GJEL Blog » Legal Technology

If I were a lawyer who had been sanctioned for unethical behavior, I’d probably try to avoid attracting attention to myself. But Florida attorney Joe Davis is taking a different approach, and has formally sued Avvo, the social media and information website for lawyers and consumers, for revealing that he had been sanctioned for professional misconduct. Needless to say, Avvo is not backing down since increasing transparency in the legal process is exactly what the pioneering website has set out to do.

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The benefits of the internet are too numerous to count. The web has made information easily searchable, revolutionized the news industry, and boosted access to entertainment. But one of the unintended consequences of the online communities created by the Internet is the nasty remarks hastily employed by public and anonymous bloggers and commenters alike. It turns out that under the law, those comments can be considered more than a nuisance; they can be punishable by law.

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I just sat in on Avvo’s webinar on “Ethical Issues in Online Advertising and Social Media” and wanted to share some thoughts. I’ve recently been fascinated by the intersection of communication and advertising, which has become increasingly interesting with the rise of social media and online marketing. Here on the GJEL blog, for example, we write about developments in distracted driving legislation, teen drivers, and other issues related to consumer safety because we have a deep interest and want a better market for consumers.

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This Saturday night 17-year-old Oakland driver caused an fatal accident while under the influence of alcohol. The driver, whose name has not been released because he is a minor, was arrested on vehicular manslaughter charges for the death of 22-year-old Martin Contreras. He has been busted on DUI charges before, which carries a suspended license penalty of six months for a first-time offender in California. If California had stricter ignition-interlock laws, the accident could have been avoided.

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Generally, I’m not a fan of efforts to reduce distracted driving among teens by scaring the crap out of them. There are all sorts of stats that clearly portray the dangers of distracted driving: last year, it was responsible for nearly 600,000 deaths; it is the number one killer of teenagers; and it’s just as dangerous as driving while drunk. But if teens today are a fraction as stubborn as I was as a teenager, listing statistics to kids won’t have a lasting effect. Instead, consider testing a distracted driving simulator on your teenager and let him or her be the judge.

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Our friends over at Avvo, the social networking site for lawyers and non-lawyers in need of advice, launched a new blog today with the purpose of “exposing the law for non-lawyers in an engaging and informative way, so that people are thinking about, and can understand, the law even when they’re not in legal trouble.”

I’ve made it no secret in the past that I’m a big fan of the services Avvo provides, both for lawyers and non-lawyers. But I’m particularly excited about this new blog, dubbed NakedLaw, because it jives with my goal for the GJEL blog.

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Last week, Avvo, the social media directory of attorney profiles that prospective clients can use to find the right fit, bought itself “a new suit.” Avvo CEO Mark Britton said the change was necessary, just like when he would periodically realize as an associate that it was time for some new clothes. “Maybe styles had changed a bit; maybe it was losing its shape; maybe I slept in it one too many times,” he wrote on the site’s blog. “Whatever the case, I would simply look at my aging suit and think, ‘Time for a new one.’”

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This post is the third in a series of interviews with the professionals who live at the intersection of law, the internet, and social media. Today I’m switching gears and bringing you an interview with someone who is not lawyer, but who nonetheless can give us legal types some great insight into what it takes [...]

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This post is the third in a series of interviews with the professionals who live at the intersection of law, the internet, and social media This week brings with it more interviews of the people who are at the very top of the game when it comes to online presence. Today I bring you an [...]

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This post is the second in a series of interviews with the professionals who live at the intersection of law, the internet, and social media. Today I’m happy to bring you the wisdom of the fabulous Mark Britton, CEO of Avvo. Conrad (whose interview I posted here Monday) was the first person I had contact [...]

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