Inspiration

After having money stolen and being told it would not be paid back, I decided to pursue the case in small claims court. The process quickly became overwhelming and stressful: there were documents to gather, facts to organize, deadlines to understand, and uncertainty about what actually supported my case. I repeatedly wished I had a steady buddy beside me to keep me on track, clarify the process, and help turn a scattered story into something I could present clearly. Small Claims Copilot grew from that experience.

What it does

Small Claims Copilot organizes California small claims documents into an editable case summary, evidence list, timeline, and printable packet. It labels statements that are backed by exact document quotes, identifies statements that still need evidence, and flags possible conflicts between a user’s account and their documents.

How we built it

We built a browser based app that accepts text documents, PDFs, and photos. Claude extracts facts and exact quotes; application code independently verifies that each cited quote appears in its source document. The case stays in browser local storage, and the app creates the final packet in the browser.

Challenges we ran into

The hardest challenge was making AI output useful without presenting it as proof. We needed clear boundaries between document backed facts, user statements, and AI interpretation. Handling conflicting evidence while avoiding unsupported conclusions required both careful prompts and code based checks.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We built a conflict flag feature that helps users catch gaps and contradictions before filing. We also made every “backed by” claim traceable to the exact source wording, kept sensitive case data out of a database, and included a realistic demo case that works without an API key.

What we learned

AI is most helpful here when it organizes and surfaces evidence instead of deciding who is right. Reliable legal adjacent tools need visible uncertainty, source traceability, and product language that clearly distinguishes general information from legal advice.

What's next for Small Claims Copilot

We plan to improve scanned document support, expand photo evidence handling, add more guided California court resources, and make conflict flags easier to review and resolve.