Title Best Practices for Online Document Assembly Moderators – Claudia Johnson Pro Bono Net Rachel Medina LSNTAP

Panelists Brett Harrison, Colorado Legal Services, Colorado Sheila Fisher, North Penn Legal Services Pennsylvania Mary Neal, Illinois Legal Aid Online, IL Diane Trunk, Neighborhood Legal Aid, Los Angeles, CA

Agenda Overview of LawHelp Interactive Colorado: brief intro to document assembly, deployment of forms, outreach and outreach tracking, desktop forms for advocates and online forms for SRLs North Penn: developing and using online forms for volunteer lawyers Illinois: virtual self help centers and forms, and managing the production of large set of forms NPLS: using LHI forms in a DV clinic inside a court based self help center

Users of LawHelp Interactive Forms

Areas of law by generated document 2009 Family law approx58,321 Food Programs approx 5,535 Housing 8,683 Consumer approx 6,301 Total 147, 063

States with new LHI Content: Guam, Colorado, Minnesota

Colorado

Minnesota

Brett Harrison Database/Special Technology Project Administrator Colorado Legal Services

Document Assembly Practices Online and Desktop Brett Harrison Database/Special Technology Project Administrator Colorado Legal Services

Online – A2J & HotDocs A2J Author ® User friendly Front end Collects data HotDocs ® Produces document Front and/or Back end Processes data Hosted by LawHelp Interactive (LHI)

Online – Content Choice Fee Waiver, Small Claims, Temporary P.O., Dissolution, Answer to Eviction Referred to previous I-CAN! modules State and County Court Administrators Pro Se statistics Less complex areas/situations

Online - Statistics

Online – Outreach Colorado Legal Services Website

Online – Outreach Colorado Judicial Branch Website Links to Fee Waiver, Small Claims, TPO

Online – Outreach Library site visits and calls Flier distribution Advocates statewide taking fliers to other outreach opportunities

Online – Outreach CLS E-Newsletter

Online – Statistics Vertical Response

Online – User Feedback Very helpful wouldnt have known how to do a small claims filing procedure without help! – April 2010 This was EXTREMELY helpful and easy to use! THANK YOU!!!! – March 2010 Very helpful and made it a lot easier to do than the form at the co.gov site plus I could save the filled out form on my PC! Thanks! – March 2010 This saved me a trip & a lot of time – March 2010 Very helpful and easy to understand – January 2010 Message from a user that the $20 they saved by not having to buy the form can now be used to buy food for their kids

Desktop Document Assembly What is it good for? Saves Time Increases Accuracy Minimizes Risk Promotes Consistency HotDocs ® front end and back end Interface with CMS

Desktop – History Began as MS Word/Kemps merge project Based on common forms/letters HotDocs ® licenses donated Unit and individualized training

Desktop – Demo Demo of integration with CMS

Desktop – Future User feedback & suggestions Ongoing development & training Promotion & awareness

Desktop – User Feedback One of our paralegals is using it, and it sounds great! She loves it. I hope to become familiar with it too. It generates all kind of documents for her with a keystroke! I use HotDocs daily for the over income requests and I also love it. Makes it a very simple task. I use HotDocs daily and love it. I generate forms and letters daily. I encourage my staff to do the same, but with mixed results. It is still the best tool I have and I cant imagine not using it!!!!

Staffing & Resources Development, Review, Testing, Maintenance Funding Online – LSC TIG grant Desktop – General CLS funds Support & resources Online – Courts, Libraries, Attorneys, LHI Desktop – Internal server, network, cooperation HotDocs ® donation

Mary Neal Automated Documents Manager Illinois Legal Aid Online

Sheila Fisher North Penn Legal Services PA

Web-based Legal Self-Help Centers State of Illinois 39 of Illinois 102 Counties have Legal Self-Help Centers Of the 39 Legal Self-Help Centers … 38 are internet-based 21 are housed in local public libraries 13 more Centers are in planning (to open within the next 12 months) Of the 13 Centers opening soon, 10 will be housed in public libraries

Web-Based Legal Self-Help Centers in Illinois Planning Secure funding, if needed Establish a Local Planning Committee Facilitate planning process

Web-Based Legal Self-Help Centers in Illinois Implementation Opening/Press Conference Training Ethics Website Demo Ongoing Support Listserv Monthly updates

Managing Projects with Multiple Participants Defined responsibilities Defined responsibilities Defined scope Defined scope Centralized record of communications Centralized record of communications Centralized file sharing system Centralized file sharing system

Defined responsibilities Defined responsibilities If roles do not differ from project-to-project, standing definition If roles do not differ from project-to-project, standing definition Managing Projects with Multiple Participants

Defined responsibilities Defined responsibilities Defined scope Defined scope

Managing Projects with Multiple Participants Defined scope Defined scope For Automated Documents, this includes: User Base (pro se or attorney) User Base (pro se or attorney) Purpose Purpose Scenarios Accommodated and NOT Accommodated Scenarios Accommodated and NOT Accommodated Output Documents and their source Output Documents and their source

Managing Projects with Multiple Participants Defined responsibilities Defined responsibilities Defined scope Defined scope Centralized record of communications Centralized record of communications

Discussion board is easy to use and easy to search Discussion board is easy to use and easy to search Managing Projects with Multiple Participants

Defined responsibilities Defined responsibilities Defined scope Defined scope Centralized record of communications Centralized record of communications Centralized file sharing system Centralized file sharing system

is NOT File Sharing!

Managing Projects with Multiple Participants File Sharing is: Single Repository of Master Files Single Repository of Master Files Version control Version control Track who made changes and when Track who made changes and when Roll back to earlier version if needed Roll back to earlier version if needed Compare and resolve conflicting versions of some file types Compare and resolve conflicting versions of some file types

Managing Projects with Multiple Participants Defined responsibilities Defined responsibilities Defined scope Defined scope Centralized record of communications Centralized record of communications Centralized file sharing system Centralized file sharing system

Diane Trunk Staff Attorney & DASH Coordinator Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County

20+ years of NLS Courthouse Clinics DASH: 2005 Partnership between NLS & L.A. Superior Court Self-Help Individual assistance Attorney review of all forms

4 clinics. Across 100 miles of L.A. Over 4,500 litigants annually. 1 staff attorney.

1. Fill out each form using Essential Forms 2. Print forms 3. Litigant reviews forms 4. Fax forms to off-site attorney 5. Attorney reviews forms (40+ pages each) 6. Attorney calls volunteer for changes 7. Volunteer makes changes 8. (Forms re-faxed for more review) 9. Litigant signs forms

Observe clinic and back-up attorney. Talk to everyone involved. Try to figure out how technology can help. Discuss conclusions. Build a program.

The answer to every question can be used consistently on every item on every form in the filing. Not just caption information. Answers from one programs interview can be used in another program. Answers from the DASH DVRO program can be used to: Start a Dissolution case Start a Parentage case

Assist with questions.Information for Litigants.

Second program produces an MS Word document. Document is ed to back up attorney for review and editing. Reviewer can change PDF forms by opening program and changing answers.

Lowers the amount of Attorney Review time by embedding knowledge into the program. Increases compliance with policies and procedures. Allows for global changes.

Better quality declarations Consistent, accurate forms Faster forms preparation More time to prepare the declaration Program prints out litigant information Faster backup Easier backup Attorney can edit declaration Mobile backup – not chained to fax

Volunteers can be resistant to change. New process was slower at first. Need to create new training method. Still need a stand-alone forms program.

Working with shelter advocates for off- site forms preparation. Recruiting pro bono attorneys for in- office review of forms. Produce Disso and Paternity forms along with restraining order request. Continue to work on ways to use the program to expand the reach of the backup attorney increasing amount of people served while maintaining and improving quality.

programs/equalaccess/ dash.htm programs/equalaccess/ dash.htm

Resources Monthly calls4 th Tuesday of each month, 2 ET Community_Call Next Live Template Developer Training September 16, and in Atlanta, hosted by the State Bar of Georgia Pro Bono Project Website on document assembly, news, libraries, trainings, tools: Technical and announcement list-serves: