My Shingle

Bars, Reviewed

The Bars, Reviewed, is a flagship feature of MyShingle.com, one which we launched in December 2002 and have updated periodically through the years. The Bars, Reviewed summarizes all of the benefits that each of the 50 state bars offer to solo and small firms. Updated most recently in February 2009, most the links work but the formatting suffered in transit from the former platform to this one. We’ll address the format issues with our new iteration of updates, scheduled for early 2011. For now, please send us an email if you notice any obvious errors.

States
 LPM       
  Starting-A-FIrm OnLine Guide
 Solo/SmallFirm  Resources   
  Listservs
  Ethics Resources
  IOLTA Guides
  Mentor Program
  Legal Research
  Lawyer Listing & Referral Programs
  Bulletin Board /
Classified
  Other
  Commentary
 Alabama Bar
 Yes  No  Checklists re: new office, office sharing, client screening

Client Keeper Pack
(sample retainer agreements & other forms)
  No  Rules & Opinions  Yes  Pilot Program  Yes,
Casemaker
  Yes,
Referral Service
  Yes  N/A  Free research Client Keeper, LPM and mentor program (if effective) are all useful for solos. 

Adding listservs would boost score.
 Alaska Bar  No  No  None  No  Rules & Opinions
  Yes  No Casemaker  No  Yes   Presumably, small bar, but even so, solo resources are scant.
 Arkansas Bar
  No  No.  Yes  Yes (members only, for each section)
  Yes (opinions)  No  No  Versuslaw (free) and LEXIS (negotiated discounts)
  Find a Lawyer (lets the public search for lawyer by practice area)
  No.  N/A  Great legal research benefits and solo section are pro’s.

But loses points for no easy IOLTA info and lack of LPM advisor
 Arizona Bar  Yes, for members only, plus open section page  No      As a section available to members  Discussion Board  Ethics Opinions  Info on Trust Accounts and IOLTA enrollment  Yes  Fastcase  Find a Lawyer  Career Center  Helpful Forms

 Forms, detailed IOLTA are useful. 
 California Bar  Yes  No  None      Yes (members only, for select sections)  Yes extensive ethics web page with links to rules, ethics opinions and hotline  Yes Lawyer to Lawyer Free Research links Web page with links  No  N/A

Disappointing website for a bar association with over 215,000 members.  Does have a solo/small firm section.
 Colorado Bar
  Yes
  No      Yes  Yes (for select sections)  Rules & Opinions  Not online
  For Family Law section
  Casemaker  Find A Lawyer
(public can find lawyer by practice area)
  No

Networking Events
(scheduled regularly)
Conciliation Panel (service for dealing w/uncivil opposing counsel)
Deadline Calculator (to figure out deadlines)

  G-VG – No LPM or easily accessible IOLTA, but extras like networking events and Conciliation Panel are a bonus for solos.
Connecticut Bar Yes, in seminar form  No  No   Yes, for members Ethics and Guidelines  No  No  Casemaker  Directory and Lawyer Referral  Career Center    
Delaware Bar    
 No     Yes
 Yes None     Opinions & Principles of Professionalism
 No     No     No     Lawyer referral wervice; Solo/Small Firm Section referral list; can order printed legal directory No   Presumably small bar.  Good section pages with some resource links, but not much else. 
 D.C. Bar  Yes  Yes  Yes  No Ethics Opinions  Yes  Yes  No      Directory  Career Services  Free monthly 3 hr. program on starting a firm in DC  Major points lost for no list serve or free legal research.  Good LPM, but website impossible to navigate.
Georgia Bar
 Yes No     No No Rules & Opinions; can also submit ethics question by email
 Yes Yes Casemaker List of approved referral services; Some local bars have referral programs;
Searchable member directory
No     LPM Resource Library will ship many books, videos, etc., for cost of postage
Good.  Breadth of LPM makes up for lack of solo/small firm resources. Search function is easy to use.    
Florida Bar Yes No Yes No Rules & Opinions No For law students only No Referral service & searchable directory No  

Fair. Site navigation is cumbersome.

 
Hawaii Bar Committee exists but not online No    No No No Yes No Casemaker Referral service &  directory No   Fair. Scant resources.
Idaho Bar Section exists but not online No No No.  There is a weekly e-bulletin you can subscribe to. Rules Yes Yes Casemaker Referral service & directory  Yes   Fair.  Job board seems active.
Illinois Bar Yes No Yes Yes (for members only) Rules & Opinions No Yes  Yes Referral service &
directory		 Yes    Fair. No IOLTA info, few LPM resources, good mentor resource. 
Indiana Bar  Yes  Coming soon Yes  No  Opinions & phone counseling  No  Yes  Casemaker  No  Yes    Fair. Decent, but incomplete, collection of LPM resources. 
Iowa Bar  Yes  No  No  Yes Opinions & link to Iowa Judicial Branch resource  No  No  Fastcase Referral service. Directory access for members only.  Yes  2006 “Economics of Law Practice in Iowa” survey results  Fair. Few resources for solos. 
Kansas Bar  Section exists but not online  No No  No  Opinions   No  No  Casemaker Referral service  Yes   N/A Disappointing.
Kentucky Bar  Yes  No No  Yes  Rules & Opnions  Yes  Yes, PDF sign-up form on home page  Casemaker  Referral service &  Directory
  		Yes   N/A Fair.  Few resources for solos, but good collection of court rules and IOLTA resources. 
Louisiana Bar  Yes Yes, a collection of resources  Yes Yes  Rules, opinions & ethics advisory service Yes  Yes, through pro bono for the poor  & disabled Fastcase  Referral service &  Directory No Lending library with some books for solos  Very good. Lots of resources for solos online. 
 Maine Bar  No              No; possibly available via paid membership    No  No      No  No  No  Casemaker  Referral service  No          NA  Membership required for access to any resources
Maryland Bar  Yes  No  Yes, but not many  Yes Yes, Available to Members  No  Yes, only available to members     Fastcase  No referral service, Yes to membership directory  Job Board  N/A  Limited resources for solos; website isn’t very informative despite lots of links.  Requiring payment to access ethics rules is intolerable.
Montana Bar  No  No  No  No Rules and Opinions  No  No  No Under Construction Career Center  NA  Fair.  Needs more online resources
Massachusetts Bar  Yes, but not through Mass Bar.  MA LOMAP  No  No  No, but there are forums; however they are underutilized  Ethics Opinions and Ethics Resources  No  Yes  Yes  Referral Service  Yes  N/A  Decent site, navigation is a little awkward — it tends to hide the otherwise decent amount of material the Bar offers
Michigan Bar Yes  Yes, under “Law Practice” drop down  Not specifically for solos but lots of resources  Many sections have individual listservs Yes, there is quite a bit of ethics info Info on Trust Management under “Financial Mgmt”   No Yes  Referral and Directory No  N/A  This is a VERY informative site.  Lots of resources about practice management
Minnesota Bar No No No  Yes  No  No  No  Fastcase     Referral and Directory  No  MN has a social networking site and CLE Small Firm Success site Best resources are OFF the site – and can’t be located through the site.
Mississippi Bar  Yes  No  Yes, a PDF handbook is available  Yes Ethics Opinions  Yes  No Casemaker Directory  No  Nice “Solo Tool Kit”  Very good site; well laid out and informative
Missouri Bar

  Yes  No Practice Resources  No Ethics Opinions  Yes  Yes  Fastcase Referral and Directory  Yes Offers Solo and Small Firm Conference  Nice site, not much info for members
 Nebraska Bar  Yes, through CLE  No  No  Yes Ethics Opinions  IOLTA FAQ  Yes  Casemaker  Directory Career Center  NA  Fairly basic site
 Nevada Bar  Through CLE  No          No  No     Ethics Opinions
  No  No  No  Attorney Search Directory  Career Center
    
 New Hampshire Bar     Yes, with membership  Possibly, with membership  Possibly with membership  No     Ethics Opinions  No  No  Casemaker Referral and Directory  Classifieds    Membership required for access to most resources
 New Jersey Bar  List other resources  No  No  Forums  No  No  No  No  Referral  Career Center  N/A  scant on ethics, IOLTA and legal research
New Mexico Bar   Yes, Comprehensive  No, but several resources for firms in general  Yes  No Rules, Opinions and Hotline  Yes  No Casemaker Referral and Directory Yes  Need to go to sitemap to get to “Sections” Very Good.  Well laid out, intuitive site
New York Bar   Yes.  No     Yes   Yes, but must join section for a fee Ethics Opinions
and
Professional Standards		  No     Yes, for Young Lawyers Division  Loislaw  Referral Service, service fee, referral fee and proof of ins. required   Partner with lawjobs.com,
membership required		  Solo Blog coming soon  Good information, however site navigation is difficult. Many informative links throughout.
North Carolina Bar    Yes, must join a section.  Yes, CLE Materials  Resource Center
 Yes.          Ethics Committees as part of Sections, but no information.      No Yes, for Law Students Division   Casemaker   Referral Service  and Searchable Directory  Yes  Facebook Page and
LinkedIn Page		  Very difficult site to navigate. Menus are difficult to read in Safari. Need to search for most things.
 North Dakota Bar  No  No.  No  No. Bulletin Board Discussion  Opinions  No  No  Casemaker  Referral Service available by Phone for Fee. Searchable Directory of Lawyers Career Center


  Site is Under Construction.   Site under construction. Some information available, but difficult to find. 
 Ohio Bar
  Yes  No  Yes  Yes  Ethics Division  No  No  Casemaker  Run by Ohio Supreme Court  Career Services
  All information based on site search. Most information locked down without member access  Very little available to the public. Difficult to even determine what is offered by a membership.
 Oklahoma Bar  Links to articles elsewhere  Online link list  No  OBA-NET online community  Ethics Opinions  Yes  No  Fastcase  Find a Lawyer search  No  Client Keeper forms package  Good content, esp. at Management Asst. page
 Oregon Bar      No      No  Yes  No  Ethics Opinion Library  Yes  Yes  Casemaker  Referral Service  Career Center  Meeting rooms for rent  Very difficult to navigate, average information
 Pennsylvania Bar  Yes, with membership      Yes, with membership  Yes, w/ membership  Yes, for members      Available to members  No  No  InCite  Directory for Members only  Placement Services for Members  Information available only with membership  Membership protected
Rhode Island Bar  No  No      No      No      No  Yes  No  Casemaker Referral and
Directory		  No Additional information most likely available with membership  Membership protected
South Carolina Bar  Yes Yes, Starting a New Law Practice multiple resources Yes, Solo and Small Firm Section  Yes, with membership Ethics Opinions  No  Yes     Casemaker  Referral Service

  Career Center    Pretty good resources, but loses points for lack of trust account info.
 South Dakota Bar  No  No  No  Forums  Ethics Opinions upon request  No, but have Trust Account Manual w/ IOLTA info  No  No  Lawyer Referral  No    Presumably small bar, site is limited
Tennessee Bar   LPM and Technology – Must Join
  Yes  Must join section.  Yes, must be a member.  No  No  No  Fast Case Referral Service  No  N/A  Site very difficult to navigate. Not much free information. Appears that you must be a member.
 Texas Bar  No  40 Minute Video  Some, must join.   No.  Ethics Helpline

Thumbnail Guide to Texas Ethics

  Link to other Site.  Ten Minute Video Series  Free with Membership  Yes  Career Center  N. Texas Bar Facebook Page ; Social Networking;  Site; Twitter and Flickr Accounts.  Fair. Could provide more general resources. 
Utah Bar  No  No Solo,Small Firm, Rural Practice Section Yes  Rules and Opinions  No  New Lawyer Training Program  Casemaker  Yes  In Utah Bar Journal Classifieds    Fair.  Could provide more resources for solo and small firms
Vermont Bar  Yes  No No, although they link to other websites with information  Yes Ethics Opinions  Yes Mentoring Program
 Casemaker Referral and Directory  Classifieds    Difficult to navigate and some pages slow to load.
 Virginia Bar  No  Checklist for Opening your First Office  No  No Ethics Opinions  Call for Information  No  No  Referral  Job Postings    
Washington Bar Yes  Yes  Some resources in LOMAP library  Yes        (for select sections) Family Law listserve is actively used.
and Ethics line
  Yes  Yes Casemaker
 Referral service &
 Yes Low cost LPM consulting for small firms available Good.  Strong LPM resources.  Site is well maintained
West Virginia Bar  No      Practice Handbook  No      No  Standards of Professional Conduct  Yes  No      Casemaker  Directory Career Center Young Lawyer’s Section with it’s own website  Adequate
 Wisconsin Bar  Yes  No  Online resource list, WI specific  Yes Ethics Opinions  No  Yes, Mentor Council Program  Fastcase  Lawyer Referral and Information Service  Classified Ads    Mentor program is benefit
 Wyoming Bar  No  NO  No      Yes  Rules and Procedures  Yes, through a link  Yes  Casemaker      Referral and Directory listing for members  Job Bank  Extensive CLE Online Classroom  Small bar, minimal site
American Bar Assoc.  Yes, extensive  Yes  Yes  Yes, multiple for individual sections as well as Discussion Boards Ethics Opinions  Yes  No  Legal Technology Resource Center  Lawyer Locator  Career Counsel  Legally Minded social networking site  Extensive, but minimal in comparison to ABA resources for other sections
 Boston Bar  No  No  No  Yes Ethics Opinions  No  No  No  Referral Service  No  Has a Facebook page  Not strongest city bar representative
 Bar of the City of New York  
  Yes  Yes, most information for members only  Discussion boards  Ethical Responsibilities and Opinions  No  No  NYC Law Library  Legal Referral Service  No    Great solo resources for city bar
 LA County Bar  For members only  No  No  Yes Ethics Opinions  No  No Links to sites for research  Referral through Smartlaw.org Career Resources    Not much available on line




 



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