of Tulsa) and Camille Bryant (Johns Hopkins Univ.). All three consultants have PhDs from the University of Virginia... Read More →
avatar for Rodrigo Camarena

Rodrigo Camarena

Director, Immigration Advocates Network
Rodrigo Camarena is the Director of the Immigration Advocates Network, the largest network of nonprofit legal advocates committed to defending immigrants. Rodrigo was formerly Strategy Director at Purpose where he developed advocacy campaigns, digital pro

Friday January 17, 2020 9:30am - 10:15am PST
Galleria - North Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

9:30am PST

Content is King: Scalable Strategies to Develop Content that Rules
When you're seeking to help a self-represented litigant with a legal problem, we all know that it's not enough to just throw information about the law onto a website—even if it’s plain language and at the right reading level. We need to make sure that it's helpful and actionable. But of course, that's easier said than done. How do you get that legal information out of regulations and lawyers' heads and onto a website? How do you shape it into content that's truly useful to website users... all without breaking the bank? Through a moderated discussion, panelists will share proven strategies, processes, and lessons learned to create helpful and actionable legal information for self-represented litigant websites._x000D_
• Learn different ways to combine the lawyer, writer, and user experience skill sets to create effective content_x000D_
• Understand how to use goals and style guides to help create a cohesive voice_x000D_
• Hear tips for working with multiple stakeholders _x000D_
• Find out how to staff and budget for content creation, including update over time_x000D_
• Learn about the potential for leveraging pro-bono lawyers
Moderators
avatar for Hanna Kaufman

Hanna Kaufman

Counsel for Innovation & Technology, Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois

Speakers
avatar for Angela Tripp

Angela Tripp

Co-Executive Director, Michigan Statewide Advocacy Services
DJ

Drew Jackson

Legal Content Developer, People’s Law School
At People's Law School in Vancouver, Canada, we provide legal education and information to the public. We're particularly interested in learning more about emerging technologies, best practices in public legal education, and measuring the impact of our efforts on the public.
avatar for Rachel Harris

Rachel Harris

Content Manager, Ohio Legal Help

Friday January 17, 2020 9:30am - 10:45am PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

9:30am PST

Court Data as a Strategic Asset for Research and Practice in the Access to Justice Space
This session will provide an overview of recent studies that leverage state court data to address important public issues. These reports use data from state courts to illustrate debt collection patterns; identify serial eviction practices; profile the civil asset forfeiture process and more. We will discuss the important intersection of court data and access to justice research and explore what we might gain by linking data from different sources. In the second half of the session, we will transition from policy to practice, identifying key differences in the quality and character of court data in six states: Alaska, Arkansas, Maryland, Missouri, North Dakota and Oklahoma.
Speakers
avatar for Carlos Manjarrez

Carlos Manjarrez

Chief Data Officer, Legal Services Corporation
Carlos Manjarrez is the Chief Data Officer at the Legal Services Corporation where he works with a team of researchers gathering, analyzing, visualizing and reporting of civil legal data. He has over 20 years of social, economic and cultural policy research experience. Prior to coming... Read More →
avatar for Erika Rickard

Erika Rickard

Senior Officer, Civil Legal System Modernization, Pew Charitable Trusts
Erika Rickard leads Pew’s work to modernize the nation’s civil legal system, a project to pilot and evaluate the most promising technologies and tools to assist people without access to a lawyer. These include online dispute resolution, which brings the entire court process online... Read More →
DB

Dan Bernstein

Data Engineer, Legal Services Corporation
Dan Bernstein is a data engineer at the Legal Services Corporation. He leads the Civil Court Data Initiative (CCDI), an effort to collect civil court records to help legal aid providers and policymakers understand local and national trends in civil legal issues. Dan and his team also... Read More →
TR

Tanina Rostain

Professor of Law, Georgetown Law Center
Tanina is a professor at Georgetown Law and a faculty director of Georgetown’s Technology Law and Policy Institute. In 2012, she created the “Iron Tech Lawyer” program, one of the earliest law school classes that teaches students to build digital tools to help users navigate... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 9:30am - 10:45am PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session

9:30am PST

Crowdsourcing Access to Justice: Setting Standards as a Document Assembly Community
Docassemble leverages expert open-source coding principles to produce a user-centered and versatile document assembly experience. Some people are intimidated by the learning curve, but developers and lawyers are building a system of collaboration and support to make it easy to make and maintain Docassemble apps. It may sound dull, but the key is standardized tools and building blocks. This interactive session will cover what you need to set up a Docassemble shop, including software infrastructure, data and interview standards, and best practices. Not using Docassemble? Don't worry: the concepts and strategies explored in this session are useful for other automated document systems. With demos of development environments and lessons learned from live Docassemble projects, participants will learn how to make their own Docassemble programs with the backing of this collaborative community.
Speakers
avatar for Jonathan Pyle

Jonathan Pyle

Contract Performance Officer, Philadelphia Legal Assistance
Jonathan Pyle is the Contract Performance Officer at Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA), where he is responsible for LSC compliance, reporting, and implementing new uses of technology to analyze, streamline, and expand service delivery. Before joining PLA, he practiced law in the... Read More →
avatar for Quinten Steenhuis

Quinten Steenhuis

Senior Attorney/Network Administrator, Greater Boston Legal Services
Quinten Steenhuis is a senior housing attorney, systems administrator, and developer at Greater Boston Legal Services, where he has worked since 2008. Quinten has practiced housing and eviction defense law since 2008, and has been a professional programmer and web application developer... Read More →
avatar for Matt Newsted

Matt Newsted

Associate Director of Legal Tech, Illinois Legal Aid Online
Matt has been producing automated documents at Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) since he started in January 2017. He creates and supports ILAO's guided interviews and automated forms, and he contributes to ILAO's other content. After earning a J.D. from DePaul University College of... Read More →
MB

Michelle Bernstein

Volunteer/Team Lead, Code for Boston
Michelle Bernstein's addictions include making tools that address demonstrated needs and exploring lessons learned. Her weapons of choice are front-end web development and algorithmic solutions. Previous projects include a cliff effects calculat

Friday January 17, 2020 9:30am - 10:45am PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

9:30am PST

Re-Regulating Access to Justice: How Regulation Reform Can Unlock More Access to Those in Need
The legal profession is not serving the needs of the vast majority of people with legal problems. While legal consumers are struggling to find the legal help they need, lawyers are struggling to find business models that allow them to deliver legal services more effectively. Without change, the justice system will continue to be out of reach for most Americans. While many factors drive this significant problem, one solution lies in the way legal services are regulated. Many in the profession, which is currently both the regulator and the regulated, would say the regulatory framework has been developed and perpetuated to protect consumers. Critics, including those within the profession, would say that the objective should be to serve consumers and society, and that many current provisions stand between people and access to justice. Fortunately, all major stakeholders agree that we must find a way to ensure greater access to legal services for the people and organizations that need it.
Speakers
avatar for Jim Sandman

Jim Sandman

President, Legal Services Corporation
Jim Sandman has been president of the Legal Services Corporation since 2011. Jim practiced with the law firm of Arnold & Porter LLP for 30 years and served as the firm's Managing Partner for a decade. From 2007 to 2011, he was General Counsel of the District of Columbia Public Schools... Read More →
avatar for Bob Glaves

Bob Glaves

Executive Director, The Chicago Bar Foundation
Bob Glaves has been Executive Director of The Chicago Bar Foundation since 1999, prior to which he had a successful nine-year career as a civil litigator in private prac-tice. As Executive Director, Bob is responsible for leading and overseeing the CBF’s work that brings Chicago’s... Read More →
avatar for Natalie Anne Knowlton, J.D.

Natalie Anne Knowlton, J.D.

Director of Special Projects, IAALS
Natalie Anne Knowlton is a director of special projects at IAALS. She focuses on legal and empirical research and analysis, facilitating collaboration among stakeholders, and undertaking national outreach and advocacy to enable continuous improvement in practices and procedures for... Read More →
avatar for Zachariah DeMeola

Zachariah DeMeola

Manager, IAALS
As one of the managers at IAALS, the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, Zack DeMeola works to improve the delivery of legal services through a variety of projects that focus on education, the intersection of law and technology, and the regulation of the legal... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 9:30am - 10:45am PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

11:15am PST

Chatbots are So Hot: Using Technology to Expand Legal Services and Enhance Community Partnerships
Chatbots allow legal service organizations to scale limited scope services while adapting to a changing legal market. This session will provide a look at two different chatbots launched in 2019: 1) a chatbot on HELP4TN.org that automates approved divorce forms and provides smart search navigation for the website and 2) Rennie, a chatbot on Rentervention.com, which empowers Chicago renters to assert their rights related to housing conditions and evictions by helping them write a letter to their landlord, providing a referral, or connecting them to a lawyer in Rentervention’s Virtual Clinic. Come learn how to design chatbot projects with an emphasis on future expansion and sustainability. But product design is only the beginning! Because community engagement and outreach are critical to the success of any online tool, this session will also highlight how to use these tools for partnership and education. Overall, you will learn chatbot basics and tech specs, best practices for incorporating client and community voices into project design, and how to use chatbot promotion to strengthen community relationships and build new partnerships.
Speakers
avatar for Amy Clark

Amy Clark

Director of Strategic Partnerships, Illinois Legal Aid Online
Amy Clark is the Director of Strategic Partnerships at Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO), which increases access to justice for lower-income Illinois residents through the innovative use of technology. Amy directs ILAO’s outreach and engagement with users of ILAO’s statewide legal... Read More →
avatar for Kirsten Jacobson

Kirsten Jacobson

Staff Attorney, Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services
Kirsten Jacobson is a Staff Attorney at TALS. She focuses on leveraging technology to provide new legal service delivery models and increase access to legal care for low-income Tennesseans. She is the site administrator for TN Free Legal Answers. Kirsten joined TALS as an Equal Justice... Read More →
avatar for Hanna Kaufman

Hanna Kaufman

Counsel for Innovation & Technology, Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois
avatar for Tom Martin

Tom Martin

CEO and Founder, LawDroid
Tom Martin is a legal bot advocate, lawyer, author and speaker. He is CEO and founder of LawDroid Ltd. (a legal AI company dedicated to helping lawyers automate their law practice). Tom is also co-founder of Vancouver Legal Hackers, advisor to ATJ Tech Fellow Program, member of ARAG... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 11:15am - 12:30pm PST
East Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

11:15am PST

Small Programs, Big Projects: Practical Tips and Tools for Managing Your Team
Legal aid organizations are continuously taking on projects to improve legal services delivery. Without a project manager, many organizations require their staff to wear many different hats to achieve project completion. As projects become increasingly complex and collaborative, “Project Manager” is becoming a necessary hat for any collection. Panelists will focus on tools and practical advice to help attendees successfully manage multiple projects with a small staff.
Speakers
avatar for Emily Good

Emily Good

Pro Bono Project Manager, MN Legal Services State Support
Emily Good is the Pro Bono Project Manager at Legal Services State Support. She administers the MN Legal Advice Online and ProJusticeMN sites, plans trainings for legal aid staff, and helps support LawHelpMN. Emily worked on the site redesign and migration to Drupal for both mnlegaladvice.org... Read More →
avatar for LaDierdre McKinney

LaDierdre McKinney

Staff Attorney, Michigan Legal Help Program
LaDierdre McKinney is a staff attorney at Michigan Legal Help (MLH) Program. MLH maintains 18 affiliated Self-Help Centers around Michigan and a statewide website, MichiganLegalHelp.org, for self-represented litigants. LaDierdre utilizes her expertise in developing plain language... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 11:15am - 12:30pm PST
Atrium Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

11:15am PST

The Power of Partnerships: Self-help Legal Website Data and its Collaborative Potential
Self-help legal websites across the country hold a “gold mine” of data that often remains untouched, but has incredible potential. This session will provide an opportunity to learn about the potential for using self-help legal website data in support of advocacy and access to justice and to build effective inter-organizational partnerships for a stronger social safety net. Join the LawHelpCA team to learn about the collaborative possibilities and how website data can support the efforts of nonprofits, educational institutions, and advocacy groups towards building a more just future.
Speakers
SK

Safia Kartoum

Senior Program Associate, Legal Aid Association of California
Safia is the Program Associate at the Legal Aid Association of California. She currently Safia works on maintaining LawHelpCA.org, the official free legal information resource of the state of California. As the Program Associate at LAAC she vets resources and organizations for usefulness... Read More →
avatar for Theo Ser-Ramin

Theo Ser-Ramin

Program and Technology Associate, Legal Aid Association of California
Theo (they/them) is the Senior Program and Technology Associate at the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC). Theo currently co-coordinates LawHelpCA.org, California's statewide legal information page, and trains and supervises law student volunteers in trauma informed support... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 11:15am - 12:30pm PST
West Pavilion Ballroom Plaza Level
  Workshop Session

11:15am PST

We Can Work it Out: Breaking the Impasse Between A2J+Tech Enthusiasts and Skeptics
Technology encompasses our daily lives. Whether we like it or not, it has also become essential for legal work. Is tech the panacea that will allow us to provide true access to justice? Or does it widen the access to justice gap in unforeseen ways? The truth lies somewhere in between. This hands on work shop will explore technology’s ideal role in the effort to close the access to justice gap. It will also explore methods that will allow skeptics and enthusiasts to sit at the same table and work together towards a common goal. A2J+Tech projects truly thrive when non-techies and even non-lawyers contribute to their development. Learn how to engage such widely different audiences and get them to collaborate. Participants will be asked to actively participate and interact with basic strategic planning tools.
Speakers
avatar for Liz Keith

Liz Keith

Program Director, Pro Bono Net
Liz is State and National Justice Communities Program Director with Pro Bono Net, a national nonprofit bringing the power of the law to all through innovative technology solutions and expertise in mobilizing justice networks. Liz has played a key role in Pro Bono Net’s program strategy... Read More →
NN

Nikole Nelson

Executive Director, Alaska Legal Services Corporation
Nikole Nelson is the executive director of Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC), Alaska's only LSC-funded program and the only statewide provider of free civil legal assistance to low-income Alaskans. Nikole oversees ALSC's 11 offices and a staff
AG

Ariadna Godreau

Executive Director, Ayuda Legal Puerto Rico
Human rights lawyer. She obtained JD from the University of Puerto Rico School of Law and a Masters in Law degree in International Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford, UK. Founder and Executive Director of Ayuda Legal Puerto Rico. Ariadna is also an adjunct professor at the... Read More →
DR

David Rodríguez-Andino

Access to Justice and Technology Coordinator, Ayuda Legal Puerto Rico
Community lawyer. Coordinator of Access to Justice and Tech Initiatives at Ayuda Legal Puerto Rico. Obtained his JD from the University of Puerto Rico's Law School. Volunteer attorney at Pro Bono Inc. Administrator at the National Association of Environmental Law and President of... Read More →

Friday January 17, 2020 11:15am - 12:30pm PST
Galleria - South Ballroom Level
  Workshop Session
 
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