Project Details
Description
This Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project used knowledge engineering and artificial intelligence expertise to develop a triage style system to underpin a novel model of family law provision.
The innovative two-year partnership sought to embed knowledge engineering, a field of artificial intelligence (AI) that creates rules to apply to data to imitate the thought process of a human expert, and system automation expertise within the company. It developed a rule-based decision support system which was capable of cost-effectively distinguishing between cases, streamlining key aspects of family law provision and pitching Family Law Partners as a leading innovator in the legal sector.
Family Law Partners
Established in 2011, Family Law Partners are a specialist firm dealing exclusively with family law. The Directors have extensive experience in family law issues and provide legal services to clients across Sussex and London.
The company’s experience, expertise and commitment to client service is externally recognised by Resolution, Chambers UK, Legal 500 and the Law Society; they became the only specialist family law firm in Sussex to achieve a prestigious band one ranking in the first year of operation.
Family Law Partners were shortlisted for Jordans’ national awards in the ‘Innovation in IT’ category for the development of an online triage prototype that inspired a commercial software offering, which was then piloted by 30 family law practices across England and Wales.
Family Law Partners have always considered technology to have a pivotal role in the future delivery of family law services, and Director Alan Larkin first approached the university seeking to integrate artificial intelligence into everyday legal practice in 2017.
Through their development and support of Siaro, their free online child maintenance calculator, and their exploration of predictive data analytics, Family Law Partners had already understood and felt first-hand the potential technology had to positively impact on their business, their clients, and the sector as a whole.
By partnering with university experts in rule-based systems, and applying artificial intelligence methods, the partnership developed an innovative system which automated some previously manual processes, making use of ‘rules’ in order to develop an innovative triage style family law system.
Our approach to apply AI to Law
There are very limited examples of the successful application of artificially intelligent systems approaches to Law, so this KTP offered a highly innovative opportunity for collaboration.
The academic team, Dr John Kingston and Dr Andrew Montgomery had particularly relevant knowledge and experience in Information Systems, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Business Computing, Law and legal practice. KTP funding enabled Samashwin Paul, to be appointed as KRP Associate, Knowledge Systems Developer to deliver the project.
Family Law Partners had already developed a conditional logic system themselves, however they lacked deeper computing expertise to turn their innovative ideas into a reality. Using expertise in artificial intelligence, rule-based systems and software development the team addressed various ‘pain points’ in family law legal process – some of the more onerous or demanding steps in the process and developed a system to deliver efficiency and costs savings to clients.
Project outcomes
This innovative partnership embedded knowledge engineering expertise to develop a rules-based decision support system to underpin a novel model of family law provision.
The system also streamlined some arduous manual processes and provided alternatives to the court system, which had previously caused bottlenecks in the workload. These system and process efficiencies also resulted in a reduction in the expense of some legal processes, such as divorce or separation.
The innovative two-year partnership sought to embed knowledge engineering, a field of artificial intelligence (AI) that creates rules to apply to data to imitate the thought process of a human expert, and system automation expertise within the company. It developed a rule-based decision support system which was capable of cost-effectively distinguishing between cases, streamlining key aspects of family law provision and pitching Family Law Partners as a leading innovator in the legal sector.
Family Law Partners
Established in 2011, Family Law Partners are a specialist firm dealing exclusively with family law. The Directors have extensive experience in family law issues and provide legal services to clients across Sussex and London.
The company’s experience, expertise and commitment to client service is externally recognised by Resolution, Chambers UK, Legal 500 and the Law Society; they became the only specialist family law firm in Sussex to achieve a prestigious band one ranking in the first year of operation.
Family Law Partners were shortlisted for Jordans’ national awards in the ‘Innovation in IT’ category for the development of an online triage prototype that inspired a commercial software offering, which was then piloted by 30 family law practices across England and Wales.
Family Law Partners have always considered technology to have a pivotal role in the future delivery of family law services, and Director Alan Larkin first approached the university seeking to integrate artificial intelligence into everyday legal practice in 2017.
Through their development and support of Siaro, their free online child maintenance calculator, and their exploration of predictive data analytics, Family Law Partners had already understood and felt first-hand the potential technology had to positively impact on their business, their clients, and the sector as a whole.
By partnering with university experts in rule-based systems, and applying artificial intelligence methods, the partnership developed an innovative system which automated some previously manual processes, making use of ‘rules’ in order to develop an innovative triage style family law system.
Our approach to apply AI to Law
There are very limited examples of the successful application of artificially intelligent systems approaches to Law, so this KTP offered a highly innovative opportunity for collaboration.
The academic team, Dr John Kingston and Dr Andrew Montgomery had particularly relevant knowledge and experience in Information Systems, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Business Computing, Law and legal practice. KTP funding enabled Samashwin Paul, to be appointed as KRP Associate, Knowledge Systems Developer to deliver the project.
Family Law Partners had already developed a conditional logic system themselves, however they lacked deeper computing expertise to turn their innovative ideas into a reality. Using expertise in artificial intelligence, rule-based systems and software development the team addressed various ‘pain points’ in family law legal process – some of the more onerous or demanding steps in the process and developed a system to deliver efficiency and costs savings to clients.
Project outcomes
This innovative partnership embedded knowledge engineering expertise to develop a rules-based decision support system to underpin a novel model of family law provision.
The system also streamlined some arduous manual processes and provided alternatives to the court system, which had previously caused bottlenecks in the workload. These system and process efficiencies also resulted in a reduction in the expense of some legal processes, such as divorce or separation.
| Status | Finished |
|---|---|
| Effective start/end date | 1/03/17 → 28/02/19 |
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