> > I'm an attorney in Dallas, TX. I'm interested in developing a LyX
> > (KLyX) document class for legal forms in TX. Do you know of any
> > computer expert in TX who is worxing in LyX development? Would you
> > be interested in consulting on such a project? If yes, send me your
> > snailmail address and I'll write a letter with samples of what I'm
> > doing. Thanks Hank McFadyen
> Lars forwarded a previous message of yours to the list. I'm sure Rich
> Hawkins (sp? it's bedtime...), who is the LyX Team Unofficial Resident
> LegalEagle, would be able to help.
Yep, I could do that. I could also consult on specific issues with
specific firms (in fact, I've thought a lot about that from time to
time).
This was also one of the things that stayed in the back of my mind
while writing the mailmerge patch, and even the reason I knew enough
about mailmerge to start with. Large portions of the documents in my
office were generated automatically, primarily with a mix of
hypercard/supercard as a front end (something still badly needed by
linux afaik), and feeding word 4.0 (later 5.1).
> As Lars Pointed out in that earlier message, there are two things one
> must do: first we'll need a LaTeX class file for legal documents.
> Then we'll need to make a LyX layout file that uses that class.
> Creating a layout isn't too hard. Creating a LaTeX class is
> nontrivial. I've done it, specifically for University of Colorado
> Graduate School Theses. It took a while.
I was luckier; isu already had a latex package.
> Our first step, therefore, is for *you* to tell me/us about the
> structure and layout of legal forms.
This will very widely with the type of documetns he's using.
Pleadings should be fairly easy, most places we'll need a fancy right
brace to the right of a
John Doe,
Plaintiff
v.
Jane Smith, Defendant
and the ability to put another group of paragraphs (case #, and the
like) to the right of this. This will be slightly easier in latex
than it was in word, and will work largely the same way.
Bankruptcy forms, on the other hand, would be another matter
altogether. Also, even for regular pleadings, they vary in from from
state to state, and even by county/district. We can probably come up
with a reference class, but I think reality will be that firms wanting
to use them will need to hire consultants to localize them. In fact,
we should probably require some minimal level of localization, as we
would want thefinal product made by the individual firm, not us
(liability, to start with . . .)
Also, something such as bankruptcy
forms are ticklish; even assuming we wanted to produce and open-source
such a thing, there are serious issues about releasing them to
non-lawyers who are more likely to hurt themselves than help
themselves with them.
On the other hand, especially linked with a front end, these things
would be highly usefull--cutthroat competition had cut the fee on
uncontested divorces to $100 (less than the filing fee) at one point,
and other attorneys were stuck. I (and the lawyer I shared space and
secretaries with) made a killing, as they took about 10 minutes total
of secretary time for us, and 30 seconds of attorney time (I knew what
they said before they even printed), compared to more than an an hour
(or two, for complicated ones) from a highly trained secretary, and
enough attorney time to actually read how she did it. It could easily
be worth a couple of grand to customize such forms; we actually
covered payroll with these things for a few months. (Much as it galls
me to admit it, this is an area where RMS' arguments about making
money by consulting and releasing the results might even make economic
sense).
>What types of paragraphs are there?
All kinds. Most in pleadings will be fairly simple, other than
needing to *rigidly* align with the line numbers on the left (some
places have gotten rid of those; they became obsolete when the
typewriter replaced scriveners for copies . . .), and the proper
indent for quotes.
And then there are the funny forms with boxes which must be dealt
with, which will be trickier (I usually generated those with supercard).
> Are there lists?
Oh, yes :)
> Is there a numbering to certain types of paragraphs?
Yes.
>Are lists indented in any special way?
yes, but the special way will vary widely
> How deeply can lists be nested?
Rarely deeper than 2 or 3. I don't think I ever passed 3.
> If some of the paragraphs/margins have absolute
> measurements in inches/cm, specify those. If other paragraphs/margins
> are relative to text in the document, be sure to say so.
rick, esq.
hmm, now I suppose it's Prof. Rick, J.D., Ph.D., Esq. . . . :)
