AI legal assistant: accelerating access to justice

Written By Frontier Tech Hub

THE QUESTION

Can an AI legal tool tailored to Malawi’s local context help reduce case backlogs and improve access to justice?

LOCATION: Malawi
SECTOR: Human Rights and Democracy
TECH: AI
TIMELINE: September 2024 - Present
PIONEER: Benson Linje
PARTNERS: TBC

 
 

The Challenge

In Malawi, access to justice is a constitutional right. The law guarantees everyone a fair trial, including timely hearings before independent courts. But in reality, the country’s judiciary faces overwhelming case backlogs, and limited resources make it challenging to meet these commitments.

As one of the poorest countries in the world, Malawi struggles with budget constraints that hinder investment in its legal system. Judges, lawyers, and legal aid workers are stretched thin, and existing technology solutions have done little to ease the burden. The result is delayed justice, which disproportionately affects the most vulnerable people.

There’s an urgent need for a cost-effective, scalable tool to help the legal system work more efficiently and reduce the backlog of cases.

The Idea

This pilot will develop an AI-powered legal assistant designed explicitly for Malawi. The tool will be trained on Malawian case law and statutes, enabling it to:

  • Quickly retrieve relevant legal precedents and statutes.

  • Assist the Legal Aid Bureau and judiciary in preparing cases more efficiently.

  • Provide accurate information in local languages like Chichewa, making it accessible to more users.

Unlike general-purpose AI tools like ChatGPT, this solution will be tailored to Malawi’s legal context and needs. It aims to bridge a critical resource gap by offering a localised, responsive, and user-friendly tool that can support legal professionals in their work.

If successful, this AI legal assistant could transform how Malawi’s legal system operates, setting an example of how technology can improve access to justice in resource-constrained settings.

 

Our learnings and stories so far

This pilot hasn’t started to publish yet, but there are plenty of other blogs to read below. Check back soon!

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Frontier Tech Hub

The Frontier Tech Hub works with UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) staff and global partners to understand the potential for innovative tech in the development context, and then test and scale their ideas.

https://www.frontiertechhub.org/
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