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to help Louisiana flood victims gather information and documents needed to establish home
ownership and complete disaster relief applications. The Center developed a web-based version of
FloodProof and explored efforts, in cooperation with the ABA Standing Committee on Disaster
Response and Preparedness11 and Louisiana Appleseed, to drive greater awareness and use of these
new technology resources. Through a collaborative effort with SLLS, LSU Law School, Southern
University Law School, Baton Rouge Bar Association, Louisiana Appleseed, and local and state
government, flood victims are being introduced to both the mobile app and web platform to assist
in recovery. The Center is now replicating the effort in other states.
The Center is collaborating on similar projects in many different areas, such as the creation
of a web-based tool to direct victims of hate crimes or bias incidents to available resources, an app
for law enforcement that would help translate Miranda warnings into other languages, and the
pairing of legal tech companies with legal aid offices so that cutting-edge tools can enable frontline
legal services lawyers to reach more clients. In short, bar associations can marry their networks
and substantive expertise with innovative thinking to have a positive impact on how the public
accesses essential legal services.
Embracing Other Professionals
Embracing change means welcoming a wide range of professionals who can contribute in
various ways. The Center’s volunteer leaders include people who have innovated outside of the
legal industry; in fact, one of the Center’s Innovation Fellows was a court administrator who was
not a lawyer.
Recognizing the role of other kinds of professionals also means an openness to rethinking
the regulation of legal services. In 2016, the ABA adopted Model Regulatory Objectives for the
Provision of Legal Services,12 and one of the explicit rationales for doing so was a recognition that
various kinds of professionals are playing an important role in the delivery of legal services. The
Model Regulatory Objectives set out some basic principles to help regulators and bar associations
think through their regulatory stances in light of these developments.
Conclusion
At an inflection point for the legal industry, bar associations must be at the vanguard of
change rather than a bulwark against it. If bars embrace their role as change agents, they will
ultimately serve both their members and the public more effectively.
11 ABA COMMITTEE ON DISASTER RESPONSE AND PREPAREDNESS, https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/disaster.html.
12 MODEL REGULATORY OBJECTIVES FOR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES (2016),
https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/directories/policy/2016_hod_midyear_105.docx.
229
ownership and complete disaster relief applications. The Center developed a web-based version of
FloodProof and explored efforts, in cooperation with the ABA Standing Committee on Disaster
Response and Preparedness11 and Louisiana Appleseed, to drive greater awareness and use of these
new technology resources. Through a collaborative effort with SLLS, LSU Law School, Southern
University Law School, Baton Rouge Bar Association, Louisiana Appleseed, and local and state
government, flood victims are being introduced to both the mobile app and web platform to assist
in recovery. The Center is now replicating the effort in other states.
The Center is collaborating on similar projects in many different areas, such as the creation
of a web-based tool to direct victims of hate crimes or bias incidents to available resources, an app
for law enforcement that would help translate Miranda warnings into other languages, and the
pairing of legal tech companies with legal aid offices so that cutting-edge tools can enable frontline
legal services lawyers to reach more clients. In short, bar associations can marry their networks
and substantive expertise with innovative thinking to have a positive impact on how the public
accesses essential legal services.
Embracing Other Professionals
Embracing change means welcoming a wide range of professionals who can contribute in
various ways. The Center’s volunteer leaders include people who have innovated outside of the
legal industry; in fact, one of the Center’s Innovation Fellows was a court administrator who was
not a lawyer.
Recognizing the role of other kinds of professionals also means an openness to rethinking
the regulation of legal services. In 2016, the ABA adopted Model Regulatory Objectives for the
Provision of Legal Services,12 and one of the explicit rationales for doing so was a recognition that
various kinds of professionals are playing an important role in the delivery of legal services. The
Model Regulatory Objectives set out some basic principles to help regulators and bar associations
think through their regulatory stances in light of these developments.
Conclusion
At an inflection point for the legal industry, bar associations must be at the vanguard of
change rather than a bulwark against it. If bars embrace their role as change agents, they will
ultimately serve both their members and the public more effectively.
11 ABA COMMITTEE ON DISASTER RESPONSE AND PREPAREDNESS, https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/disaster.html.
12 MODEL REGULATORY OBJECTIVES FOR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES (2016),
https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/directories/policy/2016_hod_midyear_105.docx.
229
