| How
Do I Choose My Lawyer?
Choosing
your lawyer can be one of the most important decisions your
family may make. When a friend or loved one is seriously injured,
the choice of an attorney could very well mean the difference
between recovery or failure. However, a surprising number of
Americans do not have the information required for this critical
choice.
Many people ask a friend or family member for recommendations
when they are seeking an attorney. Although this can be a
valuable source to begin the process, it should not be the
end of the process. Just because a lawyer is great in one
particular field does not mean that he has the required expertise
in all areas of the law. If the friend or family member's
experience with that lawyer was not in the same area of the
law concerning your case, beware!
Moreover, the law, like medicine, is broken down into many
sub-areas or specialties. Even local lawyers do not always
know who the top lawyers are in each specialty in the community.
If you know an attorney, get him to ask around about lawyers
in the particular specialty, which you seek.
One of the best ways to objectively determine the legal ability
and ethical rating of a lawyer is to review his "Martindale
Hubbel" rating. Martindale Hubbel is a worldwide objective
legal rating service. Martindale Hubbel determines a lawyer's
legal ability and ethical standards by seeking detailed information
from members of the same legal community in which the lawyer
practices.
Judges, lawyers and other members of the legal community
are sent information on various lawyers in the community.
The lawyers who are being rated do not even know that they
are being rated or by whom. In fact, there is no set time
frame to have a lawyer's legal rating determined. Thus, a
lawyer may not even get a legal rating for a number of years
after he begins his practice. Thus, the system cannot be manipulated.
Martindale Hubbel provides three ratings for lawyers, CV,
BV and AV. The V part of the rating is the ethical rating
and a lawyer will not receive any rating unless he gets a
V. The C, B or A rating relates to the lawyer's legal ability.
Thus, a CV means the lawyer is good to high in legal ability,
BV means the lawyer is high to very high in legal ability
and AV means the lawyer is very high to preeminent. AV is
the highest rating a lawyer can achieve.
The Bar Registry is an organization comprised of only AV
rated law firms and is divided by specialty. This is a valuable
tool to make sure the AV rated lawyer you choose is AV in
the particular specialty, which you seek.
Another organization which objectively ranks lawyers is the
International Society of Primerus Lawyers, (Primerus). Primerus
starts with only lawyers who have achieved an AV rating. Then,
they conduct an extensive screening of the lawyer, including
a check to see if the lawyer has ever been sued for malpractice,
a check to see if a complaint has ever been filed against
the lawyer with the local Bar Association, a site visit to
the lawyer's offices and extensive ratings from local judges,
lawyers who have worked with and against the lawyer and the
lawyer's clients. Those individuals are then asked to provide
"blind" references to others who know the lawyer.
Thus, the system cannot be manipulated.
Primerus also requires that the lawyer engage in double the
amount of continuing legal education each year than the amount
the bar association requires. It also requires the lawyer
to adhere to six pillars for integrity, excellence of work
product, reasonable fees, continuing education, civility and
community service. Approximately 2% of the nation's attorneys
display the Primerus Seal of Approval. |
