Melbourne Law School 2018 Law Apps Awards Night – Winners Announced

Neota Logic extends our Congratulations to all teams who participated in the 2018 Law Apps Awards Night which was held Thursday the 18^thOctober, Melbourne, Australia.

This year’s judges comprised of Professor Pip Nicholson, Dean, Melbourne Law School, Fiona McLeay, Legal Services Commissioner and Steve Bell, Partner, Herbert Smith Freehills.

It was a fantastic evening full of innovation with the quality of applications exceedingly high making the judges’ decision extremely difficult, resulting in joint winners of the 2018 Herbert Smith Freehills Prize for best Law App; Prisoners Legal Service, Queensland and Visa Cancellations Working Group.  Congratulations to both teams!

You can view a recording of the evening here, with details of apps and their partnering not-for-profit organisations below:

Joint Winners:

Prisoners Legal Service – The Bail Helper

The Bailer Helper simplifies and streamlines the otherwise complicated bail application process for individuals in prison.  The app:

• Quickly and accurately complete court documents, meeting the court’s strict requirements.
• Provides the individual on the likelihood of their eligibility for bail.
• Improves the Prisoner Legal Service’s ability to process large volumes of applications for bail through the automation of legal services.

Visa Cancellations Working Group – Visa Cancellation Appeal and Review Guide

The Visa Cancellation Appeal and Review Guide helps individuals to review and appeal the cancellation of a visa. The app can:

• Triage eligibility of individuals to use the Visa Cancellation Working Group’s support services.
• Populates and sends an initial form to the Department of Home Affairs.
• Help create submissions to request revocation of a decision or provide reasons why a visa should not be cancelled.
• Assist individuals with the creation of relevant legal documentation to take to a lawyer, which can save the individual time and money.

Disability Justice Advocacy – Disability Justice Discrimination App

The Disability Discrimination Information App helps inform people with disabilities as to whether they have experienced discrimination as defined in relevant state and federal legislation. The app also enables Disability Justice Advocacy to reach more individuals through the automation of tailored legal information.

Fitzroy Legal Service – Safe Homes

Safe Homes provides experiencing family violence with relevant legal and non-legal information and support services. In certain circumstances, the app also provides the individual with information regarding eligibility for a Family Violence Intervention Order.

Moonee Valley Legal Service – Monday Night Service Client Intake App

Monday Night Service Client Intake App helps to streamline the otherwise labour-intensive paper process at Moonee Valley Legal Service for intaking clients who come along to the community legal centre.

Housing for the Aged Action Group – Housing for the Aged Online Assistant

Housing for the Aged Online Assistant helps aged individuals deal with various housing issues.  The app can help identify key information and provides the individual with potential courses of action and referral pathways. 

Victoria Legal Aid – Client Court Reporter

Client Court Reporter App helps lawyers generate a letter for their client, which, which summarises the court order in plain English.  This helps the clients understand the key information about their cases.