Coding the way to social justice

Students in Flinders University’s Law in a Digital Age topic are creating apps towards social justice, delivering fantastic skills for tomorrow’s tech-savvy lawyers and providing valuable resources for the community.

Frequently in the lead when it comes to technology, Flinders is the first university in Australia to include open source app development on the law curriculum. Creating an app is mandatory in the compulsory topic, which students can undertake in their second or third year of studies.

In a recent example, students from the 2020 Semester 1 topic built an app for Relationships Australia that makes it simple for members of the public and professionals to navigate its directory of parenting and relationship courses.

The SA Family Law Pathways iRefer App was developed by law students Tim Ball, Phoebe Yap, Daniel Cheung and Zoe Vaughan and will be soon available for download.

Michelle Ford of Relationships Australia (SA) says a quote was obtained to have the app professionally developed and the service provided by the students was not only more professional than the IT company, but resulted in a very good app that effectively addressed the problem.

She commented to the students “You understood the problem really well. I am amazed at your attention to detail and the effort you put in.

“A lot of organisations depend on the Family Law Pathways Service Directory, and you have made it much easier to maintain and access.  Once the App is commissioned, we will be encouraging members of the public to use it in court and download it onto their own devices, giving them greater access to justice.

“You have also saved us thousands of dollars which we are going to use towards funding a roadshow to Indigenous communities, to help them keep their children out of state care by promoting the Federal Circuit Court’s Indigenous family law list as a better alternative.”

Another app developed by students last year is currently being commissioned for use by residential tenants who receive an eviction, or ‘vacant possession’ order. The ‘SACAT Homelessness Advisor’ app assists tenants to quickly find emergency accommodation suited to their particular circumstances.

Mark Ferraretto

Mark Ferraretto, coordinator of Flinders University’s ‘Law in a Digital Age’ undergraduate topic and its new ‘Coding the law’ short course for professionals, says: “We’re now liaising with the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (SACAT) to commission this app.

“SACAT can now provide quick and tailored advice to tenants who are facing the daunting prospect of homelessness – cutting through bureaucracy and giving tenants an easy way to access the information they need in a difficult time”.

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