The New York State Attorney General’s office and legal directory/lawyer rating service Avvo came to an agreement last month that Avvo will make its lawyer ratings more transparent. The agreement came after the Attorney General’s office conducted an investigation.

Lawyers have long complained that the algorithms behind the ratings Avvo gives to lawyers on its site were a secret, and lawyers could only guess what to include on their Avvo profile to improve their Avvo rating. Lawyers who chose not to participate on the site or “claim” their Avvo profiles were disturbed by the fact that they were assigned an Avvo rating even if they did not wish to participate on the site. 

If a lawyer decided not to claim their Avvo profile, the information available about the lawyer on the site, including the Avvo ranking and disciplinary information, would be compiled based on publicly available information from sources not disclosed on the site. The site also did not advise users how often the information contained on the site was updated.

In addition to its lawyer directory, ratings and reviews, Avvo also provides legal information through legal guides and articles on the site and makes legal forms available to the public. But before the AG investigation, little information was available about the origin of the forms that had been uploaded.

As a result of the Attorney General’s investigation, Avvo has agreed to pay a $50,000 fine and to make some changes to the site.

Now, in order to be included on the Avvo site, all legal forms must be reviewed by a lawyer admitted to practice in New York with relevant experience in the area of practice the form is used for.

 Avvo agreed to provide more information to both consumers and lawyers about how their ratings are established, to include a notification that lawyers who “claim” their Avvo profiles and enter additional information receive higher rankings on the site, and they will no longer describe their ratings as “unbiased.”

Avvo also agreed to advise users that Avvo does not produce the lawyer’s profile and rating based on all relevant data that could be compiled about the lawyer. Lawyers who do not participate in the site will no longer be issued an Avvo rating.

The Avvo site includes a page entitled, “What is the Avvo Rating” which, as of today’s date, states in part,

Avvo does not provide a numerical rating for profiles that have not been claimed by that attorney.

Attorneys always have the opportunity to add information to their profiles, and those attorneys who claim their profiles and provide Avvo with more information tend to have a higher rating than those who do not.

Keep in mind that these ratings speak to a lawyer’s background, but do not evaluate their knowledge of the law, past performance on individual cases, personality, or communication skills. These are elements that the Avvo Rating cannot evaluate, but can be better described in the client reviews and peer endorsements found on an attorney’s profile.

In addition, following the investigation, lawyers in New York will not have to first “claim” their Avvo profile and agree to Avvo’s terms of service before they can change incorrect information listed on their Avvo profiles. The site lists contact information for lawyers to use to make the necessary changes.

Since I am not currently practicing law, I have not claimed my Avvo profile. I noticed that the site had me listed as a “construction and development” lawyer, which would not even have been accurate when I was practicing law. I used the listed email address to contact Avvo to have them remove the incorrect practice area, and I received an email response within a very short period of time.

I recommend that all NY lawyers review their Avvo profiles and to make changes to ensure that the most accurate information is available on the site, even if you do not want to participate or actively use the site to attract clients.