Rachael Brown reported this story on Wednesday, July 6, 2016 08:21:00

MICHAEL BRISSENDEN: Australia's looking at an artificial intelligence platform that could soon be called on, in legal battlegrounds like divorce, custody, employment and debt disputes.



National Legal Aid and RMIT University is showcasing Dutch technology, which could make time consuming and expensive court conflict a thing of the past.



It's similar to eBay's dispute resolution service that helps people log on, rather than lawyer up.



Rachael Brown reports.



RACHAEL BROWN: Rechtwijzer, a dispute resolution robot born in the Netherlands, might soon be giving lawyers here a run for their money.



The online platform can mediate everything from divorces, tenancy disputes, and employment, debt and consumer matters.



For custody matters, for example, it'll ask the ages of the children to be sensitive to their development needs.



BEVAN WARNER: It remembers who you are and it gives proposals based upon predictive results on what other people have achieved in the resolution when they come to separate



Bevan Warner from Victoria Legal Aid says Rechtwijzer uses artificial intelligence and machine learning, and the Dutch technology has already been snapped up in the UK and Canada.



BEVAN WARNER: In Canada they're moving into debt and tenancy issues. In the Netherlands they have a working system for family law issues and resolution of child support.



RACHAEL BROWN: These are issues that have a lot of heat in them and are some of the most traumatic circumstances people will find themselves in, in a lifetime. Can a robot be trusted with that?



BEVAN WARNER: Well it's not robot only. So, the system works by moving people into the care of a trusted adviser, so referral to an online mediator, when they need it.



But the key to this is, unlike traditional modes of legal service delivery where the client's in the back seat and the lawyer's driving the car, here people are empowered to experience the controls themselves.



RACHAEL BROWN: Mr Warner says it's time machine learning is developed within the justice system as it's already present in other industries and settings.



BEVAN WARNER: For instance, Google reportedly can predict the outbreak of influenza in particular locations by analysing the intensity of searches around headache and cold symptoms.



It was Australia that brought the combine harvester to the world that revolutionised agriculture and it was Wi-fi that's revolutionised the way in which we interact and connect to information.



So we're the 16th largest economy in the world with a proven record of innovating in oil and gas and mining innovation. There's no reason in my mind why we can't lead the world in using these adaptive technologies to close the justice gap.



RACHAEL BROWN: Rob Hulls from RMIT's Centre of Innovative Justice is just back from seeing how the new technology is working in the Netherlands.



He says particularly in family law matters the best agreements are those reached by individuals, not imposed by others.



ROB HULLS: Many, many people in our community simply can't afford to see a lawyer. Many of them forsake their legal rights altogether. Many don't qualify for legal aid.



If we think outside the square and embrace online dispute resolution it means that access to justice becomes a real thing for many, many Australians that miss out at the moment.



RACHAEL BROWN: There's been a lot made recently of future proofing careers. You were the Attorney-General. Do you think lawyers should be worried about their jobs?



ROB HULLS: No, I just think they have to think outside the square. Access to justice is a crucial part of our democracy and the way we operate our justice system in the adversarial approach to resolving disputes in many cases is past its use-by date. And I think designed thinking is the key to access to justice,



MICHAEL BRISSENDEN: Rob Hulls from RMIT's Centre of Innovative Justice ending that report by Rachael Brown.