$250,000 funding boost for new complaints platform

2 March 2023

A new complaints handling platform being developed by the University of NSW (UNSW) has been awarded a $250,000 injection of funds from the NSW Government.

Attorney General Mark Speakman said the Tech4Justice Complaints Platform being developed by the university will help people navigate the various complaints bodies and increase access to justice.

“Navigating multiple organisations to resolve a complaint can be frustrating and time consuming, which is why a platform that demystifies the process and ensures streamlined access to justice could be so beneficial,” Mr Speakman said.

“The NSW Government congratulates the University of NSW on being awarded a $250,000 grant through the Access to Justice Innovation Fund.

“The Access to Justice Innovation Fund drives improvements to the way legal problems are solved and helps to drive efficiency in the justice system.

“The project proposed by UNSW is the first of its kind and I’m looking forward to seeing this platform come to fruition.”

The Tech4Justice Complaints Platform will be created in partnership with the National Justice Project and Portable Australia, in collaboration with Macquarie University and Microsoft.

Professor Andrew Lynch, Dean of the Law and Justice faculty at UNSW, said the university is grateful for the opportunity to develop the platform.

Tech4Justice will be a one-stop-shop providing AI powered triage tools and information to demystify the complaints process and enable self-service advocacy,” Mr Lynch said.

“These tools will empower individuals to act for themselves when making a complaint, and will also refer users to organisations and services to guide and assist them further where required.

“We’re very excited to be working on this project, which has real potential to help people pursue their rights.

“The Tech4Justice Complaints Platform will break down the barriers to justice by making them far easier to navigate.”

Previous year’s awardees from the Access to Justice Innovation Fund include:

• Marrickville Legal Centre - granted $250,000 to develop an online chatbot, the New Age Legal Assistant.
• Justice Connect -  awarded $174,000 to build a language processing model to help people who lack legal literacy.
• The University of Sydney – granted  $76,000 to develop a fairer assessment model for parents with cognitive disability involved in care proceedings before the Children’s Court.