Overview

Staff use A2J Author to build guided interviews that help self-represented litigants complete court documents. The project dates to 2004; version 5.0 made authoring a cloud-based web service, and version 7.0 opened the source under the GNU Affero General Public License. That combination gives organizations browser-based authoring alongside the option to self-host key components.

This is a tool for creating a legal-service workflow, not a consumer forms catalog. Its value depends on an organization having staff who can design useful interviews and templates, and a deployment plan that matches how documents need to be generated.

Key features

Visual interview authoring

A graphical flowchart map lets authors arrange dialogue and branching questions. It gives non-technical staff a visual structure for building an interview, though the map cannot substitute for careful question design and review.

Templates and document assembly

The A2J Document Assembly Tool supports template creation, and version 6.0 added a template automator for basic documents. The product supports custom templates, fillable PDFs and PDF downloads. Compatibility with HotDocs and LawHelp Interactive can support workflows that combine interviews with document templates, but HotDocs imposes a meaningful deployment constraint: its templates cannot be published on A2J.org.

Accessibility and browser use

The maker says authors can create Section 508- and WCAG 2-compliant interviews when they use the latest A2J Viewer and follow its accessibility checklist. That makes the viewer version and checklist part of the work, not an optional afterthought. Authoring supports current Chrome, Safari and Firefox; the browser guidance was last updated in August 2019.

Hosting and security considerations

CALI provides free A2J.org hosting for interviews and templates intended to help self-represented litigants. Organizations can instead self-host the A2J Viewer, A2J DAT and interviews. For HotDocs document generation, however, self-hosting those components alone is not enough: the organization needs LawHelp Interactive or a HotDocs server.

The privacy policy says the websites use industry-standard security measures and acknowledges that users may enter sensitive information, including Social Security numbers and domestic violence history. The maker accepts vulnerability reports by email but does not run an active bug bounty or reward program. Technical-problem support is handled through a contact form that requires login or registration, a potential obstacle when a user cannot access an account.

Pricing

A2J Author — 0.00 USD per free. The free plan is for legal aid organizations, government entities, courts and other nonprofits using the software for non-commercial purposes. A registered, authenticated account is required. For eligible organizations, the price makes it practical to build public-interest interviews without a software fee; it is not a general-purpose free plan for commercial use.

Free access does not remove deployment costs or requirements. A2J.org hosting is free for qualifying interviews and templates, while HotDocs generation requires LawHelp Interactive or a HotDocs server. Organizations should decide how they will publish and generate documents before committing to a workflow.

Platforms

A2J Author runs in a modern browser and supports web authoring, with self-hosting available for the viewer, assembly tool and interviews. Its open-source release under the GNU Affero General Public License may matter to organizations planning their own deployment. Browser support covers current Chrome, Safari and Firefox, though the published browser guidance dates to August 2019.

Who it's for

A2J Author is best suited to legal aid organizations, courts, government entities and law schools that serve self-represented litigants and can invest in building and maintaining guided interview workflows. Nonprofits with non-commercial needs benefit most from the free plan. It is a weaker fit for commercial users, people looking for ready-to-use forms, or organizations that need HotDocs publishing directly through A2J.org.

Pros and cons

Pros

No software fee for eligible organizations: the free plan covers non-commercial use by legal aid groups, government entities, courts and other nonprofits.
Visual interview planning: the flowchart map gives non-technical staff a way to structure branching interviews.
Hosting choice: organizations can use free CALI hosting for qualifying material or self-host core components.
Accessibility guidance: the maker supports creating compliant interviews when authors use the latest viewer and follow its checklist.

Cons

HotDocs needs a separate route: HotDocs templates cannot be published on A2J.org, and document generation requires LawHelp Interactive or a HotDocs server.
Free use is restricted: the plan requires an authenticated account and is limited to eligible organizations' non-commercial work.
Support access has a gate: the technical-problems form requires login or registration.
Browser guidance is dated: the stated support page was last updated in August 2019.

Alternatives

For a broader browse of legal-form tools, see Legal Forms Software.

eForms may suit readers who want a web-based document service with a 7-day free trial, unlimited document access during the trial and free chat with a legal expert; its Pro Monthly plan renews at $49 / month after the trial.
Dokuily is a web option for people who need common simple documents free, with unlimited clean downloads for free documents and the first three paid-eligible completions included during launch.
Docassemble is another free, self-hosted option with API and Linux platforms; it has no software fees, though hosting typically costs $10–$40 per month or more depending on performance, availability and support needs.
FreeWill is a web-based alternative for people seeking free estate-planning tools such as a will, California revocable living trust, advance healthcare directive and financial power of attorney.
Trust & Will may fit readers who want estate-plan creation without an ongoing membership through its free Basic membership, with an Essentials membership at 49.00 USD per year.
Gavel is a paid alternative with a free trial that includes 25 queries per user and shared workspace collaboration.
Gentreo offers an estate-planning alternative at 150.00 USD per year for the first year, then $50/year.
360 Legal Forms is a paid web service with a 7.99 USD per month plan for its legal-forms library.

Verdict

Choose A2J Author if an eligible public-interest organization wants to build guided legal interviews and can plan for its template and hosting workflow. Its visual authoring, free qualifying use and hosting flexibility are compelling for serving self-represented litigants. Look elsewhere if you need a consumer-ready forms library, commercial use, or direct HotDocs publishing and generation without a separate service or server.

	A2J Author	LawDepot
Free plan	Yes	No
Free trial	No	Yes
Paid from	Free	$8.99/mo
Open source	No	No
Platforms	self-hosted, Web	Web
Free plan	Yes	No
Custom templates	Yes	—
Fillable PDFs	Yes	—
Download formats	pdf	pdf_docx
Jurisdiction scope	general	state_specific
Template count	—	1

A2J Author vs LawDepot

A2J Author

LawDepot