LegalConnect

LegalConnect is a Java EE web application that connects clients and lawyers with case management, chat, notifications, admin moderation, and AI-assisted legal support.

Highlights

• Multi-role authentication (client, lawyer, admin)
• Client workflows: register, upload cases, track progress, review lawyers, submit complaints
• Lawyer workflows: discover pending cases, accept/manage active cases, update status/timeline
• Shared chat per case with optional file attachments
• Notification center with read/unread tracking
• Admin panel for lawyer verification, complaints handling, and audit logs
• AI support endpoint with provider mode + built-in fallback responses

Tech Stack

• Java 8
• Java EE Web (Servlet/JSP)
• Apache Ant / NetBeans web project
• MySQL (JDBC: mysql-connector-j-9.1.0)
• Frontend: JSP/HTML/CSS/Vanilla JS

Project Structure

LegalConnent/
  src/java/               # Servlets + utility classes
  web/                    # JSP/HTML views and static assets
    WEB-INF/web.xml       # Servlet declarations + mappings
  nbproject/              # NetBeans project metadata
  build.xml               # Ant build entrypoint

Prerequisites

• JDK 8+
• MySQL 8+
• GlassFish/Payara server compatible with Java EE web apps
• NetBeans (recommended) or Ant CLI

Configuration

1) Database connection

Configure database credentials via environment variables (or JVM system properties):

# Linux/macOS
export LEGALCONNECT_DB_URL="jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/legalconnect_db?useSSL=false&allowPublicKeyRetrieval=true&serverTimezone=UTC"
export LEGALCONNECT_DB_USER="your_db_user"
export LEGALCONNECT_DB_PASSWORD="your_db_password"

# Windows PowerShell (current session)
$env:LEGALCONNECT_DB_URL="jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/legalconnect_db?useSSL=false&allowPublicKeyRetrieval=true&serverTimezone=UTC"
$env:LEGALCONNECT_DB_USER="your_db_user"
$env:LEGALCONNECT_DB_PASSWORD="your_db_password"

DBConnectionUtil now requires these keys:

• LEGALCONNECT_DB_URL
• LEGALCONNECT_DB_USER
• LEGALCONNECT_DB_PASSWORD

Create the database:

CREATE DATABASE legalconnect_db;

Note: Feature tables (case_timeline, notifications, case_messages, lawyer_reviews, complaints, admin_logs) are auto-created at runtime by FeatureSchemaUtil.

2) AI support (optional)

Configure Gemini via environment variables (or JVM system properties):

# Linux/macOS
export GEMINI_API_KEY="your_gemini_api_key"
export GEMINI_MODEL="gemini-2.0-flash"
export GEMINI_ENDPOINT="https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/models"

# Windows PowerShell (current session)
$env:GEMINI_API_KEY="your_gemini_api_key"
$env:GEMINI_MODEL="gemini-2.0-flash"
$env:GEMINI_ENDPOINT="https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/models"

If GEMINI_API_KEY is empty, the app automatically uses a grounded fallback mode.

AI analysis now includes:

• Grounded case summarization (case fields + extractable document text)
• Applicable rule hints from built-in legal knowledge notes
• Case strength and proof-required checklist
• Confidence + insufficient-evidence gate with strict response behavior
• Lawyer recommendation scoring (city, specialization, ratings, experience, similarity)

Running the App

Option A: NetBeans (recommended)

1. Open this folder as a NetBeans project.
2. Configure your application server (GlassFish/Payara).
3. Build and run.
4. Open:
   • http://localhost:8080/LegalConnect/

Option B: Ant build

ant clean
ant

Deploy the generated WAR (typically dist/LegalConnect.war) to your Java EE server.

Core Endpoints (sample)

• Auth: LoginServlet, LogoutServlet, ClientRegisterServlet, LawyerRegisterServlet
• Client: UploadCaseServlet, GetCasesServlet, GetClientCaseTrackerServlet, SubmitReviewServlet, SubmitComplaintServlet
• Lawyer: GetNewCasesServlet, AcceptCaseServlet, GetActiveCasesServlet, UpdateCaseStatusServlet, GetLawyerStatsServlet
• Messaging: GetCaseChatListServlet, GetCaseMessagesServlet, SendCaseMessageServlet
• Admin: GetAdminStatsServlet, GetAdminLawyersServlet, AdminLawyerActionServlet, GetAdminComplaintsServlet, UpdateComplaintStatusServlet, GetAdminLogsServlet
• Shared: GetNotificationsServlet, MarkNotificationsReadServlet, GetCaseTimelineServlet, AiSupportServlet

Full servlet mappings are defined in web/WEB-INF/web.xml.

Current Known Gaps

• Forgot Password link in web/login.html is currently a placeholder.
• Terms/Privacy/Code of Conduct links in registration pages are placeholders.
• Remember me is present in UI but not persisted in backend login logic.

Security Notes

• Do not commit DB passwords or API keys.
• Use environment variables or secret managers for all credentials.
• Add password reset, email verification, and stronger auth controls before production rollout.

License

No license file is currently included in this repository.