Disclaimer

BBB ratings represent the the Better Business Bureau’s (BBB) opinion of how the business is likely to interact with its customers. The BBB rating is based on information BBB is able to obtain about the business. BBB seeks and uses information directly from businesses and from public data sources.

Better Business Bureau accredited businesses must meet the following criteria:

• Must have been a business for at least 6 months
• Have the required bonding and licenses for their jurisdiction
• Have no unresolved customer complaints
• Have no governmental ethics violations
• Fulfill all contracts and promises made through business practices and advertising
• Follow governmental and BBB^® advertising laws and code
• Their website must provide and follow a privacy policy and use secure financial transactions (if applicable)

For more information on BBB^® standards see BBB rating overview .

The American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys is a membership organization and a division of the American Institute of Legal Counsel. Membership is given to attorneys and firms nominated and selected for one of the Top 10 lists. Members must maintain good standing and do outstanding work in their field. To learn more about membership visit aiopia.org.

Howard Lesnik is certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Certified Criminal Trial Attorney.

“A certified attorney is more than just an attorney who specializes in a particular area of law. A New Jersey attorney who is certified by the Supreme Court as a civil trial attorney must have:

• been a member in good standing of the New Jersey bar for over 5 years
• demonstrated a substantial level of experience in civil trial law
• been favorably evaluated by other attorneys and judges familiar with his or her work
• taken and passed a written examination in civil trial law”

Read more about certification requirements in Rule 1:39.

Martindale-Hubbell’s Client Champion awards recognize those attorneys who excel at service as affirmed by their clients. The awards, based on the quantity and quality of an attorney’s Martindale-Hubbell client reviews, demonstrate an ongoing commitment to delivering excellent client service. Award recipients stand out from their peers with a platinum, gold or silver icon. Platinum is the highest rating, requiring a minimum of 10 reviews and an average score of 4.5 or higher. Awards are reviewed every 24 moths. Read more about the selection process at martindale.com.

American Institute is an impartial third-party attorney rating organization comprised of 13 divisions consisting of Bankruptcy, Criminal, DUI/DWI, Personal Injury, Family Law, Litigation, Lawsuits & Disputes, Immigration, Workers’ Compensation, Employment & Labor Law, Estate Planning, Military Law, Elder Law and Social Security & Disability Law Division. The American Institute’s Personal Injury Division compiles an exclusive list of the “10 Best” Attorneys for each State. Some States depending on size and population density may be broken up into City or Region to be more applicable to potential new clients who utilize this site when looking for an Attorney. The “10 Best” is a prestigious honor for the Attorney as each Attorney must:

• Be formally nominated by the Institute, client, and/or fellow Attorney;
• Have attained the highest degree of professional achievement in his or her field of law; and
• Having done so with an impeccable Client Satisfaction rating.

Full information on this rating can be found here and here.

The NJAJ is the exclusive statewide association dedicated to trial lawyers. It is made up of over 2,700 members in private practice and public service, paralegals, law clerks, law students and law school graduates not yet admitted to the bar. Through the Association, members stay current on critical issues facing the trial bar and the courts, leverage the experience of the membership, gain a voice in the State House and the courthouse, maintain communication with the NJAJ network, and benefit from education, advocacy opportunities, and more. The cornerstones of the NJAJ are knowledge, experience, education, advocacy, resources, value, and communication. Read more about membership here.

The Avvo rating is calculated using a mathematical model, and all lawyers are evaluated on the same set of standards. Ratings are free and attorneys can not pay to improve their ratings. The model used to calculate the rating was developed with input from hundreds of attorneys, thousands of consumers, and many other legal professionals who deeply understand the work attorneys do. The Avvo Rating is meant to reflect the type of information people have identified as important when looking to hire an attorney. Ratings fall on a scale of 1 (Extreme Caution) to 10 (Superb). The full methodology can be viewed at Avvo

Attorney and Practice Magazine Top 10 Law Firm award is an achievement reserved for only those lawyers who have demonstrated the highest degree of excellence in their area of law. Because of their stringent standards, less than 1% of lawyers nationwide will receive this invitation for membership, subscription and list inclusion, which is published on their website as well their quarterly magazine. This information can be found at attorneyandpractice.com

Expertise.com features only objectively quantified and qualified professionals hand-picked in their selection process. The company first identifies potential attorneys using public databases and customer referrals, checks their availability and service areas. Expertise.com looks for Accreditations, Awards, and Licenses, and validate each firm’s qualifications. The company finds attorneys who have gone above and beyond to educate themselves in their area of expertise. They scour public records and information to determine each provider’s reputation. Every provider is analyzed based on the number of professional databases reviewing them, their average review score, and the volatility of their ratings. More on the selection process can be found at Expertise.com.

The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 is an invitation-only organization composed of the premier trial lawyers from each state or region who meet stringent qualifications as civil plaintiff and/or criminal defense trial lawyers. Selection is based on a thorough multi-phase objective and uniformly applied process which includes peer nominations combined with third-party research. Membership is extended only to the select few of the most qualified attorneys from each state or region who demonstrate superior qualifications of leadership, reputation, influence, stature and public profile measured by objective and uniformly applied standards in compliance with state bar and national Rule 4-7. More information can be found at the The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 site.

To obtain the Avvo Client’s Choice Award Badge, attorneys will need 5 – 4+ star reviews in any given year to qualify for that year’s badge. The Avvo Clients’ Choice badge is awarded annually. Once an attorney earns this badge, they can continue to update it annually by obtaining new reviews. Read more on Avvo.

The Avvo Review badge indicates the average rating from Client Reviews on Avvo. The number of reviews which contributed to the rating is denoted on the badge itself. This information can be read in full on Avvo

Established in 1993, the Million Dollar Advocates Forum is one of the most prestigious groups of trial lawyers in the United States. Membership is limited to attorneys who have won million and multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements. There are over 5000 members throughout the country. Fewer than 1% of U.S. lawyers are members.

Since the Million Dollar Advocates Forum was founded in 1993, membership has been based upon strict and objective standards. Each applicant is required to complete a detailed application demonstrating that he or she has met the basic qualification of having acted as Principal Counsel (as that term is defined in the membership application) in one or more cases which resulted in a final judgment (not subject to appeal or modification), award or settlement in favor of his or her client in the amount of one million dollars or more. In 2007, in response to requests from members, the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum was added with regard to cases of two million dollars or more.

Membership invitations are sent only to attorneys who objectively appear to be qualified, including those whose names are proposed for membership from the report of a large case or upon nomination by a current member. Other qualified attorneys may apply for membership.

To learn more, visit Multi Million Advocates Forum.

The Justia Lawyer Rating and Reviews system is intended to give consumers and attorneys a useful metric by which to evaluate and compare lawyers before deciding to hire or associate with them. The Justia Lawyer Rating and Reviews provide valuable insight from peers and colleagues personally familiar with the lawyer’s work. By quantifying this insight into a score between 1 and 10 based on reviews by other lawyers, we hope to add a level of ease and transparency to the process of finding a lawyer who may be a good fit for your needs.

The Justia Lawyer Rating is based on the average score given to a lawyer by his or her reviewing peers. In addition to providing an overall rating for the attorney, each reviewer must also numerically rate the attorney on:

• Legal Knowledge
• Legal Analysis
• Communication Skills
• Ethics and Professionalism

To learn more, visit Justia.