Module 2

Law by Design

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Humzah Khan on the intersection of Law and Design

This is an excerpt from the book Law by Design by Margaret Hagan:

‘Design offers methods and priorities to transform the legal sector, to make legal outcomes more aligned with those its users desire, and to create ambitious new visions for how legal services can be provided. A design approach to legal services puts people and their contexts as the focus, questions how their status quo could be improved, and then considers the potential of technology as an intervention.

Its first principle is that Lawyers & Designers should be working together to create truly user-friendly, engaging, quality legal services. Designers can help lawyers. Lawyers need designers’ skills and insights.’

Reflections from Humzah: 

Why I choose this text:
Margaret is a pioneer who translated complex design theory into the world of law. The online book has everything you need to get started, and unsurprisingly helps you navigate legal design in a visual, accessible and practical way. 

The relationship between this text and Humzah:
Once I realised we were “doing” legal design, this was the first resource that allowed me to ground our work in real expertise and find a vocabulary for it. 

Your task:
Don’t read this from cover to cover. Click the link, look at the welcome page, and dive into the one section that sparks your curiosity. And from there, reflect on the “design thinking” you are already doing without realising it.