A New Search Engine to Find Attorneys On The Internet

There is a new attorney-search resource available on the Internet. Avvo launched yesterday and like FindLaw and LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell, it offers users search tools to find lawyers in different categories and in different locales.

According to Avvo CEO Mark Britton, there is still room on the internet for Avvo’s services because there still isn’t an online service that provides sufficient ratings, reviews, search tools and processes that will “hold consumers' hands through the process of researching and choosing the right lawyer.”

Avvo has developed a three step process to guide users through the task of choosing an attorney and has its own unique ranking system for individual lawyers. To formulate its rankings, Avvo has created an equation that brings in ratings from users, other lawyers and publicly available databases such as state bar associations. Right now, Avvo contains records from ten states currently, and in about 110 practice areas. The attorney rankings are based on experience, education, or any slaps on the wrist they may have received while practicing.

Furthermore, Mr. Britton claims that his database includes the disciplinary history for every lawyer for ever state Avvo covers and eventually will have disciplinary history for for every lawyer in the country. Another interesting feature of this database is that lawyers are allowed to go in and add information about themselves to bolster their listing and also feed into the rating they get. Lawyers will be able to do this on Avvo by registering with a credit card, vouching for their own identity and then populating their profiles with anything they think will lend credence, trustworthiness, or marketing benefit to their profiles.

Source: Search Engine Watch

Ask.com Releases Ask3D

Ask.com®, has released Ask3D, a redesigned version of Ask.com. According to the company's press release, "Ask3D includes powerful new search technology, an innovative three-panel design, and unique new features that give people what they need, faster. With the new version of Ask.com, people get the most relevant and customized information they need from the best range of content available, including videos and music clips, and makes it all immediately accessible on one page. Ask3D replaces the previous version of Ask.com and is now available at www.ask.com." Check it out.

Source: beSpacific

7th Circuit Wiki

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has created a wiki for court business. Anyone wanting to edit pages needs to supply their real name and confirm their email address. Their wiki provides a link to the Practitioner's Handbook and a detailed discussion of the appealability of a decision. There isn't a great deal of information available at this time but it should be interesting to watch how this develops and whether other courts will follow the 7th Circuit's lead. Check it out.

LLRX All New

Law Library Resources Exchange has updated its website. The best of the old site, like the Court Rules Forms and Dockets database remains the same but the new site is now part of an open source content management system, Drupal, providing enhanced layout, navigation and usability. The new LLRX also provides more options for accessing many of the source materials that are hallmarks of the site. This is accomplished via drop down menus that appear on the top navigation bar, topical navigation choices that consistently appear on the far right hand side of each page, and by employing the new Google Custom Search so that readers may query for content on LLRX and beSpacific (the author, Sabrina Pacifici's blog on law and technology news), or for results from the legal web. Also, a "printer friendly" option has been added to make it easier to read articles once you have printed them.

Authors may submit an article directly to Ms. Pacifici at time.

Source: beSpacific

Climate Change in the Northwest Atlantic

The Center for Law and Innovation wrapped up its conference Climate Change In The Northwest Atlantic this weekend. The purpose of this conference was to discuss how climate change affects living resources and fisheries governance in the Northwest Atlantic. The attendees were scientists, economists, policymakers, and journalists who discussed the challenges of public communication and public policy in the face of scientific uncertainty and unpredictable change.

If you want to know more about the proceedings, the conference blog is online at http://lawandinnovation.blogspot.com/.

Lecture by Harvard Professor Lucie White

On Wednesday April 11, the University of Maine School of Law will host a lecture by Harvard Professor Lucie White, entitled "Hewing Stones of Hope: African Lawyers Reclaim Human Rights To Challenge Global Poverty." This lecture will take place at 4:00pm in the Middle Classroom at the University of Maine School of Law.

This lecture will explore the new African human rights movement, highlighting how it is creating a new paradigm of human rights theory and practice, one that has far reaching implications for social justice advocacy across the globe.

If you have any questions about this event, please contact Jenna Adley in the Dean's Office.

2007 MAPIL Auction

The Maine Association of Public Interest Law (MAPIL) will hold its annual auction on Thursday April 5, from 5:00pm to 8:00pm at the Abromson Center on the Portland Campus of the University of Southern Maine. There will be both a silent auction as well as a live auction.The proceeds of the auction will fund summer fellowships enabling law students to do important public interest legal work in the community. If you would like to make a donation or if you have any questions, you can contact MAPIL at 207-780-4385. Hope to see you there!

Law School Rankings Are Out--Where is Maine Law

The US New & World Report rankings of law schools is out. The complete list can be found at http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/law/lawindex_brief.php. Check out where UMaine is!