New Survey Finds that Majority of Lawyers Use Ratings But Desire More Comprehensive Information to Evaluate Counsel

Results Reflect Lawyers` Demand for Detail, Credibility and Scale of Resources
to Evaluate Lawyers and Law Firms Online
NEW YORK--(Business Wire)--
A national survey of corporate counsel and private practice attorneys revealed
that lawyers are heavy users of review and ratings resources, but would like to
see these information services to be more comprehensive and trustworthy.
Eighty-seven percent of respondents use review and ratings Web sites for
personal and professional reasons, and that 86 percent of lawyers surveyed have
been active on review and ratings Web sites. The results also revealed that more
than 70 percent of lawyers believe a combination of both numerical scores and
narrative feedback offers the most valuable type of evaluation from review and
ratings Web sites.

The 2009 Online Ratings Survey was commissioned by LexisNexis®
Martindale-Hubbell®, a leading global provider of ratings services for the legal
community. The survey is the first of its kind to examine the general use,
attitudes towards, and experience in using review and ratings sites among the
legal community.

"The survey showed that lawyers using online ratings are looking for more,
particularly within their own profession: They want a comprehensive, centralized
and reliable ratings resource that they can trust," said Alfredo Sciascia, a
vice president with LexisNexis. "As we continue to enhance our
Martindale-Hubbell ratings offering, our focus is on addressing the needs of
today`s legal community by providing the right combination of objective
numerical scores, narrative commentary, and comprehensive profiles of lawyers
and law firms."

Patterns of Usage Among Lawyers
Of the various professional and personal ratings Web sites in the market today -
from travel and legal to food service and local interest - corporate counsel and
private practice attorneys are heavy users of review and ratings resources:

* 87 percent of lawyers surveyed use review and ratings Web sites for a variety
of personal and professional reasons including: legal needs, travel/tourism,
local interest/activities, food service/restaurant, trade and medical needs.
* When engaging in activity on legal review and ratings Web sites, 67 percent of
lawyers surveyed have reviewed another lawyer`s score or evaluation and 62
percent have provided feedback.

Corporate counsel and private practice attorneys alike see some advantages to
using review and ratings Web sites, from customer testimonials to easy access of
information. For all lawyers surveyed, the top three advantages of review and
ratings Web sites are:

* Allowing customers to share their own experiences (79 percent)
* Giving viewers access to customer testimonials (77 percent)
* Showing customers` ratings/scores (75 percent)

Meeting the Needs of Corporate Counsel and Private Practice Attorneys
Although usage of review and rating Web sites is high among lawyers, according
to the survey, half of all lawyers said that current ratings and review
resources are only moderately useful for informing legal-related purchasing
decisions - signaling a need for improvement. Lawyers also revealed their
concerns over the validity and trustworthiness of current Web sites that offer
reviews and ratings of lawyers and law firms:

* 90 percent of lawyers believe current resources available to help evaluate
lawyers are not comprehensive enough, provide incomplete information, and are
not specific enough or objective enough.
* 60 percent of lawyers believe ratings and review Web sites can be easily
biased, with another 50 percent feeling it is too easy to post "fake" reviews.
* 40 percent of lawyers claimed they cannot always trust the available
information on the record of law firms and lawyers.
* 61 percent of lawyers find that ratings given by independent third-parties are
the most trustworthy.

According to the survey, lawyers are looking for a comprehensive resource to
evaluate lawyers and law firms:

* Over 70 percent of lawyers say that the most important factors when searching
for information on lawyers and law firms are that the ratings resource be
centralized, credible, and cost effective.
* Almost half of corporate counsel worry that they do not have a 360 degree view
of lawyers and law firms when trying to evaluate them.
* 56 percent of corporate counsel and 41 percent of private practice attorneys
say they want an online resource where they can access lawyers` professional
credentials, client and peer assessments all in one central location.

Solutions for Lawyers
While lawyers are significant users of ratings and review Web sites, less than
one-third of lawyers surveyed are highly satisfied with current resources
available to help evaluate lawyers and law firms.

"The results of the survey suggest that with the right combination of
qualitative and quantitative content, ratings Web sites could be an even more
powerful tool for lawyers, especially in today`s economy," said Sciascia.

About the 2009 Ratings Survey
The 2009 Online Ratings Survey was commissioned by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
and conducted by Lightspeed Research, an independent research firm. The survey
of 361 legal professionals was conducted online in April of 2009. Findings are
available online at:
http://www.martindale.com/xp/legal/News_Events/Research_Findings/research_findings.xml.

About LexisNexis
LexisNexis (www.lexisnexis.com) is a leading global provider of content-enabled
workflow solutions designed specifically for professionals in the legal, risk
management, corporate, government, law enforcement, accounting and academic
markets. LexisNexis originally pioneered online information with its Lexis and
Nexis services. A member of Reed Elsevier (NYSE: ENL)(NYSE: RUK)
(www.reedelsevier.com), LexisNexis serves customers in more than 100 countries
with 18,000 employees worldwide.

LexisNexis
John Michaels, 202-857-9121
john.michaels@lexisnexis.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009