American Bar Association’s Legal Information Web Sites Best Practice Guidelines:

The American Bar Association (ABA) has recognized the fact that there is an increasing number of web sites providing legal information. This comes at a time when there are millions of internet-savvy users who seek to obtain free information on-line. The ABA created a task force in order to provide guidelines to ensure the quality of information given on these sites. Users of such sites should be able to make an educated judgment of the quality of information available from these sites. This task force compiled a draft list of 10 best practices that have been entitled “Legal Websites Best Practices”, (click here).

The Name Change Law Center, published by SmartLegalForms, Inc., is committed to complying with the ABA Best Practice Guidelines.  The ABA  recommends that consumers check carefully for compliance with these guidelines and to be wary of web sites that do not comply.

The basic list of these 10 practices is below. For a detailed explanation, visit the ABA website here.

1. Identity – The site should provide full and accurate information on the identity and contact details for the provider.

2. Revision date – The site should conspicuously post the last date the content was revised.

3. Jurisdiction – The site should clearly state the jurisdiction to which any information relates.

4. Disclaimer – The site should provide conspicuous notice that legal information does not constitute legal advice. The site should remind users about the limit of legal information in resolving legal problems.

5. Links – Where appropriate and available, the site should provide links to other quality resources with annotation of the source, content and relevance.

6. Legal citations – Where appropriate and available, the site should provide links to relevant case law and legislation in correct form.

7. Referrals – When appropriate, the site should provide users with information on how and where to obtain legal advice or further information.

8. Permissions – The site should obtain permission for content from other providers.

9. Terms – The site should conform to best practices guidelines in informing site users of the terms and conditions of use.

10. Privacy – The site should clearly state its privacy policy and its policy on security of information.