A free legal self-help platform that drafts court-ready federal and state filings — complaints, motions, and demand letters — using only verified case citations, guided by Atticus BradStreet McDermott, the first AI counsel sent to law school.

Does it cost anything to draft a legal document?

No. Document drafting, the law library, and Know Your Rights education are free for all. The store and collectibles support the mission.

Are the case citations real?

Yes — every authority comes from a hand-verified arsenal of more than 200 controlling cases. If a citation is not verified to exist, it is never used.

LIVE WIRE

MARKETSEquities mixed as traders assess Fed rate trajectory and Treasury yields•MARKETSBond markets steady amid ongoing debate over long-term inflation outlook•MARKETSLegal-sector M&A activity remains elevated as firms pursue strategic growth•TOP CASEDobbs v. Jackson overturned Roe, reshaping state-level reproductive rights law•TOP CASE303 Creative: SCOTUS held free-speech clause can limit public-accommodation laws•TOP CASENetChoice cases test First Amendment limits on state social-media content laws•USAFederal judiciary vacancies continue to shape appellate court jurisprudence•USAClass-action filings in consumer-privacy cases rise as data breach suits grow•USACongress debates reforms to the Administrative Procedure Act and agency power•WORLDEU AI Act enforcement timelines draw attention from global compliance teams•WORLDInternational arbitration caseloads at ICC and ICSID remain near record highs•WORLDCross-border data transfer frameworks under ongoing review by regulators globally•MARKETSEquities mixed as traders assess Fed rate trajectory and Treasury yields•MARKETSBond markets steady amid ongoing debate over long-term inflation outlook•MARKETSLegal-sector M&A activity remains elevated as firms pursue strategic growth•TOP CASEDobbs v. Jackson overturned Roe, reshaping state-level reproductive rights law•TOP CASE303 Creative: SCOTUS held free-speech clause can limit public-accommodation laws•TOP CASENetChoice cases test First Amendment limits on state social-media content laws•USAFederal judiciary vacancies continue to shape appellate court jurisprudence•USAClass-action filings in consumer-privacy cases rise as data breach suits grow•USACongress debates reforms to the Administrative Procedure Act and agency power•WORLDEU AI Act enforcement timelines draw attention from global compliance teams•WORLDInternational arbitration caseloads at ICC and ICSID remain near record highs•WORLDCross-border data transfer frameworks under ongoing review by regulators globally•

OIG CRIMINAL WIRE BUSTED

ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez convicted — bribery, extortion & acting as a foreign agent — 11 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. George Santos pled guilty — wire fraud & aggravated identity theft — 87 months⚖ON THE RECORDFormer FBI agent Robert Hanssen — espionage for Russia — life without parole⚖ON THE RECORDFormer CIA officer Aldrich Ames — espionage against the United States — life in prison⚖ON THE RECORDFormer FBI counterintel chief Charles McGonigal pled guilty — sanctions violations for a Russian oligarch⚖ON THE RECORDFormer Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich — convicted of corruption — 14 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick — racketeering & extortion — 28 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah — racketeering & fraud — 10 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter pled guilty — conversion of campaign funds⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. pled guilty — $750K in campaign funds — 30 months⚖ON THE RECORDFormer IRS contractor Charles Littlejohn — stole & leaked tax returns — 5 years⚖ON THE RECORDBaltimore Gun Trace Task Force — 8 police officers convicted of racketeering & robbery⚖ON THE RECORD'Fat Leonard' scandal — dozens of Navy officials convicted of bribery & fraud⚖ON THE RECORDFormer FCI Dublin warden Ray Garcia convicted — abuse of incarcerated women — 70 months⚖ON THE RECORDFormer DHS acting IG Charles Edwards pled guilty — stealing government software & data⚖ON THE RECORDFormer VA pathologist Robert Levy — fraud & involuntary manslaughter — 20 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer NY Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver — convicted of corruption — 6.5 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer NSA contractor Reality Winner — Espionage Act — 63 months⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez convicted — bribery, extortion & acting as a foreign agent — 11 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. George Santos pled guilty — wire fraud & aggravated identity theft — 87 months⚖ON THE RECORDFormer FBI agent Robert Hanssen — espionage for Russia — life without parole⚖ON THE RECORDFormer CIA officer Aldrich Ames — espionage against the United States — life in prison⚖ON THE RECORDFormer FBI counterintel chief Charles McGonigal pled guilty — sanctions violations for a Russian oligarch⚖ON THE RECORDFormer Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich — convicted of corruption — 14 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick — racketeering & extortion — 28 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah — racketeering & fraud — 10 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter pled guilty — conversion of campaign funds⚖ON THE RECORDFormer U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. pled guilty — $750K in campaign funds — 30 months⚖ON THE RECORDFormer IRS contractor Charles Littlejohn — stole & leaked tax returns — 5 years⚖ON THE RECORDBaltimore Gun Trace Task Force — 8 police officers convicted of racketeering & robbery⚖ON THE RECORD'Fat Leonard' scandal — dozens of Navy officials convicted of bribery & fraud⚖ON THE RECORDFormer FCI Dublin warden Ray Garcia convicted — abuse of incarcerated women — 70 months⚖ON THE RECORDFormer DHS acting IG Charles Edwards pled guilty — stealing government software & data⚖ON THE RECORDFormer VA pathologist Robert Levy — fraud & involuntary manslaughter — 20 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer NY Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver — convicted of corruption — 6.5 years⚖ON THE RECORDFormer NSA contractor Reality Winner — Espionage Act — 63 months⚖

The People's Bar · Access-to-Courts Project

The Cage Is Not a Gag Order.

The Supreme Court said it in Johnson v. Avery, 393 U.S. 483: no wall can stop one person from helping another reach the courthouse door. This is the free, step-by-step toolkit for prisoners, the formerly incarcerated, and the people who fight for them.

The Constitutional Foundation

Three Cases That Open the Door

Your right to access the courts — and to help others do the same — is built on these three rulings.

Johnson v. Avery

393 U.S. 483 (1969)

A prison cannot punish an inmate for helping another inmate prepare legal papers unless it offers a reasonable alternative. The incarcerated person's right to legal assistance is constitutionally protected.

Bounds v. Smith

430 U.S. 817 (1977)

Prisons must give inmates a meaningful ability to file — by providing adequate law libraries OR adequate assistance from persons trained in the law.

Lewis v. Casey

518 U.S. 343 (1996)

When legal resources are deficient, an inmate must show 'actual injury' — that the deficiency hindered a specific, non-frivolous legal claim. Frame the harm precisely.

The Method

How to Fight From the Inside

Five steps. The same method that reversed a federal conviction — now in your hands.

Get the facts in chronological order

Every date, every name, every event — in the order it happened. The timeline is the case. Nothing gets left out.

Identify the right document

Wrongful conviction or sentence in state court? Habeas under § 2254. Federal sentence? § 2255 motion to vacate. Ongoing rights violation? A § 1983 complaint. Property seized? A motion for return of property.

Marry each fact to a rule

A fact without a legal hook is just a story. Tie each fact to the constitutional right or statute it violates — the Builder maps the authorities for you.

Watch the deadlines

Habeas has a one-year clock (AEDPA). Civil-rights claims have a limitations period. Move on the deadline, not after it. A time-bar kills the strongest claim.

Build it, sign it, serve it

Generate the court-ready filing with caption, signature block, and certificate of service. Review it, sign it, and file it. The door is open — walk through.

Build It Now — Free

Pick Your Filing

Each opens the Builder pre-loaded with a guided template. Replace the brackets with your facts and generate a court-ready document in seconds.

Habeas Corpus Petition

28 U.S.C. § 2254 — state conviction

Challenge an unconstitutional state conviction or sentence after direct appeal. The Great Writ — the oldest tool for the wrongfully caged.

Motion to Vacate Sentence

28 U.S.C. § 2255 — federal conviction

Attack a federal sentence imposed in violation of the Constitution or laws of the United States.

§ 1983 Civil Rights Complaint

42 U.S.C. § 1983 — ongoing violation

Sue the officials who violated your rights under color of law — retaliation, excessive force, deliberate indifference, malicious prosecution.

Know the Power — and the Line

Johnson v. Avery protects helping people prepare their own filings when the state provides no reasonable alternative — and that power is enormous. It is not a bar license, and it does not authorize appearing as counsel of record or the unauthorized practice of law. Within those lines, you can help anyone the system tried to silence reach the courts. Verify the current rules and deadlines in your jurisdiction before relying on any filing.

"The cage was never supposed to be a gag order. Johnson v. Avery proves it." — The People's Bar

Educational and document-drafting aid — not legal advice and not a substitute for a licensed attorney. Court opinions are public record. Verify all citations, deadlines, and procedural rules before filing.

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