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Artificial Intelligence Platform Provides Access to Legal Resources for Those Who Can’t Afford a Lawyer

Courtroom5 Partners with Fastcase to Provide Unbundled Legal Services to Self-Represented Litigants

Durham, N.C. and Washington, DC (April 27, 2022) – Courtroom5, a digital- and artificial intelligence-based platform that provides resources for pro se litigants (appearing in civil court without a lawyer), is partnering with Fastcase, a comprehensive, nationwide law library, that includes case law, statutes, regulations, court rules, and constitutions. The partnership gives Courtroom5 members an additional level of support by connecting them with attorneys using Fastcase through state bar member benefit access.

 

Courtroom5 was founded by Sonja Ebron and Debra Slone, two non-lawyers who previously experienced frustration navigating the civil court system without professional legal representation. Courtroom5 members are given access to an entire litigator’s toolset, animated video courses, claims analysis and legal research tools, document assembly workflows, and community forums. Using artificial intelligence, Courtroom5 tracks a user’s case from start to finish, providing specific and timely information that aids litigants each step of the way.

 

“Being able to provide litigants access to a lawyer on an as-needed basis is truly a gamechanger,” said Sonja Ebron, co-founder of Courtroom5. “Traditionally, it’s been nearly impossible to engage an attorney for a small component of a relatively straightforward civil case. Our partnership with Fastcase makes attaining that additional level of legal expertise a reality that benefits both our members and any interested lawyers in Fastcase’s vast network.”

 

According to a US Justice Needs study conducted by The Hague Institute for Innovation of Law (HiiL) and the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System (IAALS), access to justice is a broad societal problem—66% of the population experienced at least one legal issue in the past four years, with just 49% of those problems having been completely resolved. Courtroom5 is the first digital and AI-based platform positioned to provide many of these litigants the opportunity to effectively manage and resolve their cases using its proprietary software. Partnering with Fastcase provides new opportunities for litigants seeking counsel from a lawyer for a single component of their case. Previously, this has been exceedingly difficult, as most lawyers do not work on an ad-hoc basis, but the partnership with Fastcase will allow lawyers within Fastcase’s membership network of more than 50 national, state, and county bar associations to assist with individual requests from Courtroom5 users. Additionally, Courtroom5 users will have unlimited access to search caselaw within Fastcase, one of the largest online law libraries in the world, by logging in thru their Courtroom5 account.

 

“Courtroom5 is bridging the access-to-justice gap by providing reputable legal resources at an affordable rate when a lawyer’s full service isn’t an option or isn’t desired,” said Ed Walters, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Fastcase. “Our mission at Fastcase is to democratize the law, so connecting self-represented litigants as needed with lawyers is right in line with that goal. This partnership allows Courtroom5 users to set up limited-scope access to lawyers who use Fastcase, and to select individual elements of cases where they can provide the most help.”

 

For more information on Courtroom5 and to experience the product for free, visit: https://courtroom5.com. For more information on Fastcase, visit: https://fastcase.com.

 

About Courtroom5

Courtroom5 is a digital- and artificial intelligence-based platform that provides resources for litigants appearing in civil court without a lawyer. Courtroom5 was founded by Sonja Ebron, a PhD electrical engineer and entrepreneur, and Debra Slone, a PhD librarian and former library school professor, who created the platform after years of personal experience fighting in civil courts without legal representation. Using artificial intelligence, Courtroom5 tracks a user’s progress on their case from start to finish, providing specific and timely information to aid litigants each step of the way. Learn more at www.courtroom5.com.

About Fastcase

Fastcase is a comprehensive legal intelligence company, founded in 1999 and based in Washington, D.C. Partnering with the bar associations of all 50 states and the District of Columbia, Fastcase serves more than 1.2 million lawyers from around the world. The company provides an innovative research suite of primary law, dockets, treatises, legal blogs, analytics, workflow tools, and legal news. For more information about Fastcase’s smarter legal tools, visit the company on Twitter at @Fastcase or visit www.fastcase.com.

 

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#1 Legal Research App

Winner of the prestigious American Association of Law Libraries (New Product) Award, Fastcase for iOS, Android, and Windows Phone is used by more attorneys than any other legal app according to the ABA. Anyone may use the app for free to access Fastcase's comprehensive legal research database on the go.