Updated March 1, 2024
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 6, 2022
Legal Tech Company Launches App to Deliver Second Chances
Salt Lake City, UT – Rasa Legal on Wednesday launched a web app to make criminal record expungement more accessible. The legal tech firm developed sophisticated computer software that analyzes criminal record databases and streamlines many of the complex and time-consuming steps associated with determining eligibility for expungement, and offers real-time legal advice through technology.
“The heart of our mission is social justice through access to a simple and affordable way to clear criminal records,” said Noella Sudbury, founder and CEO of Rasa Legal. “This, in turn, will clear a path for access to housing and jobs, higher wages, and a better quality of life for those who have been held back by background checks.”
Through the use of their new technology, individuals can use a simple web application for just $15 to find out whether their records are eligible for expungement. If an individual has eligible records, the firm is able to represent clients seeking to clear their criminal records for a flat rate of $250 per case. This technology makes second chances possible for those who can’t afford the lofty price tag of the traditional process other law firms use.
“A criminal record can hold someone back their entire life, and is a huge barrier to freedom that disproportionately affects low income people and communities of color,” said Sudbury. “Our app is one way to address the racial inequality and bias in our system and help serve social justice.”
Rasa also partners with businesses to offer Rasa’s app and low cost legal services as part of programs to increase employee retention and support DEI initiatives.
How does it work?
Every state has its own criminal record database housing millions of criminal records. Each state also has its own unique set of expungement laws and requirements. To tackle the scope of the work, Rasa’s web application utilizes Google’s BigQuery engine to quickly parse over millions of records in a matter of seconds to identify what people and records qualify for expungement. Communication to and from other databases is also handled within the other pieces of Google’s GCP platform like Functions, Cloud Run, Cloud SQL, and Pub/Sub in a microservice style architecture fronted by a GraphQL gateway. The developers paired this backend architecture with a modern UI built utilizing Vue & Nuxt to present a simple and efficient user experience on the front end.
Not only is the technology innovative, but the partnerships with stakeholders is forward-thinking. Sudbury was directly involved in advocating for a 2019 Clean Slate bill to automatically expunge more than 450,000 records, which received unanimous support from the Utah Legislature and was supported by the Law Enforcement Legislative Committee, Utah Chiefs of Police Association, and the Statewide Association of Prosecutors. Sudbury was subsequently invited to serve on the National Clean Slate Initiative steering committee and has provided technical assistance to many other expungement expansion and automatic clearance bills across the country.
The web app can be accessed at Rasa-Legal.com. Attached images are available for editorial use. For media information, please contact Noella Sudbury at [email protected], or (801) 913-9675.
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