What is an AVVO Rating and how can it help me to choose a Tampa car accident law firm?

AVVO is a relatively new rating system designed and programmed by a private individual/company that is supposed to allow the consumer to compare various types of law firms whether they are Tampa  accident lawyers or attorneys involved in banking transaction matters.  If you want to pull an attorneys  AVVO rating, go to www.AVVO.com. When you get to that website you’ll be asked to type the name of the attorney so that you can find out the attorney’s AVVO rating.  The information that you will receive will include background information about the attorney such as where he went to school, both undergraduate and law school;  how long the attorney’s been practicing law and the attorney’s area of specialty. There may be more information than that available depending upon whether the attorney has been to the AVVO site and provided the website more detailed information.

One of AVVO’s features is its attorney rating system.  Once you put in the attorney’s name and the city where the attorney practices law, AVVO will find that attorney and provide you their AVVO rating.  The rating system assigns the attorney a number one through 10. Based on the assigned number the AVVO  system states whether the attorney, according to their rating system, is poor, very good or excellent.

AVVO’s determination of poor, very good or excellent is based upon three categories.  The first category  listed on the website is experience.  The second category listed on the website has to do with industry recognition. The third has to do with professional conduct.
AVVO rating system is supposedly offers an objective way to measure and compare attorneys to make it easier e for the public to make informed choices about the attorney they wish to hire.  Like many evaluation tools, AVVO can be very helpful used along with other evaluation measures.  When choosing an attorney whether for a Tampa auto accident or medical malpractice claim or for a real estate transaction, it is best to use AVVO along with other evaluation measures.

If the Tampa car accident injury lawyer that you’re about to hire has a poor grade for professional misconduct you’ll want to be made aware of that.   Of course, it could make sense to address the misconduct with the lawyer to find out more information and prevent the mistake of passing judgment too quickly.     Similarly, if the attorney has a poor rating for industry recognition using the AVVO rating system, that might be meaningful or not.  It may be that the attorney did not focus on industry recognition because the lawyer was busy helping his clients achieve their goals or because of the attorney’s extensive work in local charities.  Whether the attorney has a high rating for Industry recognition may have no impact on whether the attorney or the attorney’s law firm will do an outstanding job handling your Tampa auto accident claim.   You may find it helpful to talk with the attorney that you are considering retaining to handle your auto accident, whether that attorney works in Clearwater, St. Petersburg or Tampa, and ask for more information about both the attorney’s industry involvement and charity efforts. 

So what is the best way to evaluate your Tampa injury law firm before making the decision to retain? First, gather the names of all the attorneys that you think you might like to handle your Tampa accident auto claim.  Then create a sheet that will allow you to take notes about each attorney or the Tampa law firm where they work.   Now begin to gather your information that you will eventually use to evaluate and compare the Tampa law firms.  When considering hiring an attorney for representation for a car accident whether in Tampa or St. Petersburg, you might consider relying upon the recommendation of others who have actually used that attorney or law firm.  These people can be some of your best resources for gathering useful information.   Recommendation and referral is probably also one of the best ways to begin to create your list of names of Tampa car accident lawyers.  Although it's always important to “consider the source” of the recommendation, it would be most helpful if you would ask questions of the person about why they feel confident about making the recommendation of that particular Tampa injury car accident lawyer or family law lawyer to you.  Also ask them what they didn’t like and what they would have liked the law firm to do differently.   The more specific and thorough the answers you receive from the referral source the more comfortable you should feel that you're getting really good advice. 

Once you have gathered the names of several Tampa injury law firms that have been recommended to you from people that you trust and have gathered useful information from the referral sources , the next best source of information might be the website's of these personal injury attorneys or their law firms. Websites can give you very useful information as well as an overall impression as to the quality of work that the law firm might be able to provide you.  A website that is designed or functions poorly could be a useful signal as to the Tampa injury law firm's ability to successfully handle your claim.  On the other hand, a website that is easy to navigate and useful could give you insight into the quality of the work that the Tampa injury law firm is capable of.  First impressions after all do count.   The website may also provide information regarding the success law firm has had in court and through settlements.

In addition to referrals and reviewing websites, you might want to also interview the various law firms on your list, especially if you've narrowed them down to just two or three.  Interviews with the injury law firm can give you a sense whether or not that Tampa car accident firm is dedicated to serving your needs.  You may choose to conduct these interviews over the phone or if time permits in person.  In person interviews give you the opportunity to see the office where the Tampa car accident lawyer works and gives you an idea of whether the firm is capable of handling your particular needs.   Also, in person interviews give you the opportunity to meet with other members of the staff.   The old saying that you shouldn’t job a book by its cover doesn’t necessarily apply when your choosing an accident law firm Tampa to represent you.
Along the way, it would be helpful to take the names of the auto accident lawyers that were recommended to you and check them out on www.AVVO.com.  That information could be helpful in narrowing your initial list or perhaps in moving a particular Tampa injury attorney to the top of your list. Just remember that while the AVVO rating system is useful, it should only play a part in your overall final assessment.

Our injury law firm is proud of our AVVO rating.  We believe AVVO is a useful tool to evaluate our firm and also to compare us to others.  But we also believe that there is nothing more important to effectively pursuing a claim for injuries in an auto accident case than the integrity of the law firm. Regardless of the attorneys’ years of experience, the experience of their staff, the investment in technology, industry recognition and professional conduct, if the firm does not operate with integrity each and every day you are not likely to be well served.  There’s an old saying that if you have integrity, nothing else matters.  If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters.  That’s an important saying when it comes to choosing a Tampa car accident law firm.  If you have been involved in an auto accident with serious injuries, please contact us to discuss your rights.