Guides · Choosing a lawyer
How to check a lawyer is real and in good standing
A five minute check anyone can do, using the free public register every state maintains, and what the results actually mean.
Anyone can check whether a lawyer is licensed, and it takes about five minutes. It is free, it is public, and almost nobody does it.
Where to look
Every state maintains a public register of the attorneys it has admitted. It is usually run by the state bar or by a board that answers to the state supreme court, and it is usually called something like "attorney lookup", "member directory" or "attorney search". Searching for the state's name plus "attorney lookup" will find the official one. Use the state's own site rather than a commercial directory, because commercial listings are often stale and are sometimes advertising.
What to check when you find them
- Status. You want active. Terms like inactive, suspended, resigned or administratively suspended all mean something specific and none of them mean ready to take your case.
- Admission date. Tells you how long they have practised, which is not the same as how good they are, but it is a fact rather than a claim.
- Public discipline. Most registers show whether there is any, and often link the decision. Read it rather than reacting to the word. A twelve year old dispute over trust accounting and a recent finding about client neglect are not the same thing.
- Name matches. Common names produce multiple results. Match on the city or firm as well.
What the register will not tell you
It will not tell you whether they are any good, whether they handle your kind of matter, or whether they return calls. It only tells you they are permitted to practise and whether anything has gone formally wrong. That is a floor, not a recommendation.
How this network handles it
Every member here is checked by a person before being approved, and re-verified each year. We confirm bar standing, that the person is who they say they are, and that they are attached to the firm they name. It is the same check you can run yourself, done before anyone is listed.
General information. A clean register entry is a starting point for your own judgment, not a substitute for it.