The Irish Legal Aid Board has established an electronic network featuring automated application forms, designed to speed up the process substantially. Linking 30 law centres nationwide to a central database at its Dublin head office, the new system was designed to eliminate manual repetitive procedures and provide standard automated templates. Applicants can now be means tested from anywhere in the State, speeding up the process by reducing unnecessary paperwork.

Using Lotus software - Domino on the Windows NT server and Notes clients on the Windows 95 desktop - the new system will reduce the dictation and typing pool requirement. It will also provide a multi-level security system which protects against unauthorised access to applications, documents and messages. The Legal Aid Board will be able to produce monthly statistics from a collation of automated figures much more rapidly than before.