Documate Empowers Law Firms and Courts to Maintain Operations During the Pandemic Outbreak

SAN FRANCISCO, April 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Lawyers and court systems across the United States are maintaining operations during the pandemic outbreak by using Documate to create public-facing legal applications and systems that collect data, guide consumers, and generate documents. The software also helps them work more efficiently by significantly reducing the internal document drafting time.

Documate is a code-free document automation and expert system builder that transforms documents into client-facing workflows. Using Documate's DIY workflow builder, lawyers can build their own technology companies or a "Turbo Tax for any area of law." That means the client can go onto a lawyer's website, answer a series of logic-based questions, and generate their documents automatically. 

"I'm convinced that this move to create accessible technology tools will transform the legal world," said attorney Paul Sutton, a Documate customer. "The exciting thing is that pretty much everyone can achieve incredible results without any formal 'coding' training," he said about Documate's Workflow Builder. 

Particularly now, attorneys are looking for ways to collaborate with clients online. With Documate, they can build an intake form and send the form to clients.  When the client fills out the form, case documents will automatically be generated. Two common use cases Documate has seen are estate planning and family law, where some law firms are creating their own legal tech companies directly on top of Documate. "These workflows are powerful," said a San Diego law firm. "I can create decision-tree logic with conditional logic and complex calculations, and I can send it anywhere I want."

Attorneys can even charge clients directly on Documate for documents to create new revenue sources. For example, a client can enter their information, generate an estate plan, and pay the attorney a flat fee online through Documate. The client could follow up with the attorney for additional work on an hourly basis. 

Some lawyers have been shifting their practices to give clients what they need right now. "At the onset of this pandemic, some lawyers saw an increased demand for advice and counsel related to the crisis. Businesses needed new leave policies and remote work policies. Other legal issues were solved through expert systems to guide business owners through whether they qualified for exceptions under various laws. Our attorney customers have built policy generators on Documate to help multiple clients at a time," said a Documate representative. 

Legal aid attorneys, in particular, have always sought out innovative ways to serve their clients. In rural counties, the nearest legal aid center could easily be three or four hours away from clients. Documate provides its software for free to LSC legal aid organizations through its partnership with the Legal Services Corporation and the American Bar Association. 

Software that creates automated interviews and workflows to provide individuals access to the legal system is more important than ever in the current climate. Not only does it help these attorneys provide more efficient services, but it also allows them to collaborate with clients online - critical during the pandemic, when many offices and courts are closed. 

Courts, like the Louisiana State courts, are already using Documate's software to offer services to criminal defendants.  When Louisiana state courts shut down due to the pandemic outbreak, they needed to find a way to deliver services to the general public online, particularly to allow criminal defendants to communicate with their attorneys about documents from the jail. The court is using workflows built on Documate as a solution.   

For example, a defense attorney can enter a guilty plea on behalf of their client, read their client their rights over video conference, prepare the form based on the responses and send a link for signature to the defendant. The defendant then signs the guilty plea form on an electronic device in the jail. 

"The ability to collaborate on legal needs remotely allows lawyers, legal aid and the courts to continue operating throughout this crisis. We hope we can help the legal industry stay strong in this uncertain time," said Documate. 

About Documate
Documate allows attorneys to create online tools and new revenue sources by creating powerful client-facing portals and applications that generate documents. Learn more at https://www.documate.org or book a demo at the link here. For those who don't have time to build out their documents, Documate also has a document automation developer program.

Contact:
Dorna Moini, Founder/CEO at Documate
Email: [email protected]

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