Struggling with credit card bills? Behind on medical payments? Overwhelmed by debt? 
ILAO is committed to making legal information and resources accessible to people across Illinois, and we know that creating useful resources starts with understanding the people who use them.
That’s why we want to listen directly to people who are navigating or have experienced legal issues. Through surveys, interviews, stakeholder groups, and usability testing, we learn about their experiences, needs, and challenges. We use what we learn to continuously improve our work.
By involving users throughout our process, we hope to create online tools and resources that are clearer, more accessible, and more responsive to the people they are designed to serve.
Throughout the year, ILAO invites people across Illinois to share their experiences through stakeholder groups, interviews, surveys, and user testing. Hearing from people with different backgrounds, experiences, and legal needs helps us create tools and resources that better serve our users.
Interested in participating in ILAO's user research?
We are currently looking for participants for our Eviction + Domestic Violence research:
- If you are a professional DV advocate interested in participating in ILAO's research and discussing your experience, please fill out this application for DV advocates.
- If you are a survivor who experienced eviction or housing instability as a result of domestic abuse and are interested in talking to ILAO about your experience, please fill out this application for DV survivors.
If this doesn't sound like the right fit for you, you can sign up for future user research opportunities. Fill out this form to tell us a little about yourself and your experience using ILAO. When we have a research opportunity that matches your experience, we may reach out to invite you to participate.
Older Illinois homeowners can face unique challenges when trying to understand and protect their housing and property rights. In 2023, Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) launched this project to learn how digital legal information and tools can better meet their needs.
Our goal is to create more accessible, user-friendly tools that help older Illinois homeowners better understand their rights, navigate housing and property issues, and feel more confident taking action. Through focus groups and usability studies with older adults, we were able to learn directly from their experiences and use their feedback to improve our digital legal resources.
Eviction can have lasting consequences for individuals and families, but finding the right information and support before, during, and after an eviction can be difficult, especially in areas of Illinois where legal resources are limited.
Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) launched this project to learn directly from people who have experienced eviction outside of Cook County. Their experiences and feedback have helped ILAO identify gaps in our eviction resources and create digital legal information and tools that are clearer, more supportive, and more responsive to the real experiences of Illinoisans facing eviction.
