How we work
Editorial standards
What we publish affects real decisions. Here is how every page is sourced, checked and approved — and what we will never publish.
01How a page is made
- Research. We start from named sources: statutes, court and agency publications, official public datasets and licensed data.
- Verify. Each fact is checked against its source and recorded with the source and date.
- Write. We explain the topic in plain language, answering the main question first.
- Attorney review. A licensed attorney reviews the sources, the legal statements and the draft, and approves or corrects it.
- Publish. The page shows who reviewed it and when. A legal guide cannot be published without that approval — our publishing system blocks it.
02Who reviews our content
Reviewing attorneys are named on the pages they review, with their state bar licence and a link to verify it with the state bar. We verify every attorney's licence before their name appears anywhere on this site.
If a page says "Reviewed by", that attorney actually reviewed it. We never show an attorney's name, photo or bar number as decoration. See our attorneys.
03Sources and figures
We prefer primary, official sources — the statute, the agency, the court — over summaries. Every figure on this site shows where it came from and when; outcome data also shows its sample size. A figure without a source is not published.
We never publish settlement "averages", and we never predict what a case is worth. How we report case outcomes.
04How we use technology, including AI
We use software tools, including AI, to help organise sources and draft text. They never decide what is true. A person checks every source, and a licensed attorney approves legal content before it is published. AI tools are never used to invent facts, quotes, reviews or results.
05Keeping pages current
Laws and data change. Every legal page carries a review date and is scheduled for re-review. When a law or source changes, affected pages go back to an attorney. A page we can no longer stand behind is corrected or taken down — we do not simply change its date.
06Independence and relationships
Find A Tough Lawyer is a legal marketing service, not a law firm. Some attorneys have a relationship with us — as authors, reviewers, participating attorneys or advertisers. Where they do, their profile says so. We do not rank attorneys or say one is better than another.
07Corrections
If you believe something on this site is wrong or out of date, tell us. We review every report, correct confirmed errors promptly, and note significant corrections on the page.
08What we never publish
- Invented laws, deadlines, statistics, case results, reviews or testimonials
- Attorney profiles, credentials or offices we have not verified
- Promises about what a case is worth or how it will turn out
- Claims that rank one attorney above another, or certifications an attorney does not hold
- Media logos or press claims without genuine coverage and permission