Law student creates tech help for domestic violence victims

By Carla Meyer, UC Davis School of Law Senior Writer

Alison Corn, who graduates from UC Davis School of Law in a few days, recently took second place in the Iron Tech Lawyer Invitational, an international competition for student-created tech solutions aimed at bridging the justice gap.

Corn’s project, the “Domestic Violence Next Steps Advisor” app, already is in use at the Yolo County Superior Court Self-Help Center. It helps those without an attorney navigate the system of filing court documents when they are victims of domestic abuse, a process that can be daunting. Corn based the app on her experiences working with domestic violence survivors as part of Professor Kelly Behre’s Family Protection and Legal Assistance Clinic.

She was presented the award virtually April 17 by Georgetown Law School. UC Davis Law Adjunct Professor Diana Glick ’07 served as Corn’s academic mentor for the competition.

Included with Corn’s second-place finish is a $2,500 award to the Yolo court. “With the additional funding, we can expand its use to other users and court-case types,” Corn said of the app.

“I wanted to create the app in order to accomplish three things,” Corn said. “To lessen the re-traumatization domestic violence survivors experience proceeding through their court cases; improve the efficiency of the Yolo County Superior Court Self-Help Center; and increase accessibility so a broader range of court users can access justice."

See more here.