In addition to the evaluations by ACC members, the ACC Value Index enables members to contact the person submitting the evaluation to allow an in-depth conversation about his/her experience with the firm. In short, we are using technology and social media to expedite what our members already do—talk about their law firms. As the AVI develops this will be a very powerful tool.
The ABA did a program entitled “Ranking the Raters/Rating the Rankers: A Forum on Methodologies, Benefits and Value” at the November ABA Law Firm Marketing Strategies Conference. The two hour program is available to view (at no cost) online at the ABA site, www.lawpractice.org/marketingconference.
Prediction: these sites wll proliferate, reduce themselves to the lowest common denominator and become irrelevant, much like the “Best Lawyers in Any Field” volumes which have spread around segments of the profession in recent years.
I particularly disliked Avvo when it first came out, and still do. They essentially swiped the information for my profile from the California Bar website—much of which was out-of-date. They also utilize pop-up ads and banners for firms’ services that compete with mine or that I would never recommend to a client. When the site was first created, they also had no procedure for removing “evaluations” that were malicious. I have requested removal from the site; but since Avvo allegedly takes information available to the public, they claim they are immune from prosecutions and don’t have to. This seems like an appropriate forum for determining if there are any other people who don’t like the fact that their firm is being featured by Avvo without their consent or input.
Any time a so called “rating site” allows fake users to post false comments using an email address they may have created seconds ago… that’s ethically and morally wrong. The real rating system for attorneys to protect and educate consumers should be a federally mandated SCORECARD where every single case an attorney has been involved with during their entire career is listed. And the wins and losses. Just like a baseball card.
#5 - There are some problems with using a “scorecard” for rating attorneys. One, of course, is that many if not most attorneys are not litigators. It would be difficult to rate a business transaction as a “win” or a “loss.” Even for litigators there would be some problems, because most cases are settled. Who would decide, and on what basis, whether a settlement would be rated as a win or a loss? And even wins and losses at trial may not be a good basis for determining whether an attorney has done a good job. A look at the win-loss records of some of the attorneys recognizes as being among the best criminal defense counsel in a given area will show that.
The ACC Value Index collects opinions about law firms used by ACC members; it does not “rank” attorneys or purport to say who is “best” but rather reflects “satisfaction” with the service received. It is intended as a tool for ACC members—nothing more, nothing less.
Fred Krebs said:
In addition to the evaluations by ACC members, the ACC Value Index enables members to contact the person submitting the evaluation to allow an in-depth conversation about his/her experience with the firm. In short, we are using technology and social media to expedite what our members already do—talk about their law firms. As the AVI develops this will be a very powerful tool.
Posted: Feb 01, 2010 10:17 pm CST
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Micah Buchdahl said:
The ABA did a program entitled “Ranking the Raters/Rating the Rankers: A Forum on Methodologies, Benefits and Value” at the November ABA Law Firm Marketing Strategies Conference. The two hour program is available to view (at no cost) online at the ABA site, www.lawpractice.org/marketingconference.
Posted: Feb 02, 2010 01:49 pm CST
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Peter Schwabe said:
Prediction: these sites wll proliferate, reduce themselves to the lowest common denominator and become irrelevant, much like the “Best Lawyers in Any Field” volumes which have spread around segments of the profession in recent years.
Posted: Feb 02, 2010 05:00 pm CST
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BMF said:
I particularly disliked Avvo when it first came out, and still do. They essentially swiped the information for my profile from the California Bar website—much of which was out-of-date. They also utilize pop-up ads and banners for firms’ services that compete with mine or that I would never recommend to a client. When the site was first created, they also had no procedure for removing “evaluations” that were malicious. I have requested removal from the site; but since Avvo allegedly takes information available to the public, they claim they are immune from prosecutions and don’t have to. This seems like an appropriate forum for determining if there are any other people who don’t like the fact that their firm is being featured by Avvo without their consent or input.
Posted: Feb 02, 2010 09:38 pm CST
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Mal Milligan said:
Any time a so called “rating site” allows fake users to post false comments using an email address they may have created seconds ago… that’s ethically and morally wrong. The real rating system for attorneys to protect and educate consumers should be a federally mandated SCORECARD where every single case an attorney has been involved with during their entire career is listed. And the wins and losses. Just like a baseball card.
Posted: Feb 03, 2010 06:39 am CST
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Taikan said:
#5 - There are some problems with using a “scorecard” for rating attorneys. One, of course, is that many if not most attorneys are not litigators. It would be difficult to rate a business transaction as a “win” or a “loss.” Even for litigators there would be some problems, because most cases are settled. Who would decide, and on what basis, whether a settlement would be rated as a win or a loss? And even wins and losses at trial may not be a good basis for determining whether an attorney has done a good job. A look at the win-loss records of some of the attorneys recognizes as being among the best criminal defense counsel in a given area will show that.
Posted: Feb 03, 2010 06:50 pm CST
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Fred Krebs said:
The ACC Value Index collects opinions about law firms used by ACC members; it does not “rank” attorneys or purport to say who is “best” but rather reflects “satisfaction” with the service received. It is intended as a tool for ACC members—nothing more, nothing less.
Posted: Feb 04, 2010 09:05 am CST
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