Updating the Free Law Project Brand and Saying Goodbye to FLiP
Our clip art mascot has been with us since almost the beginning, but all good things must come to an end. Today we're thrilled to share new branding for Free Law Project, CourtListener, RECAP, and Bots.law.
Originally created by a friend of our founder, we named our mascot "FLiP," gave them "they/them" pronouns, and used them everywhere for over a decade. At this point, FLiP is easily the most successful logo the friend ever made. FLiP, you had a good run, but, let’s be honest, you were never a great logo.
Along with retiring FLiP, we also have new logos for CourtListener, Bots.law, RECAP, and all our other initiatives.
To create new logos and branding, we worked with Primeau-Fahey Studios, who helped create a cohesive set that reflects the goals, mission and values of the organization.
For example, we believe in and embody:
- Lex debet esse aperta (“The law should be open”)
- Transparency of the legal system
- Free and easy access for all citizens to legal information in the public domain
- The best and the most complete data
- Supporting innovation through data and technology
- Competition and innovation
- Non-partisan advocacy
- Having integrity: can’t be bought
- Connection of technology and the legal system
This is a lot of weight for a brand to carry, but our new logos do so through the combination of the scales of justice and a series of computer nodes. In the logo, each line represents one of our flagship products.
We've also taken this moment to organize all of our logos — including historical beta ones — into a new repository, where they can be explored.
Bounty Offered
Our team is working hard to update all the logos that are on our site and across the Internet. It's a bit of an undertaking, and there are surely more out there.
So, starting today, if you can find an old logo in the wild, we will send you stickers as a reward. Just send the details and your mailing address to jenifer@free.law, then watch your mailbox.
FLP Goodies
Finally, we now have a store with swag! Grab yourself a t-shirt, water bottle, or tote bag, and show off your dedication to improving the legal system through technology, data, and advocacy.
We hope these new logos will set the tone for the next decade of enhancing the legal system. We look forward to your thoughts about the new logos, and to reading the many eulogies for FLiP that are surely forthcoming.