LegalMatch

LegalMatch
Type of site
Legal Services
FoundedNovember 1999; 25 years ago (1999-11)
HeadquartersReno, Nevada,
U.S.
Founder(s)Anna Ostrovsky
Dmitri Shubov
Key peopleAnna Ostrovsky (COO)
Matt Griffith (CEO)
IndustryInternet

LegalMatch is a private company headquartered in Reno, Nevada in the United States.[1] It operates an online legal matching service where people submit a legal case and get responses including ratings and quotes from lawyers interested in their case. The service is free to use for those posting a case, while lawyers contract with LegalMatch to gain access to the leads generated. In addition to its headquarters, LegalMatch has offices in Las Vegas, Nevada and Austin, Texas. [2]

History

The company was founded in 1999 by Anna Ostrovsky[3] and Dmitri Shubov. LegalMatch started its online service in 2000 in San Francisco, California.[1] The service grew quickly, with website traffic increasing 300% in the first year after launch.[4] In 2013, LegalMatch expanded its operations to include a facility in Reno, Nevada.

Services

Applicants are asked to complete a form describing their legal case on the LegalMatch website.[1] LegalMatch then provides that information to attorneys that have both paid for registration with LegalMatch and match the specialization needed.[1][5] The number of attorneys in each practice area within a specific geography are capped.[4] After hiring an attorney, the client can write a review that will be posted to the lawyer's profile.[5] In addition to providing free legal matching services to clients, LegalMatch provides informational content via an Online Law Library and Law Blog. [6]

Ethics rules for lawyers

A California appeals court determined that any attorney lead provider "directing a potential client to an attorney," including LegalMatch, was a lawyer referral service for the purposes of ethics rules for lawyers.[1] LegalMatch California, a LegalMatch subsidiary, became officially certified as a California State Bar Certified Referral Service in September 2020 and is listed on the State Bar of California's website as an accredited lawyer referral service in all 58 California counties.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Cathy Tran Moses, Jackson v. Legalmatch.com: An Examination of Online Lead Generation Servs. for Attorneys, Orange County Law., April 2020, at 57, 58 (2020)
  2. ^ "All LegalMatch Office Locations". Glassdoor.
  3. ^ a b ITNewsOnline.com, LegalMatch California Successfully Assists Client Referrals from The State Bar of California, March 5, 2021
  4. ^ a b Mary Katherine Danna, Putting Your Firm on the Web, 93 Ill. B.J. 572 (2005)
  5. ^ a b Steve Seidenberg, Arranged Rainmaking Web-Based Firm Offers an Easy but Pricey Way for Lawyers to Hook Up with Clients, A.B.A.J., January 2004, at 21 (2004).
  6. ^ "Local Business LegalMatch Creates Blog for Member Attorneys". South San Francisco, CA Patch. 12 September 2014.