England: Tech companies invited to compete for £250,000 funding for legal access projects

The Legal Access Challenge is open to entries from now until 11 August 2019 via the www.legalaccesschallenge.org website.

Four finalists will receive grants of £50,000 to develop their solutions, with an additional £50,000 prize in spring 2020 awarded to a winner from the four.

Finalists will also have access to tailored, expert support, based on their individual needs.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority, the regulatory body for solicitors in England and Wales, has said it will engage with innovators through the challenge to find out if its regulatory approach needs to be adapted to enable the safe adoption of technology-enabled services.

The Legal Access Challenge website states: “A legal services market in which only one in three individuals – and one in ten small businesses – with a legal problem get expert advice isn’t working as well as it should be.

“In sector after sector digital technology has made life easier for customers, giving them more choice and control. In legal services though, technology has made less of an impact.

“The £250,000 Legal Access Challenge is looking for innovative legal solutions that will help individuals and SMEs to better understand and resolve their legal problems.”