Technology for Justice: Venezuelan Attorney's Mission at Suffolk Law
In 1999, at age 7, Venezuelan attorney Omar Piñango and hundreds of thousands of citizens in the Vargas state north of Caracas, Venezuela, faced a massive flood that killed thousands, destroyed huge numbers of homes, and left many homeless. Entire towns, including Camurí Grande and Carmen de Uria, completely disappeared. The event and its aftermath spurred Piñango to become an attorney, setting him on a path that would lead to his current work strengthening legal institutions in his country and, most recently, to a fellowship at Suffolk Law's Legal Innovation & Technology Lab.
The U.S. State Department selected him—from among thousands of applicants—for its Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI), a prestigious program that connects emerging entrepreneurs and civil society leaders from Latin America, the Caribbean, and the United States for fellowships and ongoing professional collaboration. Through YLAI, Piñango was matched with Suffolk Law's Legal Innovation & Technology (LIT) Lab for a professional fellowship, giving him direct access to the school's legal innovation experts.
His commitment to international law began during his university years. Every Saturday he would attend or teach classes on the subject while raising funds to participate in global competitions. Now at age 31, he serves as training director at Lex Solutions Group in Caracas, teaching law students legal advocacy skills, while also providing commercial and civil legal services. The firm's practice extends to helping vulnerable communities and addressing domestic violence cases.
He saw the LIT Lab fellowship as an opportunity to bring legal automation to both the firm's paying clients and to its pro bono work.
At Suffolk, Piñango learned about the workings of the LIT Lab's Document Assembly Line project, which uses machine learning and AI tools to walk self-represented litigants step-by-step through court forms on phones or laptops. He also learned about digital client intake and case management software.
One of his goals, he said, is to build digital databases to collect client case information more systematically, freeing up more time for complex matters and pro bono cases. High tech case management systems are not typical in Venezuela, he said, and he hopes to train law students and lawyers to use such tools to help them streamline the data they gather about their clients' cases.
Additionally, as part of his professional development, since 2018 Omar Piñango has worked in the defense of human rights, an issue he works on with several of Venezuela’s civil society organizations. He currently leads a team of five lawyers documenting citizens’ challenges with access to justice connected to International Criminal Court (ICC) proceedings.
In 2019, he and his team prepared a major communication to the ICC Prosecutor, a process that involved gathering evidence and conducting interviews throughout Venezuela. His team received training from a lawyer who had previously worked in the ICC prosecutor's office.
In 2023 the ICC's Victims and Reparations Section made note of the team’s human rights documentation work in Venezuela, a crucial moment in the ongoing pursuit of legal remedies through the international courts.
"The Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative opened doors to crucial partnerships, including with Suffolk Law's LIT Lab team," Piñango said. "Learning how legal technology can strengthen our practice will help us serve both our clients and our community more effectively. I'm grateful for these connections as we work to advance the rule of law."