Technola : Public Interest Law & Technology Updates & Commentary : Matthew Burnett & Kate Bladow : Tech Advice for the Non-Profit Legal Sector

The Center for Access to Justice & Technology and the Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction released A2J Author 3.0 last week. With A2J Author, non-techies can create user-friendly interfaces that help self-represented litigants fill out court forms and other legal documents. Several states with great A2J Author interviews, including New York, Washington state, and Washington, DC, have been highlighted on Technola previously.

New features included in A2J Author 3.0 include the ability to

• add graphics and videos to questions;
• customize how users exit an interview and let them leave before an interview is completed;
• create new interviews by "cutting and pasting" existing questions or question sets; and
• add a logo to the interview.

You can download A2J Author 2.0 from the A2J Author community website. A2J Author is free for noncommercial use. - K

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

The D.C. Bar Pro Bono Program recently launched six interactive online court forms for use by pro se tenants and landlords. The forms include an answer in a residential landlord-tenant case, an application to proceed in forma pauperis, a motion to modify a protective order, a motion to vacate default judgment and quash writ, a motion to vacate dismissal, and a notice to quit for nonpayment of rent. Using guided A2J Author interviews and Pro Bono Net’s LawHelp Interactive service, pro se users answer a series of questions that are used to populate an approved court form that can be printed and filed. The project was done with cooperation from the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, support from the D.C. Consortium of Legal Services Providers, and funding from the D.C. Bar Foundation. -M

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (3)
• Trackbacks

Last week I found Zamzar, a web-based tool that converts files from a variety of common formats to a variety of common formats.

What really caught my eye was that Zamzar converts text to speech. Expecting average, robotic results, I was pleasantly surprised when I tried it. The pace, pauses, and pronunciation aren't perfect, but the resulting audio is much better than the built-in text-to-speech capabilities of Windows and sounds much more natural. For an example, check out this MP3 from Zamzar of my Deadline and Filing Date Calculator post.

Even though the result was better than expected, I still wouldn't be able to listen comfortably for very long. But for A2J Author developers who want to add audio to key points in their interviews or website coordinators who have short but widely used content and don't have the tools or time to record an audio version, Zamzar might be an option.  - K

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks (1)

Rachel Medina, the A2J Author Project Manager at the Center for Access to Justice and Technology, has started a new blog for A2J Author developers. She's promised to post training dates, tips and hints, and other A2J Author goodness. - K

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

The Center for Access to Justice & Technology, in partnership with the Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction, has released version 2.0 of A2J Author. With A2J Author, non-techies can create user-friendly interfaces that help self-represented litigants fill out court forms or other legal documents. A great example of A2J in action can be seen on the New York City Housing Court and Civil Court websites. A2J Author 2.0 has several new enhancements.

• Developers can move between development screens more easily.
• Audio files can be deleted with one button click instead of deleting the files one at a time.
• The courthouse graphic can be switched out for an alternative graphic.

You can download A2J Author 2.0 from the A2J Author community website. A2J Author is free for noncommercial use. - K

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks