Litigation

On the Voices of The Law, a Legal Broadcast Network channel that is clearly promoted to be lawyers giving voice to other lawyers, why is it that the majority of its members are insurance agents and company representatives holding their firms out to be law firms and a factoring company?

For example,  factoring broker Rhonda Bentzen joined what appears from the title to be a lawyer only group in June 2008.  In response to the questions:

• "What is your law firm name?" Bentzen replied "Bentzen Funding Solutions"
• "What area of law do you specialize in?" she replied " Structured for 18 years". I didn't know "structured" was a legal specialty.
• Bentzen and others mischaracterize a group of insurance agents, the Society of Settlement Planners, as an association of lawyers (a "state or national legal association")

Aside from the title "Voices of The Law: lawyers giving voice to other lawyers", the next clue is for when you are asked "what is your law firm name?"!!!!!

Several structured settlement annuity brokerages are held out to be a law firm in their profiles, one whose members purportedly specialize in "dock work operations", "wealth mgmt and Estate Planning". Two insurance companies are also labeled "law firms".

Comments

1. A social networking website suffers credibility erosion when what is advertised is not what it is.
2. I am a fan of the Legal Broadcast Network. If I was a lawyer however, why would I join a social network on LBN that will force me to be descended upon by salespeople? What membership filters are going to be put in place to make the network more valuable and incent people to join.
3. I am embarrassed for the structured settlement industry that some of its members chose to participate on Voices of Law even though it is clearly for lawyers and many are NOT lawyers.
4. I am embarrassed for the structured settlement/settlement planning industry that, after choosing to engage in Voices of the Law, even though it is clearly for lawyers, some of its members chose to put their best "foot in mouth" forward by including profiles with sophomoric descriptions such as "dock work operations". How about showing some class?
5. A blog costs less than $50 per year to operate and a little time. In some cases there is no cost. What effort are the majority of these individuals making to create new content and to educate the public in a more legitimate manner?