States at the forefront of legal regulation efforts understand that public engagement is a critical piece of the puzzle, but states have difficulties engaging with everyday people on these complex and nuanced issues. This project is developing strategies and tools that states need to facilitate meaningful public participation in these vital efforts.
Trending Topic
The legal profession has never had a clear, explicit understanding of the minimum competence needed to practice law and how it should be tested on the bar exam (or through other licensing approaches). Through this project, we have defined minimum competence and have new recommendations for how the legal licensing process—including the bar exam—must change to better serve the public.
Trending Topic
Current judicial performance evaluation (JPE) processes—which are like job evaluations for judges—no longer fully capture the experience of modern court users, the needs of modern judges, or the expectations of modern voters. Our JPE 2.0 project is helping JPE programs update their approaches to reflect modern realities, while remaining accurate, trusted, and relevant.
What We Do
IAALS is changing how our system serves people today, while anticipating and preparing for future needs—delivering justice all of us can believe in.
For the People
What good is the promise of “justice for all” if costs, complexity, and inaccessibility make it impossible for so many? Our system is designed to serve the people, so IAALS places them at the center of all we do.
Through the Courts
At IAALS, we’re identifying innovations that make the court system easier to navigate for everyone, while also helping courts increase efficiency, reduce procedural complexity, and make the most of the often limited resources they have.
With the Profession
The legal profession must evolve to put client and consumer needs first. IAALS is helping do just that—through improved legal education, better lawyer licensing, and re-regulation of legal services to make them more available and responsive to all.
Recent News and Updates
IAALS' 17th annual celebration drew 200 supporters and partners as we marked our shared achievements to improve access to justice, and united behind our collective efforts to uphold the rule of law and ensure that justice for all is a reality for everyone.
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Today, the promise of our justice system is under siege. We face unprecedented attacks on the judiciary, attacks that aren’t just political, but fundamental. Collective action is needed not only to defend the rule of law, but to improve our justice system for all.
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This series explores how AI-driven legal innovation intersects with the regulation of Unauthorized Practice of Law (UPL), and how reforms can balance consumer protection with broader access to legal services. Building on IAALS’ November 2024 convening, it includes three webinars and a summer workshop.
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Robert Southers discusses what drives his passion for access to justice, building trust with the community, and what it means to receive the Alli Gerkman Legal Visionary Award.
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