Toward Inclusive Design for Visual Law

Authors

  • Sara Frug Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School

Abstract

The explosion in visual representations of legal concepts and processes is a thrilling innovation which can expand open access to law. By and large, however, visual representations of the law have not adequately fulfilled the promise of access. No matter how unintentionally, implementations of visual access to law frequently overlook people with visual disabilities. This neglect is not necessary, and inclusion is not futile. The synthesis, summarization, simplification, and interpretation required to produce visual representations of law have the potential to support understanding for everyone by making legal information more discoverable and reusable. This paper distinguishes between features of visual law that require vision and features of visual law that can be made accessible to all. It argues that inclusive design deserves greater attention in order to avoid increasing inequality in access to law.

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Published

2019-10-13

Issue

Vol. 7 No. 1 (2019): Special Issue on "Visual Law"

Section

Visual Law as an Instrument of Empowerment

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