Law.com blog asks for input on a lawyer ratings system

In response to posts by Mark Beese and myself, Carolyn Elefant of Inside Opinions at Law.com is asking for your opinion as to an online rating system for lawyers that would give consumers the information they need to choose an attorney.

Carolyn worries that a ranking system would disproportionately generate comments from malcontents seeking to vent about a poor result, while clients generally satisfied with their attorneys would have less motivation to weigh in. I disagree.

Why not try it Carolyn? What have we got to lose? Perhaps the worst reputation of any profession out there. Lawyers are always afraid of what could happen as opposed to looking at the world as a glass half full.

Look at hotel reviews. Some have some real ticked off guests venting. But by looking at the 14 or 15 reviews as a whole, I can discount that one. And I would never use a hotel without looking at online reviews.

What makes you think we would not get people who would give of their time to help others by sharing the experience they had with a lawyer? It goes on all over the net every day.