The Milwaukee Bar Association has been around since 1858 serving our city, but it was only recently that the organization embraced changing technology.
While for years Milwaukeeans have been able to call the Lawyer Referral and Information Service (LRIS) in search of an attorney who best fits their needs, the Bar Association realized it was time to create a Web site for those seeking legal services.
"As director (of the LRIS) I've been charged with the task of providing all of Milwaukee with a system that can be used to match individuals and businesses with attorneys to help them with their legal needs," says Joel Christiansen.
"In order to help complete my mission, I've created FindMilwaukeeLawyers.org. The telephone line still exists, but it just seems more convenient for more people to do it online."
The Web site has been in up and running since July 1 and the response is good so far, Christiansen says.
"This site enables people to submit some basic info to our non-profit public service and have us do the attorney searching for them," he says. "It's the same service (as over the phone), it's just a little bit more interactive; you can explain your problem in a bit more detail."
Users can choose from about 140 local attorneys, all of whom are Milwaukee Bar Association members and, of course, licensed to practice law, says Christiansen.
Christiansen says it doesn't matter how many lawyers are on the list.
"Just as long as no matter what a person has a problem with, they can find someone that'll be able to help them out."
And eventually he hopes that the site will make the search for legal advice less daunting.
"Instead of looking through the Yellow Pages and digging through hundreds of pages and ads, (now) they can come to a place where it's much easier to match up their needs."
