Law students
You know where the process actually breaks — and can tell a real barrier from a hypothetical one.
Entry fee
Free
Team size
2–5 people
Who can enter
University students
Format
In person, Dhaka
Challenge tracks
Pick your justice gap.
Every track begins with a barrier people actually hit when they need legal help. Read the brief, then claim the one your team wants.
Who should join
It takes more than lawyers.
Access to justice is a legal problem, an engineering problem and a design problem at once. Teams of 3–5 must include at least one Law student, one CS/IT student, and one female participant.
Engineers
You turn the idea into something a person can open and use before the weekend is over.
Designers
You make a legal service legible to someone reading it on a shared phone, in a hurry.
Researchers
You bring the evidence: who is being missed, how often, and what would change it.
How it works
How the Hackathon Works
The format is built to keep teams moving, not filling in forms.
Step 01
Register
Create your participant profile and show teammates what you bring.
Step 02
Form your team
Start a team of 3–5, or join an existing one with an invite code.
Step 03
Build and submit
Choose a track, work from the brief, and submit your prototype.
Step 04
Get evaluated
A jury scores every entry and advances the top 10 teams.
What you submit
Round 1 asks for a working prototype, a short project summary, your implementation approach, and supporting files.
A jury scores every entry. The top 10 teams advance to a live final round.
Jury
Senior practitioners and researchers who evaluate every submission.
Justice (Retd.) Fazlul Haque
Chair, Jury Board
Three decades on the bench. Evaluates every entry on whether it would survive contact with a real case file.
Dr. Shirin Akhtar
Justice Data Researcher, Access to Justice Lab
Turns messy case-flow data into decisions courts can act on. Judges on rigor, not just polish.
Barrister Imran Chowdhury
Panel Advocate, District Legal Aid
Has run hundreds of legal aid matters end to end. Will ask "would a real client use this" before "does it scale".
Mentors
Farah Kabir
Service Design Lead, Digital Public Goods
Six years designing civic services used by half a million people. Prefers a rough sketch over a polished deck.
Samuel Oduya
Engineering Manager, GovTech Platforms
Reviews more pull requests than he can count. Cares most about whether a team can actually ship.
Priya Menon
UX Researcher, Inclusive Services
Has interviewed 400+ users on low-literacy and low-bandwidth services. Champions the overlooked user.
Tanvir Reza
Full-stack Mentor, Civic Tech Bangladesh
Mentored 40+ student teams across three hackathon seasons. Answers messages at 2am.
FAQ
Questions, answered.
Yes. Cross-university teams are eligible as long as all team-formation criteria are met.
Each team must have a minimum of 3 members and a maximum of 5 members.
Yes. At least one Law student is mandatory.
Yes. At least one Computer Science / IT student is mandatory.
Yes. At least one female participant is mandatory.
Current undergraduate / honours students are eligible, as well as students who graduated with a bachelor's degree within three months of the event.
Yes. Participation from ethnic minorities and individuals with disabilities is strongly encouraged.
A team whose designated Team Leader is female receives an additional 1 point in the final evaluation.
Yes. Teams can select from the available challenge tracks according to the registration and challenge instructions.
10 September 2026 at 23:59.
The Top 10 teams selected through Round 1 screening proceed to the Bootcamp and Grand Finale.
The final round is evaluated by the appointed Jury Board.
No. Mentors provide guidance and support; final evaluation is conducted by the Jury Board.
Yes, eligible out-of-Dhaka teams will receive a fixed amount for accommodation and transport support based on the UNDP ABM Policy. The applicable amount will be communicated after the team qualifies from Round 1.
Yes. AI tools may be used where appropriate, but originality, human judgment, meaningful team effort and responsibility for the final solution remain with the participating team.
Latest update
Always Stay Updated!
Book a 20-minute slot with a legal aid practitioner or a technical mentor before the Round 1 deadline — links are on your dashboard.
Justice for every citizen starts with your prototype.
Registration takes about four minutes. Forming your team takes even less.