by David Chapman
Staff Writer
Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg all have profiles, but aren’t ranked. Clarence Darrow’s profile notes it’s been 120 years since he was first licensed to practice law in Illinois, but he’s not ranked, either. And even Abraham Lincoln has a mug shot, but no rank.
As of April 2, all lawyers in the state of Florida joined those famous legal faces on Avvo.com, a site that offers ratings and reviews of lawyers intended to assist consumers in choosing legal representation. Currently, the site lists Jacksonville as having 2,956 lawyer profiles to view, including deceased attorneys still in public records of The Florida Bar and the courts. Deceased lawyers cannot be rated.
The profiles include the attorneys, their practice areas, work experience, industry recognition and disciplinary sanctions, all available to the viewing public. Client and peer reviews are also a part of the profile, and attorneys themselves can log on and “claim” their profiles to update with their own information or to endorse other lawyers.
“Consumers are increasingly using the Internet and its new user-friendly technologies to research their legal situations,” said Seattle-based Avvo CEO and 16-year attorney Mark Britton in a release. “In particular, which lawyer to hire – and this trend is quickly impacting the legal marketplace.”
According to the site, the ratings are calculated using a mathematical model based on the aforementioned qualities in lawyers’ profiles.
But can a mathematical model correctly rate a lawyer’s effectiveness in court?
“It does not,” said Florida Bar Association President Frank Angones. “How can you quantify reputation and other traits?”
While Angones believes displaying lawyers’ information to consumers is generally a good thing, he said anyone can currently view pertinent information on the Florida Bar’s Web site.
Florida Bar officials have been aware of Avvo.com since its opening in June 2007 and in anticipation of its expansion into Florida have taken precautions. As reported in a March Florida Bar News story, the Bar’s Standing Committee on Advertising voted that Florida lawyers may not use the Avvo rating in advertisements because of the uncertainty over how ratings are generated. The article further details potential Florida Bar violations by lawyers who take part in certain aspects of the site.
Jacksonville Bar Association officials agreed with Angones, but some could see the promise in such a site. But, the negatives ultimately outweigh the potential.
“In a pure ideal, it would work and have the goal of helping people choose a lawyer,” said Jacksonville Bar Association President Caroline Emery. “But it has too much potential for problems with inaccurate ratings. Personally, as a lawyer, I’m against it.”
Another Jacksonville lawyer was surprised by some of the ratings he saw of other area lawyers, noting that through his personal experience, he disagreed with some of the already presented ratings.
“At first glance, anything not based on just advertising would probably be a good step if it’s objective,” said David Gogan, chair of the personal injury litigation section of the JBA. “But after seeing the site, the ratings are inconsistent. Some are much too low and some are higher than they should be.”
When the site was first launched, the ratings caused a stir among several lawyers in Seattle, who filed a class-action lawsuit against Avvo for what they considered inaccurate rankings. However, the suit was quickly thrown out due to Avvo’s First Amendment rights.
Angones recommended consumers should treat choosing a lawyer like they would a doctor, engineer or anyone else who serves in a professional capacity — do your homework and ask current and former clients personally. By basing a decision solely on a changing medium like a Web site, he said, its no better than just following advertisements.
While currently out-of-play when it comes to advertising for the Florida Bar, Angones welcomes the Florida Bar working with Avvo.com and any other similar business to create more consistent “rankings”. But he warns that as with any new enterprise, there must be a wait-and-see approach to fully judge results.
One lawyer didn’t need any time in judging the sites credentials, though, and was adamant in his disdain for the site.
“It’s B.S.,” said defense attorney Bill Sheppard of Sheppard White & Thomas.