Shakespeare long ago penned these classic lines about reputation:

Good name in man and woman, dear my lord,
Is the immediate jewel of their souls:
Who steals my purse steals trash; ’tis something, nothing;
‘Twas mine, ’tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him
And makes me poor indeed.

Othello III.iii

These immortal words today carry special meaning for attorneys, no thanks to the recent launch of LawyerRatingz.com, a web site that allows visitors to anonymously (and seemingly indiscriminately) rate and post comments about attorneys.

The web site will undoubtedly leave most lawyers, as it did me, with a nasty taste in their mouths. On the home page a photo depicts three attorneys, all middle-aged white guys in suits, who smirk knowingly into the camera. In the web site’s forum, someone gloats, “For the first time in history, crummy lawyers are going to be held accountable for their misdeeds! I hope you can keep them from closing this site!” (Posted by a sadly misinformed soul who has evidently never heard of disbarment proceedings.)

Meanwhile, the cover of anonymity which the web site gives visitors has resulted in some cases in comments which border on the libelous. Dip in anywhere at random and click on the names of lawyers who have received negative ratings to see what I mean.

Since the raters do not identify themselves, attorneys have no way to shield themselves from or refute false accusations of unethical or illegal conduct. The ratings are there for all the world to see (and search engines to find). Gladys McKie, a lecturer at the Northeastern University School of Journalism, points out in an article in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly today (sorry, no free online version available) that “anyone can rate a lawyer regardless of whether the rater was a client or not. The rater could be a colleague who has an axe to grind, a neighbor who thinks you’re too noisy, or a friend of a disgruntled client.” Exactly.

What is unfortunate, too, is that while a forum like this may have limited usefulness for allowing dissatisfied clients to let off some steam, it does nothing constructive to address genuine issues that can and do arise between attorneys and their clients. Nor does the web site offer links to bar associations and boards of bar overseers where clients may far more productively address concerns about an attorney’s professionalism.

ADR professionals should take note of this as well. Although LawyerRatingz.com lists only 1,151 attorneys as of today, it is entirely possible that mediators and arbitrators may be counted among them. And, as ADR gains in popularity and public acceptance, it’s only a matter of time before someone thinks to launch MediatorRatingz.com–unless someone has gotten there already.

The Wall Street Journal on its CareerJournal.com web site reports on the results of its recent survey “2006 Best Careers“.

CareerJournal.com lists 14 attributes that make a career choice an excellent one:

• Advancement
• Autonomy
• Contribution to Society
• Creativity
• Customer Contact
• Friendly Co-workers
• Impressive to Others
• Income
• Intellectual Stimulation
• Job Security
• Lower Stress
• Predictable Hours
• Work-Life Balance
• Benefits

Although mediation doesn’t seem to have made CareerJournal.com’s list of most satisfying careers, mediation does meet many of these criteria. Plenty of intellectual stimulation, low stress, no indentured servitude to the Almighty Billable Hour, with lots of emphasis on contribution to society and work/life balance. (The only areas that a mediation career may come up short in are income and job security, which can prove illusive although not unobtainable. One of the jokes that mediators like to tell mediation trainees illustrates this all too well: What’s the difference between a mediator and a large cheese pizza? The pizza can feed a family of four.)

This special feature of CareerJournal.com comes with advice for anyone contemplating a career change. Articles to consider include “How to Switch Careers in Midlife” and “Five Almost Painless Ways To Make a Career Change“, which recommend one step in particular that make especially good sense for anyone who wants to transition to mediation from another career: Start a parallel career. (I would not recommend Step No. 5: Go cold turkey. Quitting your day job is rarely a wise move.)

For my thoughts on mediation training and careers, please read “How to become a mediator: five frequently asked questions about training and careers in mediation“.

For a list of blogs (good resources since they offer regularly updated content) that focus specifically on marketing for mediators, visit the World Directory of Alternative Dispute Resolution Blogs.

(Via the excellent George’s Employment Blawg.)

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