Legal Aid AI Procurement: 60-Day Reference Process

Legal aid clinics need a structured AI procurement process. This article catalogs a 60-day reference process.

Background

Legal aid clinics face unique procurement constraints:

• Limited budget
• Public funding requirements
• BAA / privacy requirements
• Multiple stakeholders
• Outcome measurement

60-day process

Days 1-7: Initiation

• Need assessment
• Stakeholder identification
• Budget allocation
• Scope definition

Outputs:

• Need statement
• Stakeholder register
• Budget envelope
• Scope document

Days 8-14: Requirements

• Capability requirements
• Compliance requirements
• Integration requirements
• Performance requirements

Outputs:

• Requirements document
• Compliance checklist
• Integration spec
• Performance metrics

Days 15-21: Market scan

• Vendor landscape
• Reference architectures
• Cost benchmarks
• Risk assessment

Outputs:

• Vendor shortlist
• Reference architecture
• Cost estimates
• Risk register

Days 22-28: Vendor RFP

• RFP document
• Vendor distribution
• Q&A period
• Response review

Outputs:

• RFP document
• Vendor responses
• Q&A log

Days 29-35: Vendor evaluation

• Demo reviews
• Reference checks
• Compliance verification
• Cost analysis

Outputs:

• Demo recordings
• Reference responses
• Compliance scorecards
• Cost comparison

Days 36-42: Pilot design

• Pilot scope
• Eval framework
• Success criteria
• Pilot agreement

Outputs:

• Pilot plan
• Eval framework
• Success criteria
• Pilot SOW

Days 43-50: Pilot kickoff

• Procurement
• Implementation
• Training
• Initial metrics

Outputs:

• Procurement complete
• Implementation
• Training materials
• Baseline metrics

Days 51-60: Pilot eval

• Pilot execution
• Metrics collection
• User feedback
• Vendor assessment

Outputs:

• Pilot report
• Final metrics
• User feedback
• Vendor assessment

Post-pilot decisions

• Full deployment
• Extension
• Vendor change
• Termination

Source

This article summarizes legal aid clinic procurement processes, observed 2024-2025.

Dillon Deutsch has worked with legal aid clinics on AI procurement. https://courtgpt.ai