Lawyers say board certification validates expertise and builds trust
In 2023, Nishi Kothari decided to become board-certified in insurance law.
Meeting the requirements, which were established by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, was no small feat. Among them, Kothari needed to show she had practiced for at least five years and had at least three years of experience in insurance law, with at least 30% of her time devoted to insurance law matters. She also had to provide five peer references, complete 60 hours of approved CLE in insurance law and pass a six-hour exam.
“It is a high bar, and I thought, well, if I’m able to achieve that bar, then folks who hire me would know that I bring legitimacy to my practice,” says Kothari, a partner at Brasher Law Firm in Houston.
Texas is among several states that offer board certification in insurance law and other legal specialty areas.
The ABA, through its Standing Committee on Specialization, accredits the process by which several national private organizations also board-certify lawyers.
According to the ABA committee’s data, as of 2025, about 3,500 lawyers were certified through eight national private organizations, which have 19 different specialty programs. This includes consumer bankruptcy, privacy law and civil practice advocacy.
An additional 22,500 lawyers were certified through state programs in 2025.
Lawyers who are board-certified say it carries several professional benefits, including enhancing their reputation and making them a more attractive option for clients.
“We want people to have trust in their lawyers, and, candidly, the people who seek specialization, they are some of the best of the best,” says Heather Rosing, a founding partner of Rosing Pott & Strohbehn in San Diego and a past member of the ABA Standing Committee on Specialization.
“They care deeply about their craft, and the level of competency and client attention that comes from them is extraordinary,” adds Rosing, who became a certified specialist in legal malpractice law through the California Board of Legal Specialization.
Kothari says that while she was studying for the certification exam, she learned even more about insurance law, which she describes as a wide area of practice.
Because she expanded her knowledge base, she says she also expanded the types of clients and cases she can handle.
Many of her clients, who are homeowners or business owners, search the internet to find an attorney when they’re dealing with insurance claims, Kothari adds.
When they see on her bio that she is board-certified, it often catches their attention.
“It’s a small percentage of the people that practice in this area that are board-certified and an even smaller percentage of plaintiff lawyers that are board-certified,” Kothari says. “So when clients see that, it means something.”
Privileges of certification
Board certification offers objective criteria that “cuts through the noise” when clients are looking for representation, says Brian Oten, the immediate past chair of the ABA Standing Committee on Specialization. He serves as associate director and chief ethics counsel at the North Carolina State Bar as well as executive director of its Board of Legal Specialization.
“There are a lot of websites and directories that can be very helpful to consumers, but a lot of times it’s the technological equivalent of just opening the Yellow Pages and picking a name at random,” Oten says. “But they can rely on a lawyer who has objectively demonstrated a significant level of proficiency and experience in a particular practice area.”
Rosing agrees that being certified can help with marketing, and it can bring in more business.
In her experience, lawyers who are certified in certain areas, such as family law and appellate law, are even more prominent. ABA President Barbara Howard has been certified as a specialist in family relations law in Ohio since 1999.
Lawyers who are board-certified may also charge higher rates because of their specialization, Rosing says.
“There are good reasons for that, because specialists have to go through more rigorous educational requirements, training requirements and maintenance requirements,” says Rosing, who is required to be recertified in her field every five years in California. “It all depends on the requirements of your certifying body, but generally, you have to do a lot to get there.”
There’s no question that being board-certified allows lawyers to stay sharp and up-to-date on developments in their practice area, which can set them apart from their peers, Oten says.But in his mind, board certification is primarily a benefit for the public.
“If you’re looking for legal services, you’re already in a tough spot,” Oten says. “The last thing you want to worry about is, ‘Is my lawyer good? Can they handle my case?’ When they get a certified specialist, it eliminates that question.”
The ABA’s involvement in accrediting specialty certification programs at the national level strengthens the validity of the entire process, Rosing adds.
“It’s a known thing in the legal industry, where certain private organizations may offer certain credentials to lawyers, like ‘top trial attorney,’” Rosing says. “But what the ABA does is make sure there’s real substance behind certified specialization.”
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