Verdict

Inspiration

When someone faces a legal problem, they may have messages, documents, dates and questions scattered across different places. By the time they ask for help, it can be difficult to explain what happened or find the evidence they need.

We built Verdict to give people a personal space to prepare. It helps them put the facts together before speaking to a lawyer, Legal Aid or another support organisation. Verdict does not replace professional legal advice. It helps people arrive ready to ask for it.

What it does

A user can create a matter, upload and organise evidence, record events on a timeline and keep track of important dates. Know Your Rights offers information in plain language, while Find Help points users towards organisations and professionals they can contact. Verdict AI helps users work through the preparation process, and the Matter Pack brings their information together so it is easier to share and discuss.

The difference we focused on is the step before a consultation. Legal services can advise or represent someone; Verdict helps that person gather their story and documents first.

How we built it

We built the frontend with React, JavaScript, Vite and CSS. The backend uses Node.js and Express. Supabase handles accounts, the database and private evidence storage. We use authentication and row level security to control access to users’ matters and evidence. The frontend is hosted on Vercel, and the backend is hosted on Render.

Challenges we ran into

Connecting all the steps into one clear journey took more work than building individual screens. We had to make sure users could return to an existing matter, move between pages and find the right next step without losing their place. We also worked through deployment issues, including frontend routing, backend connections and cross-origin requests.

Because people may upload sensitive information, access control was a central challenge. We checked both the app’s server-side actions and the database rules that protect matters and evidence.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We turned Verdict from an idea into a working app that people can use on their phones. Users can create a matter, organise evidence, build a timeline, explore their rights and find places to ask for help in one place.

We’re especially proud that we built the preparation journey around a real need: helping someone explain their situation clearly when they reach a legal professional. We also put access rules in place so users’ matters and uploaded evidence are restricted to them.

Getting the frontend, backend and database working together on a live site was a big milestone for our team.

What we learned

We learned that a useful legal technology product needs more than information. People need a way to turn a confusing experience into a clear account of what happened, what they have to support it and where they can go for help. We also learned how much testing matters once an app moves from a local computer to a live site.

What's next for Verdict

Next, we want to test Verdict with people preparing real legal matters and with organisations that help them. Their feedback will show us where the journey is confusing and which features are most useful.

We plan to improve the Matter Pack so users can take a clear summary, timeline and evidence list into a consultation. We also want to strengthen referrals, accessibility and privacy controls, including data export and account deletion, before a wider pilot.

Our goal is for someone to arrive at a legal service with their facts in order, their documents easy to find and a clearer idea of what to ask.

Built With

• css
• express.js
• javascript
• node.js
• react
• render
• supabase
• vercel
• vite