Indiana Univ. Professors Bill Henderson and Anjanette Raymond (Kelley School of Business and also Queen Mary University of London) offer important insights based on work they did with the Indiana Supreme Court. They asked law students and undergraduates to observe courtrooms and interview lawyers with the goal of identifying pathways to increased access to legal services especially for rural and socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. They found both an attorney shortage and other significant obstacles to access and affordability. Read more below.
“Indiana Supreme Court Uses Applied Research Practicum at Indiana University to Gather Facts for Reform Efforts” 
Indiana Legal Studies Research Paper No. 570
100 Indiana Law Journal __ (forthcoming 2026)
In 2024, the Indiana Supreme Court launched a major initiative to expand access to legal services, especially for rural and socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. To support this, we carried out a thorough stakeholder analysis of the legal market in a seven-county area. During the 2024-25 academic year, the project was offered as a course for undergraduates and law students. This research approach was highly successful, as members of the legal community eagerly engaged with our small army of student fieldworkers. Similarly, our students conducted over 100 courtroom observations, most of which involved at least one self-represented litigant. Their fresh perspectives added urgency to the Court’s efforts to improve access. The most surprising discovery was that Indiana indeed faces an attorney shortage—most lawyers we interviewed had more work than they could handle. Additionally, they reported difficulties filling open positions. However, we also found strong evidence that simply adding more lawyers or redistributing them across the state won’t fully address the core issues of access and affordability. In short, the attorney shortage and access to affordable legal advice are separate issues that only partially overlap. Fortunately, the Court has recently started a new regulatory process to evaluate innovative business models and types of legal professionals. With the Court’s support, the 2025-26 iteration of our course is building a prototype solution.
