advocate-case-info-system

Advocate Case Information System

A simple, responsive Case Information System for Advocates built with Python, Flask, and SQLite.

Features

• Dashboard: View upcoming hearings (next 7 days) and case statistics.
• Client Management: Create, edit, and list clients.
• Case Management: Track case details, status, next hearing dates, and notes.
• Authentication: Secure login/logout for advocates.
• Responsive UI: Built with Bootstrap 5.

Tech Stack

• Python 3
• Flask
• Flask-SQLAlchemy (ORM)
• Flask-Login
• Flask-WTF
• SQLite
• Bootstrap 5

Setup Instructions

1. Clone the repository

2. Create a virtual environment

   python3 -m venv venv
   source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows use `venv\Scripts\activate`
   

3. Install dependencies

   pip install -r requirements.txt
   

4. Initialize the database

   First, set the FLASK_APP environment variable:

   export FLASK_APP=run.py
   

   Then initialize the migration repository and apply migrations (or create db directly):

   flask db init
   flask db migrate -m "Initial migration."
   flask db upgrade
   

   Alternatively, you can open a python shell and create the database:

   python3
   >>> from app import create_app, db
   >>> app = create_app()
   >>> with app.app_context():
   ...     db.create_all()
   ...     # Create a test user
   ...     from app.models import User
   ...     u = User(name='Advocate', email='admin@example.com')
   ...     u.set_password('password')
   ...     db.session.add(u)
   ...     db.session.commit()
   ...
   >>> exit()
   

5. Run the application

   flask run
   

   The application will be available at http://127.0.0.1:5000/.

6. Login

   Use the credentials you created in step 4 (e.g., admin@example.com / password).

SMS Reminders

The system uses Twilio to send SMS reminders to clients one day before their hearing.

1. Configure Twilio

   Set the following environment variables:

   export TWILIO_SID="your_account_sid"
   export TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN="your_auth_token"
   export TWILIO_FROM_NUMBER="your_twilio_phone_number"
   export ADVOCATE_PHONE="your_mobile_number"
   

   Add these to your .env file or export them in your shell.

2. Run the Reminder Job

   To check for hearings tomorrow and send SMS reminders to the advocate, run:

   flask send_reminders
   

   Setting up Cron Job

   To run this automatically every day at 8 AM:

   0 8 * * * cd /path/to/advocate-case-info-system && source venv/bin/activate && flask send_reminders
   

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