Earlier this week, ABA President William Hubbard pointed to UpRight as an example of how technology and innovation can increase access to justice. In an interview on Tech and the Law, Hubbard said:
There’s
another company called UpRight Law, and the motto of that company is “bringing law to the living room.” And they have essentially a call centre, and people with a consumer bankruptcy problem, they Skype or FaceTime with these intake counsellors, who gather all the information, synthesize it through their software program. And then they have lawyers in 49 of the 50 states, and the lawyer comes in at the end, to take the paper and pull together [the case].
The clients don’t have to come into the office, they don’t have to leave work to make an appointment with a lawyer, all of it’s gathered through Skype and FaceTime, and then the package is sent to the lawyer. And the lawyer can still charge a good rate, take the matter to court, and file the bankruptcy. And that lawyer can still make good living by having a volume of work. The client’s not being charged for the research and the assimilation of documents, those kinds of functions that can be done more cheaply.
It’s great to be recognized for the strides we’re making, and to see leadership at Hubbard’s level taking the need for innovation to improve access to legal services seriously.
