Innovations in Intake - Ohio EJC 2008

Ron StaudtRachel MedinaCenter for Access to Justice & TechnologyChicago-Kent College of Law

John MayerCenter for Computer Assisted Instruction

Cynthia Vaughn Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation

November 21, 2008

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Innovations in Intake A2J Author® enables new models

! Origins of A2J Author®—Ron Staudt" Listen to the customer" Meet the customers’ needs" Keep it simple and make it fun " Educating the client community, empowering pro se actions,

bringing e-filing to the public and making online intake a reality.! Technical Insights—John Mayer

" Advanced tools" Open and flexible programming techniques" Rapid development and nimble prototyping

! Making the tools work– Rachel Medina" A2J Author® partnerships and projects" Web 2.0 and learning communities " Manuals, training and telephone support

! Project-in-Process – Cynthia Vaughn" An Ohio example

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" Curriculum: Public Interest Certificate

" Research: Meeting the Needs of Self Represented Litigants w/ NCSC & Institute of Design

" Access to Justice:

! A2J Author® Project w/ CALI

! Self Help Web Center w/Cook County Circuit Court & Clerk

! A2J Author® Student Editorial Board

Center for Access to Justice & Technology

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Meeting the Needs of Self Represented Litigants: A Consumer Based Approach

•Identify the major barriers to access to justice by litigants without lawyers

•Ethnographic research in 5 courts, California, Delaware, Colorado & Illinois

•Employ the latest in system design methodology to redesign the process

•Design Factors, Function Structure, Information Structure, Solution Elements, System Structure

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The Prototype: Joint Simplified Dissolution of Marriage

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Meeting the Needs of Self-Represented Litigants: A Consumer Based Approach

! Prototype Lessons Learned:

" The Interface works!

" Custom development requires expensive technical expertise

! Solution

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(2004…present)

! A2J Author® - a factory or a software machine to make hundreds of these front-ends for court forms, at a very low cost.

! A2J Author® capitalizes on the front-end interface developed in the JSDM Prototype, while providing tools for authors to create guided interviews on their own.

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Connecting the Public to the Courts and the Legal System via the Web

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Contributors

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A2J Author®: Document assembly front-end

Petition for a Protection Order

Petition for a Protection Order

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What’s the next step? Where do I go?

Who do I need to contact?

A2J Author®:Website Guide

12A2J

Customer DataCM/ECF E-Filing

XML

XML

PDFLEXISNEXIS

A2J Author®

E-Filing Public Interface

HotDocs OnLine

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A2J Guided Interview™ for Intake (.a2j files)

A2J Author®

Online Intake Interface

Interview Answers

(.anxFile)

XSLTransform

Transformed Answer Files

Case Management System

Answer File Data Now Available For Review in the

Case Management System….

….conflicts check….attorney review

….processing

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Questions?

Contact Information: Ronald W. Staudt

Chicago-Kent College of Law Phone: (312) 906-5326

Email: rstaudt@kentlaw.edu

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A2J Guided Interview™ for Intake (.a2j files)

Interview Answers

(.anxFile)

XSLTransform

Transformed Answer Files

Case Management System

Answer File Data Now Available For Review in the

Case Management System….

….conflicts check….attorney review

….processing

A2J Author®

Online Intake Interface

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.ANX

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.ANX

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.ANX

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.ANX

<Answer name="OP HOME_ADDRESS1"><RptValue>

<TextValue>234234</TextValue><TextValue>asdasd</TextValue><TextValue>345345</TextValue>

</RptValue></Answer>

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A2J Guided Interview™ for Intake (.a2j files)

Interview Answers

(.anxFile)

XSLTransform

Transformed Answer Files

Case Management System

Answer File Data Now Available For Review in the

Case Management System….

….conflicts check….attorney review

….processing

A2J Author®

Online Intake Interface

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LS-XML

<ClientIdentification><ClientIdentifier>1</ClientIdentifier><PersonInformation PersonID="4" PersonIDRef="Client1">

<PersonName><NamePrefix></NamePrefix><FirstName>Harry</FirstName><MiddleName>Fred</MiddleName>

<LastName>Client1</LastName><NameSuffix>Jr.</NameSuffix><FullName>Happy Freakn Client1</FullName>

</PersonName><Address>

<AddressLine>192 Harrisburg Ln.</AddressLine><AddressLine>Suite 213</AddressLine><City>Cleveland</City><County>Cuyahoga</County>

St t OH /St t

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A2J Guided Interview™ for Intake (.a2j files)

Interview Answers

(.anxFile)

XSLTransform

Transformed Answer Files

Case Management System

Answer File Data Now Available For Review in the

Case Management System….

….conflicts check….attorney review

….processing

A2J Author®

Online Intake Interface

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XSLT<xsl:element name="ClientIntake">

<xsl:element name="ClientIdentification"><xsl:element name="ClientIdentifier">

<xsl:text></xsl:text></xsl:element>

<xsl:element name="PersonInformation"><xsl:variable name="userfirstname" select="//Answer[@name='User First Name TE']"/><xsl:variable name="usermiddlename" select="//Answer[@name='User Middle Name TE']"/><xsl:variable name="userlastname" select="//Answer[@name='User Last Name TE']"/>

<xsl:element name="PersonName"><xsl:element name="NamePrefix"></xsl:element><xsl:element name="FirstName">

<xsl:value-of select="$userfirstname"/></xsl:element><xsl:element name="MiddleName">

<xsl:value-of select="$usermiddlename"/></xsl:element><xsl:element name="LastName">

<xsl:value-of select="$userlastname"/></xsl:element>

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A2J Guided Interview™ for Intake (.a2j files)

Interview Answers

(.anxFile)

XSLTransform

Transformed Answer Files

Case Management System

Answer File Data Now Available For Review in the

Case Management System….

….conflicts check….attorney review

….processing

Does Not Have to be XML!!

-HTML-Comma delimited-CSV-Plain ole’ text-SQL INSERTs-etc, etc.

A2J Author®

Online Intake Interface

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A2J Guided Interview™ for Intake (.a2j files)

Interview Answers

(.anxFile)

XSLTransform

Transformed Answer Files

Case Management System

Answer File Data Now Available For Review in the

Case Management System….

….conflicts check….attorney review

….processing

Every transform is unique to ...

-The interview-The destination database

A2J Author®

Online Intake Interface

Create, Store & Serve A2J Guided Interviews® for Online Intake

A2J Guided Interview for Online Intake

National Public Automated Documents Online

(NPADO)“National Server”

CREATE STORE SERVE

A2J Guided Interview for Online Intake

Your Own Local Server

OR

Capturing the Data Collected in A2J Guided Interviews®

Client name TE

Client DOB DA

Client address TE

Client county TE

A2J Author Answer File (.anx

Send, Translate, and Import Data

XSLTransform Transformed

Answer Files

National Server(NPADO)

ORLocal Server

A2J Author Answer File (.anx)

-Conflict Check

-CMS File

Local Server

SEND

TRANSLATE IMPORT

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Questions?

Contact Information: John Mayer

CALI Phone: (312) 906-5307 Email: jmayer@cali.org

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Activity Nationwide Partners & Statistics

States with A2J Guided Interviews®

(according to NPADO server statistics thru 7/1/08)

21 States, U.S. Virgin Islands & Ontario (Canada)

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota,

Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont, Washington,

Ontario (Canada)

Registered Users of A2J Author® 2.0 (per registration statistics thru 10/1/08)

33 States, D.C., Guam, Ontario (Canada), N.S.W. (Australia)

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Washington, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Guam, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois,

Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, North

Carolina, New Hampshire, New Mexico, N.S.W. (Australia), Ohio, Oklahoma, Ontario (Canada), Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode

Island, South Carolina, Virginia, Vermont, Washington

Chicago-Kent College of Law / Student Editorial Board

ProjectsVentura County, California (various interviews in process)

Illinois Legal Aid Online(multiple interviews, either live or in

development)

E-Filing System ProjectsU.S. District Courts,

Eastern Missouri Manatee County Clerk of the Circuit

Court, Florida (pilot project for the state of Florida)

Clerk of Kane County, Illinois

Case Management System Integration Projects

Iowa Legal AidLegal Aid of Western Ohio

As of July 1: 1219 active A2J Guided Interviews®

34,042 A2J Guided Interviews® completed in 2008

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Training & Support

! Quarterly Trainings (announced on A2J Author Blog and docassembly listserv)" New User" Advanced

! Developer Calls" Updates to the software" Opportunity for input on software development

! Telephone Support (Center for Access to Justice & Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law: 312-906-5331)" Guidance on use of web materials" General questions on use and implementation of interviews" Assistance with troubleshooting as time permits

! Community Support " Website: www.a2jauthor.org" A2J Author blog: http://a2j_author_blog.classcaster.org/blog/" Listserv: Hotdocs listserv managed by ProBono.Net and LSNTAP

recently changed its name to the “docassembly” listserv to incorporate A2J Author community

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A2J Author® Community Support www.a2jauthor.org

! “Online Guide”

! Blog! Bug Reports! Feature

Requests! Community

Forums

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! Web supported training materials (the “online” guide)

! Each section of the online guide is subdivided:" Tutorials" Modules" Demonstrations

A2J Author®

Starter Kit

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! Web-supported training materials" Video Demonstrations (5)

! The Interview Tab! Functions:

" Date & Today" Age

! Importing Variables

! Organizing Steps & Questions

A2J Author® Starter Kit

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A2J Author® Starter Kit

! A2J Authoring Manual" 12 chapters" 4 appendices" over 180 pages of

training material" special icons to indicate

location of helpful tools:

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A2J Author® Starter Kit: Starter Interviews

1) Review script (“Report”)2) Modify Interview

3) Test Interview/Create Answer File

4) Create XSL transform to map interview variables to CMS

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Questions?

Contact Information: Rachel R. Medina

Center for Access to Justice & Technology Chicago-Kent College of Law

Phone: (312) 906-5331 Email: rmedina@kentlaw.edu

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An Ohio Example

! What is Ohio currently using for online intake

! New development using the A2J Author® Tool

! Integration with Pika Case Management

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Legal Aid of Western Ohio (LAWO) Current Intake System

! Walk-in

! Hotline

! Web-based

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! Nearly 9,000 online applications in 2007

! Web makes up approximately 30% of all intake traffic

Legal Aid of Western Ohio (LAWO) Current Intake System (continued…)

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LAWO’s A2J Author® Intake TIG

! Legal Aid of Western Ohio (LAWO) submitted a $30,000 TIG application in 2007 in order to:

" Provide the opportunity for all providers to “share” in the intellectual capital and investment made by Iowa and LSC;

" Provide Ohio’s legal services providers with 24/7 online intake capabilities via a link through the LAWO website, as well as the Ohio Legal Services statewide website;

" Provide people in need with the ability to contact legal aid at all hours of the day and night.

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Ohio’s Replication of Iowa’s A2J Author® Intake Template

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The “Script”…

! The script from Iowa’s initiative was used as the “starting point” for the Ohio intake initiative.

! Modified as needed, with input from Legal Aid Line intake staff and LAWO attorneys.

! The script will be reviewed by all participating Ohio programs and will be edited based on the individual intake process for each program.

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LAWO’s A2J Author® Intake TIG

! User will complete the interview.

! The information gathered from the interview will be passed to Legal Aid Line’s Pika case management system by utilizing a custom-written piece of code called a “transform” that converts the .anx file to a .php file.*

! The generated data file is then “held” in a Pika staging table for review by intake staff, then it is transferred to the appropriate office.

! Transforms are, and should be, customizable by program based on elements (variables) in Pika, and are based on LSXML principles.

*Transform written by John Mayer, Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction

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LAWO’s A2J Author® Intake TIG (continued…)

! Intake staff can then review the case before it is accepted into the program’s Pika case management system by utilizing a piece of code developed by the Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation (Ty Acker).

" Checks for conflicts and confidentiality issues.

" Follows the same intake process as the Hotline.

A2J Guided Interview for Intake (.a2j files)

Case Management SystemData Collection

Interview Answers

(.anxFile)

XSLTransform

Transformed Answer Files

Case Management System

Answer File Data Now Available For Review in the

Case Management System….

….conflicts check….attorney review

….processing

Ohio Web Intake

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Advantage of A2J Author® Intake Time Savings

! It is estimated that once fully implemented, the A2J Intake tool will save the client information gathering step; thus, shortening the intake process by 15-20 minutes, per client.

! A2J Intake will be available 24/7, which provides potential clients with a way to contact legal services outside of regular business hours; thus, potentially reducing the amount of call traffic (and waits on hold).

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Access through Ohio Legal Services Statewide Website

! Link for LAWO (and other participating providers) will be available under the “Find Ohio Legal Help”directory section of the Ohio Legal Services website.

Click here to complete theClick here to complete theonline intake applicationonline intake application

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Project Management

! Best practices in project management will be applied to all stages and phases of the Ohio A2J Author® Intake project.

! Actively using:" Microsoft Project" Issue Tracker (Kaivo tool)" GoToMeeting / GoToWebinar" Other: Poverty Law Survey Tool

LAWO A2J Author® Intake Project Plan

LAWO A2J Author® Intake Project Plan (continued…)

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Resources Involved in the Ohio LAWO A2J Author® Intake Project

! Ed Marks, Litigation Director, Legal Aid of Western Ohio

! Debra Jennings, Managing Attorney, Legal Aid Line of Western Ohio

! LAWO staff and Statewide Intake Staff

! Cynthia Vaughn, Ty Acker, Jeffrey Fortkamp, Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation

! Rachel Medina, Chicago-Kent College of Law

! John Mayer, Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction

! Will Shryock, Network Administrator, Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE)

! Teresa Green, Technology Support, Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE)

! Eve Ricaurte, Iowa Legal Services

! Steve Gray, Michigan Legal Services

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Questions?

Contact Information: Cynthia Vaughn

Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation Phone: (614) 728-6930

Email: cvaughn@olaf.org

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