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Site Makes It So Easy to Sue
Michael Arrington at TechCrunch calls it a "Shangri-La for ambulance chasers." Peter Lattman at The Wall Street Journal's Law Blog describes it as a "reverse Martindale Hubbell -- it's a client directory for lawyers." David Lat at Above the Law says it is "like Match.com for lawyers and litigants." Kevin O'Keefe at Real Lawyers Have Blogs views it as "crazies running free of asylums." Luke Gilman at The Blawgraphy labels it "a hairball generator." Eric Turkewitz at New York Personal Injury Law Blog says it might be "the worst lawyer idea ever."
The object of these bloggers' comments is SueEasy.com, a new Web site whose own description of itself is "instant legal bliss." The idea behind the site is to "simplify the lawsuit process" by helping consumers find "the best in legal help with the least amount of hassles." Potential litigants use the site to post their grievances and complaints and then wait for responses to roll in from attorneys competing to represent them. The site also allows users to search for lawsuits and class actions -- real or envisioned -- and join in with other litigants.
The site had been slated to launch in the fall, as TechCrunch reported in October, but it officially went live only recently. When TechCrunch asked the reason for the delay, the company responded that "it took us a while to come up with a complete Class Action case repository where affected people can ... be in touch with Class Action lawyers in real time."
Overlawyered blogger Walter Olson, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute Center for Legal Policy, told LegalNewsline.com, that consumers should be concerned about the site's quality control. "If this were a dating service," Olson said, "you'd have to wonder -- whichever side of the dating you were on -- what kind of dunce are they going to bring me?" Eric Turkewitz is even more blunt in stating his concern: "This one has the potential for some serious damage in a unique way to both client and attorney in personal injury cases."
Posted by Robert J. Ambrogi on April 18, 2008 at 01:05 PM | Permalink
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