Attorneys now have the ability to network in a professional online community confined only to other attorneys.  Lawlink is a new social network that aims to provide resources and networking opportunities for lawyers.  It has similar features to sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn but provides specificity that other networks may have trouble attaining.

The free service, strictly for attorneys, is intended to be a place to meet other lawyers, discuss information and gain knowledge that can help you in your practice.  Users create a profile and then connect to other members.  Within the site are different features such as an "Answers" section where members post questions and receive answers from other members.   The "Community" section has a place to post and search for legal classified ads, to create or join a discussion board, and to browse a long list of legal blogs.  Articles, cases, essential forums, and any other document, can be uploaded in the "Documents" area of the site.  In the recently launched 2.0 version of the site they also have status messages, similar to those on Facebook.

Founder of Lawlink, Stephen Choi, pursues exclusiveness by verifying that each attorney sign up with a valid bar number.  It is taking a route similar to Facebook's initial approach as it once allowed just college students as members (a college e-mail was required as verification).  Choi tells us the privacy aspect is important.  As it gives more value to the networks you are connected to.  He recognizes that a site such as LinkedIn is certainly valuable and useful but it can be messy.  It also doesn't offer the vast access to attorney-specific information that LawLink is seeking to make available.  

The site currently has over 4,500 members and Choi says that an average of a hundred users are signing up every week as it gets more exposure.  Lawyers are connected to all types of organizations in the real world. Choi believes with the internet they can become more connected on a different level, a level that has yet to be tapped into.  Choi plans to launch a law student version of Lawlink where students can interact among each other and also have potential access to attorneys.  The attorneys will still possess their own version of Lawlink but will then have the option of allowing law students to connect with them.  Time will tell if a lawyers only networking site can truly take off.

For more information on social networking for lawyers, check out Lawline.com's Blog Series on Social Media.