Law students from Hawaiʻi are joining others from across the nation in increasing access to justice through a new technology fellowship, which has an application deadline of February 9.

Chad Au, a student in the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, was one of eight national participants in last year’s Access to Justice Tech Fellows Program.

He helped the Legal Aid Society of Hawaiʻi to add a chat-bot to its website that enables online visitors to get easier and faster help with their legal questions. A chat-bot is a computer program designed to simulate a conversation with human users, especially over the internet.

“His interest in technology blew us away,” said Sergio Alcubilla, Legal Aid of Hawaiʻi director of external programs. “We thought it was a complicated process, but it was something Chad was able to do pretty quickly.”

The Access to Justice Tech Fellows Program is funded by the national Legal Services Corporation and works in cooperation with local partners. In its second year, it pays $4,000 for the 10-week summer fellowship.

For the full story and more on the fellowship, see the law school website.

—By Beverly Creamer