Build a Guided Small Claims Filing Assistant

1. 1

   Draw the legal boundary with counsel first

   Unauthorized practice of law is defined state by state, and document-preparation rules differ; pick launch states where guided self-help software fits clearly within published rules, get a lawyer's written review of the product's scope, and build 'talk to a lawyer' referral paths for everything judgment-shaped.

2. 2

   Encode one state completely

   Official forms, dollar limits, venue rules, filing fees, service-of-process options, and hearing procedures for every county quirk that matters. A complete, current single state beats a shallow national map; stale procedure is your biggest operational risk, so build update monitoring from day one.

3. 3

   Interview in plain language, output official forms

   'Who owes you money and why' becomes the correctly completed official form for the right court, with each answer mapped transparently. The user files their own case; you make the paperwork survivable.

4. 4

   Track the deadlines that kill cases

   Service windows, response periods, hearing dates, and judgment collection steps, with reminders. Half the value of the product is that nothing lapses silently.

5. 5

   Help them show up organized

   An evidence binder builder (timeline, documents, photos, a one-page summary of the claim) prepares people for the hearing itself, which is where self-represented parties most often stumble. Judges appreciate organized litigants; your users win more, and say so.

6. 6

   Price flat, partner where claims are born

   A flat per-case price far below an hour of attorney time, sold at the moment of the unpaid invoice: landlord-tenant resource sites, freelancer communities, and consumer-complaint forums are your channels.

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