roses stores ( originally known as rose 's 5 ¢ 10 ¢ 25 ¢ stores ) is a regional discount store in the united states with its headquarters in henderson , north carolina .

the chain has stores in fifteen states , primarily in the south .

roses was purchased by variety wholesalers inc. in 1997 and the company 's roses division has approximately 175 stores which compete chiefly with kmart and wal-mart .

in 2010 , the roses division began expanding beyond its original base of stores in the south , opening stores in pennsylvania , ohio and indiana .

roses ( store )

to find the best bargains at roses , you have to understand how the store is organized .
despite the economic downturn that the roses encountered in the 1990s , many north carolina residents may remember roses as the first discount store they shopped at . in addition , roses have been considered the first to be part of a discount store chain in the southeast united states .
chain store age executive $ 100 million club ,
chain store age executive , august 1985 , pp . 22 - - 30 .
roses is not a dollar store , but several areas of the store are quite similar to dollar tree and family dollar . candy , shampoo and coloring books are a few of the items that sell for a buck .
pasadena tournament of roses , 391 south orange grove boulevard , pasadena , california 91184 - ( 626 ) 449 - 4100 | © 2018 tournament of roses . all rights reserved .
the retailer is part of variety wholesalers , a north carolina - based company that operates nearly 400 stores under a handful of banners , including roses and its smaller sibling , roses express .
many traditional retailers have a separate clearance area in the back , but i discovered marked down merchandise at roses mixed in throughout the store . keep an eye out for the yellow signs and tags !
the perimeter of the store features apparel , shoes , home decor , auto care , toys , electronics and seasonal items , while the beauty and food departments are located in the middle of the store .
kresge tops big builders ,
chain store age executive , november 1974 , pp . 17 , 64 .
state of the industry ,
chain store executive age , august 1994 , pp . 3 - - 25a .
if you’re paying more than $ 1 for a gift bag , you’re paying too much . medium bags are $ 1 at roses and there are smaller ones for $ 0 . 50 . the store had an entire aisle of bags to choose from .
roses is known for selling the everyday staples you need for life , plus one - time closeout buys — at very low prices .
ben sherman ties are only $ 3 . 99 at roses ! the store also has $ 10 dress shirts , $ 8 belts and $ 18 dress shoes . similar ben sherman ties sell for $ 17 . 97 at nordstrom rack and $ 12 . 99 at burlington .
photographs of various roses stores and employees . there is also a slide show , 1979 , with audiotaped lecture on the process of loss control auditing .
along with many other off - price retailers , roses is finding that customers can’t get enough of home decor . here are just some of the super - low prices i jotted down :
currently in 17 states from ohio to florida , a company spokesperson told urltoken that roses is in growth mode . it’s on track to open 25 new stores and remodel 25 existing stores in 2017 .
every throw pillow in this bin is priced at just $ 2 . 50 ! and just like the travel pillows i showed you , this incredible value was located in the center aisle of the store .
i visit this roses everytime we camp at mayberry campground . i love roses . i was able to find many grave flowers for my dads grave here recently . all were beautiful and $ 10 and under . my dad passed away recently and finding grave flowers has been a task . it was a blessing that they carried them . i was also able to find an outdoor rug for our campsite that was only $ 10 .
i can always count on roses to have cheap odds and ends that i need . from underwear to lawn chairs they had everything that i was looking for . sometimes you have to really look through the racks . . .
roses is slowly going the way of the dinosaur , but i like going there . it ' s not wal - mart , but the good thing is , you don ' t have the crowd of people like wal - mart .
i hadn’t been to a roses in probably 10 years until just recently , but i ended up leaving with a bag of stuff — including the $ 3 . 99 tie and $ 1 . 99 travel pillow featured in this story .
when roses has a great deal , there are signs everywhere to tell you about it . where else can you buy a travel pillow for less than $ 2 ? the “unbeatable value” signs spotlight items you’ll want to grab before they’re gone .
by the time wal - mart and k - mart entered the national scene of supermarket competition , roses started to decline in the 1990s . eventually , the company declared bankruptcy in 1993 . however , art and john pope , a brother team who owned variety wholesalers , inc . , bought the rose’s company in 1997 . the whole transaction cost $ 15 . 3 million . under their leadership , the company started to be successful again and 106 roses exist today . today , according to the variety wholesaler’s website , the roses stores range in a size of “30 , 000 square feet to 70 , 000 square feet and are chiefly competitive with discount stores such as k - mart , wal - mart , etc” ( about variety wholesalers ) .
roses’ assortment of food , toys and supplies for your pet takes up a few aisles . it reminded me of the selection at other off - price retailers such as t . j . maxx and marshalls . lots of dog beds for just $ 5 !
although roses does release a sale ad a couple of times per month , its mission is to offer low prices every time you shop . if you’re 55 or older , the savings don’t stop there . show your id to get an extra 10 % off on wednesdays .
for this first project , memories and present day stories about mickleham village shop , “rose’s store” , were collected . for generations the shop has been at the heart of the community , providing a meeting place , a source of gossip and the everyday essentials of life .
henry tudor was proclaimed king henry vii , the first tudor king . henry was the grandson of catherine of valois , the widow of henry v , and owen tudor . in 1486 , he married edward iv’s daughter elizabeth of york , thereby uniting the yorkist and lancastrian claims . this event is seen as marking the end of the war of roses ; although some yorkists supported in 1487 an unsuccessful rebellion against henry , led by lambert simnel . the war of roses left little mark on the common english people but severely thinned the ranks of the english nobility .
a fire at the l’innovation department store in brussels , belgium , kills 322 people on this day in 1967 . poor preparation and safety features were responsible for the high death toll . at l’innovation , it was the first day of a heavily promoted american fortnight exhibition , a salute to american fashion . . . .
the end of the war and the economic boon in the u . s . economy that followed enabled the company to implement several innovative management and marketing strategies . in addition to establishing a group health insurance plan and a profit sharing trust plan , rose ' s added a trucking division that shortened the time required to deliver merchandise from the henderson warehouse to surrounding stores . the appearance of the rose ' s stores also underwent a significant change . until 1947 , all of the stores prominently displayed goods in the large windows at the front of the store , an advertising technique that required not only a great deal of merchandise to make them look full but a significant amount of employee time to maintain . when it came time to remodel a store in durham , paul rose went with a new design featuring untrimmed windows that allowed anyone to see directly into the store . the grand opening of the new store was such a success that all future stores were designed according to the
see - through
concept . the founder ' s entrepreneurial drive also brought significant returns on the company balance sheets : in 1948 rose ' s generated $ 17 . 6 million in sales and recorded its highest net profit in relation to sales , a mark that would stand for nearly two decades .
it would take only two years for the prediction to come true , and by the time neil armstrong took his historic step , rose ' s had nearly quadrupled its volume of sales and had expanded to 183 stores . having first entered shopping centers in 1947 , the company continued its move from the small variety store to the large self - service department store . while improving upon older , small - town units periodically through modernization , new units took the form of large , self - service , junior department stores , located primarily in suburban shopping centers . in the early 1960s , under the direction of president l . h . harvin , jr . , the company also enlarged its operations through diversification , entering the discount market with the construction of a large store in spartanburg , south carolina , in 1961 , and adding up - scale merchandise to its product line by acquiring the paul h . rose corporation - - an offshoot of rose ' s founded in the early 1940s & mdash a subsidiary and opening up three full - line department stores . in an effort to better reflect this broader focus , the company changed its name to rose ' s stores inc . in 1962 .
rose partnered with two businessmen , purchased stock in united 5 & 10 cent stores and opened retail outlets in henderson and charlotte . the venture failed , but in 1915 , rose borrowed $ 500 , bought a shop in henderson and opened the first rose’s store . rose removed merchandise from behind counters ( where it had to be retrieved by stock clerks ) to shelves that shoppers could peruse at their own pace .
despite the challenges that accompanied the great depression and the entrance of the united states into the second world war , rose ' s continued to prosper , growing into one of the leading variety store chains in the south . while countless businesses collapsed during the 1930s , rose ' s not only survived but experienced a steady increase in sales and expansion . in addition to boosting sales from $ 1 . 8 million to $ 5 . 6 million by the end of the decade , the company surpassed the 100 - store mark , extending its operations into the five states of north carolina , virginia , south carolina , tennessee , and georgia . a large part of the company ' s success during this period can be attributed to its commitment to efficiency . the decade saw rose ' s add a company print ship and a 20 , 000 - square - foot consolidated warehouse , enabling the company to reduce office and transportation costs by as much as 40 percent .
paul howard rose , born in 1881 , had a knack for entrepreneurship . when he was young boy , for example , rose sold his mother’s cookies and wood bundles to make a buck . later in life and with limited capital , rose opened his first department store in littleton , north carolina . after his time in littleton , paul rose became a traveling salesman and he periodically visited five - and - ten cent stores to determine the best price for certain goods to be sold .
in the opening battle of england’s war of the roses , the yorkists defeat king henry vi’s lancastrian forces at st . albans , 20 miles northwest of london . many lancastrian nobles perished , including edmund beaufort , the duke of somerset , and the king was forced to submit to the rule of his cousin , richard of york . the dynastic struggle between the house of york , whose badge was a white rose , and the house of lancaster , later associated with a red rose , would stretch on for 30 years .
rose ' s stores , inc . , owned by variety wholesalers , inc . , of henderson , n . c . , is a southeastern chain of discount retail stores that began in 1915 with the founding of the first store by paul h . rose in henderson , n . c . rose ' s stores were most common in north carolina and south carolina , but , at various times , the company had stores in virginia , georgia , alabama , maryland , mississippi , louisiana , and west virginia .
born in 1881 in seaboard , rose discovered his knack for merchandising early on . at age 12 , he set up a wooden packing crate outside his hometown pharmacy and sold bundles of wood , his mother’s homemade cookies and other items . after business school in virginia , rose opened a store in littleton . at times his capital was so limited he used empty shoeboxes to help fill the shelves . for a time he worked as a traveling salesman . he used that experience to educate himself about competitive pricing strategies .
in 1927 , rose’s 5 , 10 , and 25 cent stores were incorporated in the state of delaware , and in 1962 , the name of the company was changed to rose’s , inc . although paul rose passed away in 1955 , thomas rose , paul’s brother , continued operation of the company . the chain continued to be successful–250 stores were in 11 southeastern states by the 1980s . roses “had three distribution warehouses , a fixture manufacturing plant , a new york buying office , and fleet of trucks” at its zenith of operation ( powell , p . 989 ) .
also included are tax documents , balance sheets , and rent books . the tax documents , 1919 - 1945 , include income tax returns , capital stock returns , franchise returns , list of depreciations taken on fixtures , and claims made under the agricultual adjustment act . the balance sheets , which record sales and expenses , run continuously from 1921 to 1925 . there is also a bound volume of monthly financial reports from stores 27 through 53 for 1935 . the earliest rent books appear to have been created in the early 1960s , but they contain a financial and real estate history of each store that extends back to its establishment .
in 1915 , rose , with the plan to create a chain of department stores , partnered with two businessmen and bought stock in united 5 & 10 cent stores . the united stores failed to stay open , so paul rose decided to go it alone . several months later , rose borrowed $ 500 from his brother - in - law , and he bought a building in henderson . rose had success with his first store because he priced his stock reasonably and shoppers had the opportunity to walk and shop however they saw fit . ( in the past , general stores were organized with items behind the counter , and a clerk had to find every item the shopper wanted ) .
primarily tax documents , balance sheets , and rent books . the tax documents date from 1919 to 1945 and include income tax returns , capital stock returns , franchise returns , list of depreciations taken on fixtures , and claims made under the agricultual adjustment act . the balance sheets , which record sales and expenses , run continuously from 1921 to 1925 . there is also a bound volume of monthly financial reports from stores 27 through 53 for 1935 . the earliest rent books appear to have been created in the early 1960s , but they contain a financial and real estate history of each store that extends back to its establishment . the rent books , 1988 - 1995 ( folders 73 - 75 ) are closed to research .
the first major wave of competition called for a new marketing focus , and lucius h . harvin iii , succeeding his father as president and ceo in 1980 , was given the responsibility of redefining the company . he assumed leadership of a company whose growth , according to some analysts , exceeded its ability to keep its existing stores up to date with a changing retail environment . as a result , many of its stores , while large and favorably located , relied on antiquated merchandise assortments and presentations . these problems were compounded by the vast dissimilarity among rose ' s stores , which ranged from 4 , 000 to greater than 60 , 000 square feet , making it difficult for the company to implement a coherent marketing strategy . with lucius harvin at the helm , though , the company restructured itself as a discount store and made changes accordingly . in late 1982 , the company initiated a strategic planning process that led to the reshaping of rose ' s basic design and conceptual framework : existing stores were remodeled to enhance merchandise display and improve traffic flow ; apparel sales were underscored ; inventories were augmented . in line with the new focus on discount store business , nearly all of the p . h . rose variety stores were sold by the end of 1983 . the new strategy resulted in a record boon for the company : rose ' s stock split twice in 1983 , leading to the first public offering of stock since 1927 ; two years later , the company broke the $ 1 billion sales barrier .
in mid - 1991 a new management team , led by president and ceo george l . jones , a former top executive with target stores , was selected to help the company reverse the decline brought on by competition . their plan called for a thorough remerchandising of their stores , which involved eliminating categories of slow - moving merchandise and replacing them with products better suited to rose ' s target
value - oriented
customer . for instance , instead of offering a complete line of hardware products , rose ' s reduced its line to include a limited number of tools and materials designed for light
do - it - yourself
tasks . on the other hand , the company ' s traditionally strong departments & mdashøys , health and beauty aids , and lawn and garden , for instance - - were expanded . likewise , the company mounted a
greatest deal on earth
campaign , featuring an assortment of first - quality merchandise at
closeout ,
or significantly reduced prices , in an attempt to provide attractive opportunities for unplanned purchases . while restructuring its product line , rose ' s also took advantage of new technology to improve customer service and store space management , implementing a state - of - the - art computerized price removal and inventory replenishment system .
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“our model isn’t to rollback prices . we offer the deepest discount possible at everyday low prices , ” said rachel wing , vp of marketing at variety wholesalers . “so it’s not like a shopper has to wait and come back when it’s marked down . ”
popular closeout buys can be anywhere , but featured sale items are generally located in the aisles and on banquet tables .
in one of the aisles , i stumbled upon this huge table of $ 10 wrangler jeans . they had all sizes in regular and slim fit . and the price is about $ 7 less than the cheapest pair of wranglers at walmart .
gift bags are also on my list of the best things to buy at dollar tree .
speaking of clearance items , check out what i spotted in the furniture section . the price of this charcoal gray sofa was slashed to just $ 200 . that’s even cheaper than ikea !
if you’re trying to save money , embrace the treasure hunt at various off - price retailers . you may be surprised what you find !
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“rose’s stores . ” william s . powell , ed . encyclopedia of north carolina ( university of north carolina press : chapel hill , nc 2006 ) .
“paul h . rose . ” north carolina highway historical marker program website . a division of the north carolina department of cultural resources . ( accessed january 25 , 2012 ) .
“about variety wholesalers . ” variety wholesalers , inc . website . urltoken ( accessed january 25 , 2012 )
© 2016 john locke foundation | 200 west morgan st . , raleigh , nc 27601 , voice : ( 919 ) 828 - 3876
p . o . drawer 947 henderson , north carolina 27536 u . s . a .
as the company entered the 1940s , world events again brought new challenges to the company . as hostilities in europe grew , congress passed a draft law that promised to create vacancies in numerous labor and management position within the company . seeing that the u . s . involvement in world war ii was imminent , the company began training women to fill these posts in its 118 stores . and when the war started , rose ' s was prepared to make the necessary personnel changes : by 1944 , 32 women were serving as managers . the nation ' s commitment to the war effort , though , brought about a shortage in labor and raw materials for manufacturing suppliers , forcing many suppliers to ration goods to the stores on a quota basis . despite the fact that stores were rarely fully stocked , sales increased every year during the war and four stores were added .
in 1987 , just as rose ' s completed a 12 - month period in which its stock price increased faster than that of any other southeastern company , the company ' s customer base was diminished by the opening of 53 new wal - mart stores . although sales continued to climb steadily , net profits declined nearly 25 percent , the direct result of competition and large capital expenditures needed to upgrade the company ' s distribution and information systems . as the decade drew to a close , sales records continued to be broken , but net profits plummeted as at least two - thirds of the company ' s 259 stores were engaged in head - to - head competition with their two major competitors , wal - mart and kmart .
despite these efforts , the company continued to lose money and had difficulty maintaining its inventory due to credit problems , leading to poor sales performance . and on september 5 , 1993 , the company filed a voluntary petition for relief under chapter 11 , title 11 of the u . s . bankruptcy code . after closing more than a hundred stores in the first half of 1994 , rose ' s secured an exit financing commitment from the first national bank of boston and the cit group / business credit , inc . , calling for a three - year revolving credit agreement that enabled the company to borrow up to $ 125 million . under the direction of a new president and ceo , r . edward anderson , who took over in august 1994 , the company finished the year with sales of $ 756 million , a decrease of more than 40 percent . however , the company recorded operating profits of $ 6 . 6 million , compared to a loss of $ 27 million the previous year , and entered 1995 with the operating cash flows necessary to emerge from chapter 11 . after turning in its best overall performance in several years , the company looked forward to leaving behind the complicated distractions of financial reorganization and returning to its focus on the operational aspects of the business .
with 75 percent of its stores in direct competition with wal - mart or kmart and 60 percent forced to contend with both , rose ' s has attempted to prosper in the mid - 1990s by further narrowing its marketing focus within the discount industry , targeting value - conscious lower income consumers by offering special senior citizens ' discounts and double - coupon deals , emphasizing closeout merchandise , and prominently displaying discounted goods .
we feel our niche is narrower and more toward the lower end ,
anderson told discount merchandiser ' s pat corwin in march 1995 ,
so we want our customers to see value very quickly when they walk into our stores . we don ' t want it to be subliminal , we want it right in their faces .
and with a strong belief that there are people who still believe in the 80 - year - old rose ' s name , anderson has predicted that , under stable economic conditions , the company will grow once again .
corwin pat ,
rose ' s recovery - - built to last ,
discount merchandiser , march 1995 , pp . 26 - - 28 , 70 .
folger , j . c . ,
unfolding our history ,
communiques , henderson , north carolina : rose ' s stores , inc . , 1991 .
jones , george ,
a need for differentiation ,
discount merchandiser , december 1993 , pp . 68 - - 70 .
marcial , gene g . ,
don ' t discount this discounter ,
business week , october 23 , 1989 , p . 130 .
rose ' s : plans to emerge from chapter 11 ,
discount merchandiser , september 1994 , p . 12 .
source : international directory of company histories , vol . 13 . st . james press , 1996 .
html public
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urltoken
on a mac ) and type your search term in the box that appears in your browser window .
collection title : rose ' s stores , inc . , records , 1919 - 1996
this is a finding aid . it is a description of archival material held in the wilson library at the university of north carolina at chapel hill . unless otherwise noted , the materials described below are physically available in our reading room , and not digitally available through the world wide web . see the duplication policy section for more information .
suggest topics , persons , geography , etc . interspersed through the entire collection ; the terms do
usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection - - such as folders or items .
clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the university library ' s online catalog .
the collection includes the minutes of corporate committees , corporate documents , tax documents , balance sheets , rentbooks , and photographs of rose ' s stores , inc . , discount retail stores , with headquaters in henderson , n . c .
the minutes are from meetings of various corporate committees , including the profit sharing trust advisory committee , the auditing committee , the directors ' and stockholders ' meetings , the executive committee , and the proxy committee . there are also articles and certificates of incorporation ; bylaws of the rose trucking co . , inc . ; a brief history of the company ; and copies of the company newsletter .
photographs are of various rose ' s stores and employees . there is also a slide show from 1979 with an audiotaped lecture on the process of loss control auditing .
note that materials dated after 1985 are closed to research and have been moved out of the normal run of materials .
1 . corporate papers , 1927 - 1996 . 1 . 1 . advisory committee , profit sharing trust , 1970 - 1988 . 1 . 2 . auditing committee , 1984 - 1986 . 1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 . 1 . 4 . executive committee , 1955 - 1988 . 1 . 5 . proxy committee , 1966 - 1977 . 1 . 6 . other papers , 1957 - 1994 . 2 . financial papers , 1919 - 1995 . 3 . audiovisual material , 1930s - 1980s .
chiefly the minutes from meetings of various corporate committees , including the profit sharing trust advisory committee , the auditing committee , the directors and stockholders meetings , the executive committee , and the proxy committee . other corporate papers include articles and certificates of incorporation ; bylaws of the rose trucking co . , inc . ; a brief history of the company ; and copies of the company newsletter . materials dated after 1985 are closed to researchers .
subseries 1 . 1 . advisory committee , profit sharing trust , 1970 - 1988 .
minutes of the profit sharing trust advisory committee ' s meetings , 1970 - 1988 . the minute book , 1984 - 1988 , ( folders 4 - 6 ) and the leaves of absence file ( folder 7 ) are closed to research .
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 1 . advisory committee , profit sharing trust , 1970 - 1988 .
folder 1
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 1 . advisory committee , profit sharing trust , 1970 - 1988 .
folder 2
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 1 . advisory committee , profit sharing trust , 1970 - 1988 .
folder 3
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 1 . advisory committee , profit sharing trust , 1970 - 1988 .
folder 4 - 6
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 1 . advisory committee , profit sharing trust , 1970 - 1988 .
folder 7
minutes of the auditing committee ' s meetings from 1984 to 1986 . this item is closed to research .
minutes of the directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 . the minute books , 1984 - 1996 , ( folders 25 - 38 ) are closed to research .
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 9
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 10 - 11
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 12
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 13
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 14
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 15
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 16
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 17
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 18
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 19
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 20
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 21
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 22
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 23
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 24
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 25
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 26
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 27
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 28
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
folder 29
# 05097 , subseries :
1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
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1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
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1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
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1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
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1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
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1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
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1 . 3 . directors and stockholders meetings , 1927 - 1996 .
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minutes of the executive committee ' s meetings , 1955 - 1988 . the minute book , 1982 - 1988 , ( folders 44 - 45 ) is closed to research .
. the issues of
communiques ,
1990 - 1994 ( folders 51 - 52 ) are closed to research .
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over a period of six months in 2013 some 20 people were interviewed , resulting in 17 digital recordings . each recording has been given an index number as a unique identifier . in many cases photographs and other relevant documents were added to the individual recordings and these are available under the same index number . this is the complete and unedited version ; a shorter , edited version will be available in due course .
the history group extends grateful thanks to all those who very generously contributed to this inaugural project . special thanks must be given to surrey county council for funding the purchase of specialist computing and recording equipment and to surrey history centre for the loan of equipment and for their invaluable professional advice .
public access to this material is free of charge . mickleham & westhumble local history group has been assigned the copyright of all contributions to this project . the right to preserve as a permanent public resource for use in research , publication , the internet , education , exhibitions , lectures and broadcasting is held by mickleham & westhumble local history group and surrey history centre .
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both families , closely related , claimed the throne through descent from the sons of edward iii , the king of england from 1327 to 1377 . the first lancastrian king was henry iv in 1399 , and rebellion and lawlessness were rife during his reign . his son , henry v , was more successful and won major victories in the hundred years war against france . his son and successor , henry vi , had few kingly qualities and lost most of the french land his father had conquered . at home , chaos prevailed and lords with private armies challenged henry vi’s authority . at times , his ambitious queen , margaret of anjou , effectively controlled the crown .
in 1453 , henry lapsed into insanity , and in 1454 parliament appointed richard , duke of york , as protector of the realm . henry and york’s grandfathers were the fourth and third sons of edward iii , respectively . when henry recovered in late 1454 , he dismissed york and restored the authority of margaret , who saw york as a threat to the succession of their son , prince edward . york raised an army of 3 , 000 men , and in may the yorkists marched to london . on may 22 , 1455 , york met henry’s forces at st . albans while on the northern road to the capital . the bloody encounter lasted less than an hour , and the yorkists carried the day . the duke of somerset , margaret’s great ally , was killed , and henry was captured by the yorkists .
after the battle , richard again was made english protector , but in 1456 margaret regained the upper hand . an uneasy peace was broken in 1459 , and in 1460 the lancastrians were defeated , and york was granted the right to ascend to the throne upon henry’s death . the lancastrians then gathered forces in northern england and in december 1460 surprised and killed york outside his castle near wakefield .
york’s son edward reached london before margaret and was proclaimed king edward iv . in march 1461 , edward won a decisive victory against the lancastrians at the battle of towton , the bloodiest of the war . henry , margaret , and their son fled to scotland , and the first phase of the war was over .
yorkist rivalry would later lead to the overthrow of edward in 1470 and the restoration of henry vi . the next year , edward returned from exile in the netherlands , defeated margaret’s forces , killed her son , and imprisoned henry in the tower of london , where he was murdered . edward iv then ruled uninterrupted until his death in 1483 . his eldest son was proclaimed edward v , but edward iv’s brother , richard iii , seized the crown and imprisoned edward and his younger brother in the tower of london , where they disappeared , probably murdered . in 1485 , richard iii was defeated and killed by lancastrians led by henry tudor at the battle of bosworth field .
we strive for accuracy and fairness . but if you see something that doesn ' t look right ,
a massive wagon train , made up of 1 , 000 settlers and 1 , 000 head of cattle , sets off down the oregon trail from independence , missouri . known as the “great emigration , ” the expedition came two years after the first modest party of settlers made the long , overland journey to oregon . after leaving independence , the . . .
on this day in 1781 , major general nathanael greene and 1 , 000 patriots attempt an attack on the critical village of ninety - six in the south carolina backcountry . after failing to seize the fortified settlement , they began a siege of it , which lasted until their retreat on june 18 , making it . . .
on this day in 1969 , the legendary actor , philanthropist and automobile enthusiast paul newman makes his onscreen racing debut in the action - drama film “winning . ” by the time he made “winning , ” the blue - eyed newman was already famous for his performances in such films as “the hustler” ( 1960 ) , “hud” ( 1962 ) and “cool hand . . .
southern congressman preston brooks savagely beats northern senator charles sumner in the halls of congress as tensions rise over the expansion of slavery . when the controversial kansas - nebraska act of 1854 was passed , popular sovereignty was applied within the two new territories and people were given the right to decide the slave . . .
president jimmy carter , in a speech delivered at notre dame university , reaffirms his commitment to human rights as a cornerstone of u . s . foreign policy and disparages the “inordinate fear of communism which once led us to embrace any dictator who joined us in that fear . ” carter’s speech marked a new . . .
police staking out a bridge over the chattahoochee river near atlanta , georgia , hear a loud splash , and begin chasing wayne williams as he attempts to drive away in a station wagon . after questioning him about his involvement in the unprecedented string of child murders in atlanta over the two previous . . .
the remains of former federal bureau of prisons intern chandra levy are found on this day in 2002 , over a year after the 24 - year - old was last seen at a health club . the bone remains , discovered by a man walking through washington d . c . ’s rock creek park , were identified through dental records . . . .
just moments after ariana grande finished the final song of her may 22 , 2017 concert at manchester arena , a suicide bomber detonated an explosion on the premises , killing 22 concertgoers and injuring 116 more . isis claimed responsibility for what was the deadliest act of terrorism in britain since the 2005 london metro bombings . a . . .
on this day , president richard nixon arrives in moscow for a summit with soviet leaders . although it was nixon’s first visit to the soviet union as president , he had visited moscow once before–as u . s . vice president . as eisenhower’s vice president , nixon made frequent official trips abroad , including a 1959 trip to . . .
after 150 years apart , marxist south yemen and conservative north yemen are unified as the republic of yemen . ali abdullah , president of north yemen , became the new country’s president , and ali salem al - baidh , leader of the south yemeni socialist party , vice president . the first free elections were held in 1993 . situated . . .
on this day in 2004 , michael moore’s documentary film fahrenheit 9 / 11 beats out 18 other films to win the coveted palme d’or , the top prize at the cannes film festival . it became the first documentary to triumph at cannes since the silent world , co - directed by jacques cousteau and louis malle , . . .
it’s the birthday of sir arthur conan doyle , the creator of master sleuth sherlock holmes . doyle was born in scotland and studied medicine at the university of edinburgh , where he met dr . joseph bell , a teacher with extraordinary deductive reasoning power . bell partly inspired doyle’s character sherlock holmes years later . after medical . . .
the arrival in the united kingdom of one of the biggest figures in rock and roll was looked forward to with great anticipation in may of 1958 . nowhere in the world were the teenage fans of the raucous music coming out of america more enthusiastic than they were in england , . . .
the first major wagon train to the northwest departs from elm grove , missouri , on the oregon trail . although u . s . sovereignty over the oregon territory was not clearly established until 1846 , american fur trappers and missionary groups had been living in the region for decades . dozens of books and lectures proclaimed oregon’s . . .
president george washington’s devoted widow and the nation’s first first lady , martha dandridge custis washington , dies at her mt . vernon home on this day in 1802 . she was 70 years old . like her husband , martha washington was born in the american colonies as a british subject ( 1731 ) . the petite , dark - haired . . .
on may 22 , 2003 , golfer annika sorenstam becomes the first woman to play in a pga tour event since babe didrikson 58 years earlier , after receiving a sponsor’s exemption to compete in the bank of america colonial in fort worth , texas . annika sorenstam was born october 9 , 1970 , in bro , sweden , . . .
in a major speech before the american law institute in washington , d . c . , secretary of state dean rusk explicitly accuses north vietnam of initiating and directing the aggression in south vietnam . u . s . withdrawal , said rusk , “would mean not only grievous losses to the free world in southeast and southern asia but . . .
ambassador henry cabot lodge , at the 18th plenary session of the paris peace talks , says he finds common ground for discussion in the proposals of president richard nixon and the national liberation front . in reply , nguyen thanh le , spokesman for the north vietnamese , said the programs were “as different as . . .
with hunger and discontent spreading among the civilian and military populations of the austro - hungarian empire , a crisis mounts within its government , as hungarian prime minister istvan tisza resigns at the request of the austrian emperor , karl i , on may 22 , 1917 . a great power in decline when world war i broke . . .
on this day in 1939 , italy and germany agree to a military and political alliance , giving birth formally to the axis powers , which will ultimately include japan . mussolini coined the nickname “pact of steel” ( he had also come up with the metaphor of an “axis” binding rome and berlin ) after reconsidering . . .
on this day in 1944 , u . s . and british aircraft begin a systematic bombing raid on railroads in germany and other parts of northern europe , called operation chattanooga choo - choo . the operation is a success ; germany is forced to scramble for laborers , including foreign slave laborers , to repair the widespread damage exacted . . .
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urltoken
on january 19 , 1955 , paul howard rose , founder of the chain of rose’s discount department stores , died at age 73 .
the entrepreneur eventually operated 280 rose’s stores in 11 southeastern states . today , about 106 rose’s stores remain .


urltoken is an online legal services marketplace that provides lawyer referrals and access to a database of legal information consisting primarily of previously answered questions .

lawyer profiles may include client reviews , disciplinary actions , peer endorsements , and lawyer-submitted legal guides .

avvo

avvo is advertising - sponsored ; however , avvo’s advertising does not impact a doctor’s avvo rating or his or her placement in avvo’s search results .
eric goldman : avvo wins big in ratings lawsuit - - browne v . avvo
avvo wins big in ratings lawsuit–browne v . avvo – technology & marketing law blog
glassdoor has 109 avvo reviews submitted anonymously by avvo employees . read employee reviews and ratings on glassdoor to decide if avvo is right for you .
* mark britton of avvo tells the story from his perspective . the official avvo press release .
prior to avvo advisor , avvo trialled an earlier service called “legal marketplace” , which launched in 2013 .
both darsky and bernstein state in their complaints that they have subscribed to neither avvo advertising nor avvo pro .
many lawyers have fully embraced use of the online legal directory , avvo . they may highlight on their website that they have a five - star avvo client rating or a 10 . 0 avvo rating . they may also use marketing services such as avvo advertising or avvo pro .
contact : megan olendorf avvo , inc . 206 - 734 - 4129 megan ( at ) avvo ( dot ) com
avvo legal services is built on the back of avvo advisor , which launched in 2014 , and introduced the concept of the $ 39 / 15 - minute consultation to avvo users .
avvo advisor . avvo also offers avvo advisor , a service where consumers can talk to an attorney for 15 minutes for a fixed fee of $ 39 . only lawyers with a 7 . 5 avvo rating or better and client ratings of at least four out of five stars can participate in avvo advisor .
the lawsuit against avvo for lawyer ratings has been dismissed without leave to amend . this is a big win for avvo .
but before we delve into the nuts and bolts of improving your avvo rating , let’s start with a quick overview of where the ratings come from , and how avvo rankings work . here’s how avvo itself describes the function and purpose of an avvo attorney ranking :
avvo is likely the first place a potential client will see you , so you need to make a good impression with your avvo profile .
avvo pro – in exchange for a monthly fee , avvo keeps other attorneys’ sponsored listings off an attorney’s profile page , according to both lawsuits .
unlike those previous claims against avvo , the darsky and bernstein lawsuits do not challenge the company’s lawyer rating system . instead , they attack avvo’s business model .
on the flip side , there are some attorneys who have a very different view of avvo . read 5 reasons lawyers hate avvo to find out why .
avvo advisor was initially available in nine legal categories and fifteen states , while avvo legal services is available in 18 states , with more on the way .
what is avvo ? are you using avvo to market your law practice ? do you even know what avvo is , or how you have been rated as a lawyer ? avvo has quickly become one of the leading websites where consumers go to find information about attorneys , but many lawyers are not developing their avvo profiles properly . some lawyers distrust or even hate avvo so much that they have filed lawsuits against it ( all of which have been dismissed so far ) , while other lawyers love avvo and see it as a great source of new business .
several prominent lawyers in the seattle area scored midrange to high rankings on avvo .
they complain in their respective lawsuits that avvo , without their consent , created profile pages bearing their identities and likenesses . furthermore , without their consent , avvo sold marketing space on their profile pages to avvo advertising subscribers , the lawsuits allege .
while many lawyers have not had much success with avvo in this regard , those who have made money from working with avvo are very pleased with the results .
2007 - 06 - 28 - avvo motion for judgment on the pleadings . pdf
browne et al v . avvo inc et al : : justia dockets & filings
hear dr . wessells and mark britton talk about avvo’s new doctor ratings directory .
comprehensive directory . as a lawyer directory and rating service , avvo is an extensive index of american attorneys . avvo states that it has avvo - rated profiles for 97 % of the practicing lawyers in the united states . those profiles contain both client reviews and endorsements from other attorneys . avvo also maintains a proprietary rating system .
avvo pages are often some of the highest - ranked search results for attorneys . lawyers should claim their profile and ensure it is up - to - date . lawyers that would like to increase their visibility should consider avvo pro or avvo advertising .
lawyers pay a monthly subscription fee to advertise on avvo . they also purchase websites and marketing analytics tools from us as part of our avvo ignite suite of services (
the avvo rating cannot be bought . at avvo , all lawyers are treated equally . we don’t play favorites , and attorneys can’t pay us to improve their ratings .
avvo offers free ratings and profiles for over 800 , 000 doctors in the united states , including the editorial avvo rating , patient ratings and peer ratings — in other words , avvo is kind of like yelp for doctors and lawyers , only better .
lawyers who love using avvo do so for a number of reasons . most of those reasons revolve around avvo ' s ability to generate new business for their law firm . to learn more about the top 5 reasons lawyers love avvo , check out the list below .
the most noteworthy — and possibly controversial — element of the new directory might be the inclusion of an avvo rating for each doctor listed . when avvo’s attorney directory launched in 2007 , many in the legal profession were critical of avvo’s proprietary ratings system and some sued .
as noted above , this is not the first time avvo has been challenged in court .
, avvo answers , isn’t necessary to maintaining a good rating , and won’t stop the decay . but you are forced to go back to avvo from time to time to stick something new into your profile or find out that you’re sliding down the slippery slope of avvo love .
avvo claim they don ' t remove negative reviews , they ' re being untruthful and deceitful . the fact is , they do remove reviews . i have hard copies of my approved review , which no longer exist on the avvo site . avvo cannot be trusted for attorney reviews .
avvo already sells avvo advisor , which charges users $ 39 in exchange for a 15 - minute phone call with a lawyer who provides legal advice . users pick the category of their legal issue and avvo matches them with the first available attorney in their area for a phone call .
still , some seattle attorneys who scored well doubted whether the avvo rankings could really be trusted .
plaintiffs sued defendant avvo inc . and alleged that thousands of lawyers have suffered damage to their professional reputations by avvo \ ' s publication of capricious and arbitrary ratings to consumers via the internet .
get health answers without an office visit free from real doctors at avvo’s question and answer forum .
avvo advertising – attorneys pay avvo a monthly fee , and in exchange , their ads are displayed as “sponsored listings” that can be found within the profile pages of other attorneys , the complaints state .
“the revenues generated by avvo come almost exclusively from its unauthorized use” of the names and likenesses of attorneys who , like darsky , refrain from using avvo’s advertising and marketing services , the complaint alleges .
also , there is an important distinction to be made between the ways avvo rates attorneys . there are two distinctive ratings on the site : an avvo rating and a client rating . the client rating does not affect the avvo rating ; the reverse is also true . according to avvo this was done to give users two metrics by which to judge a lawyer—the avvo - generated rating and the client rating . avvo managers believe that this gives users a better picture of the attorney , and compensates for the lack of more subjective metrics ( attorney personality , efficiency , etc . ) in their rating system .
josh king is a vice president , business development and general counsel at avvo , inc . handout .
4 . credentials evaluation and comparison . clients often have trouble distinguishing the credentials of one lawyer from another . avvo provides a way for clients to line up the accomplishments of each attorney to see which one appears to be more appropriate for the client ' s case . no other system on the market provides this ability as well as avvo . avvo director conrad saam says that
avvo provides three perspectives , three points of view of an attorney - the avvo rating , client ratings , and peer endorsements .
check your phone , email , linkedin profile , or facebook profile for a confirmation message from avvo .
follow the directions in the confirmation message to complete the process of claiming your lawyer profile on avvo .
avvo offers doctors a free and reliable marketing platform to reach millions of potential patients and referring physicians .
bernstein’s lawsuit , in particular , claims that avvo pro is meant to “coerce” a lawyer into paying a marketing fee so that avvo “will not misappropriate” the lawyer’s identity or sell advertising space to the lawyer’s competitors .
while the bulk of your avvo information will come from you directly , you’ll also need to provide some external information , such as peer endorsements , in order to improve your position in the avvo rating system .
5 . new clients . ultimately , the biggest reasons lawyers love avvo is that it is sending them new business . this is particularly true of the lawyers who invest time in responding to legal questions posted to the avvo website . this is a good way to quickly connect with potential clients in need of legal services . the overall quality of the questions being posted to avvo is very good , and by providing meaningful responses to questions many attorneys are picking up new clients every month from avvo . as i noted in the what is avvo article , my personal experience has been that avvo is a great way to generate new business .
avvo helps people find and connect with the right lawyer through industry - leading content , tools and services .
avvo’s goal is to make it easier for everyone to navigate the often - opaque legal industry . we create profiles and collect publicly available data for over 97 % of us attorneys . claiming your profile on avvo allows you to add more information about you and your practice , allowing us to provide a more accurate avvo rating .
avvo conceded that lawyers could temporarily raise their ratings with silly prizes but said its staff manually checked awards not already in its database . any bump for a spelling bee championship will be short - lived , avvo said .
browne ' s avvo ranking has fluctuated since the company launched last week , rising from 3 . 7 ( which avvo labels as
caution
) to 5 . 2 (
average
) . the low ranking on avvo was tied in part to an admonition browne received from the state bar in 2005 over compensation issues .
requesting client reviews is as easy as requesting peer endorsements . here’s how to request a client review on avvo :
now , whether you have a legal problem or a health problem , avvo gives you free ratings and answers .
britton says that claiming your avvo profile does not impact your rating ; in fact , many lawyers who are unaware of avvo’s existence have received top ratings . however , a complete profile with relevant information will help to provide more information to the avvo data team and the general public — which help a prospective client choose you over another lawyer .
avvo . i ' m guessing that you have an opinion on the attorney rating site . in this article , we will be looking at avvo , and learning how to use it to the best advantage for your law firm .
- the parking garage is stupid expensive , but avvo doesn ' t have control over that - too many good food trucks near by are making me fatter . - building doesn ' t have a gym , also no avvo ' s
avvo helps attorneys grow their practice by easily connecting them with the millions of people searching for legal help every month .
avvo was created in 2006 to fill a perceived online void in ratings and referral systems for attorneys . avvo strove to make itself different from ( and in its manager’s eyes , better than ) other systems such as findlaw and lexisnexis martindale .
avvo legal services is the latest stage in a remarkable evolution at avvo , which started life as lawyer directory , then added a question - and - answer facility , before its most recent incarnation as a quasi - provider of legal services .
by the way : don’t forget to submit your bar number . this is an important step that many attorney users on avvo overlook . make sure you submit your bar number to avvo to assist in verifying your identity and improving your rating .
in the past , we have published articles on this blog about how avvo can be effectively used as part of a law firm’s overall online marketing campaign . ( see , for instance , “ tips to boost your avvo attorney rating . ” )
avvo was launched in june 2007 by mark britton , the former general counsel of online travel agent , expedia . com .
find your profile in the avvo directory by typing in your first and last name . the screen should look like this :
josh explained that avvo ratings , unlike a m - h rating , decay . not for everyone , but for some . here’s how josh explained it when i asked him whether a lawyer’s rating decline if they don’t continue to participate in avvo :
john henry browne , et al . , plaintiffs , v . avvo , inc . , et al . , defendants .
attorney ronald burdge said he is aware of some of the negative comments about avvo , but that he has
nothing but good things to say
about it . burdge says that when he does seminars on marketing , he tells lawyers
they need to be on avvo and they need to be active with avvo and they need to be using avvo .
while he acknowledges there is some risk , burge believes this is true of anything online today . avvo presents too great of an opportunity to make people aware of their rights , and in the process of helping people you can pick up new clients too .
1 . free advertising . while lawyers can purchase an upgraded avvo membership with extra benefits , most of the avvo services are available for free . all an attorney needs to do is claim his or her profile to begin using the system . ( note that the love many lawyers have for the free advertising on avvo does not necessarily extend to their paid advertising plan . )
the avvo rating is our effort to evaluate a lawyer’s background based on the information available in an attorney’s avvo profile . we create the rating using a model that considers information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information we collect from public sources like state bar associations and lawyer websites . any information that affects the avvo rating is visible in an attorney’s profile .
avvo is a referral company , attorney directory , and lawyer rating service that also offers several other features . as a legal referral service , avvo provides a platform for attorneys to offer fixed - fee , limited - scope , unbundled services to consumers . avvo determines what services will be offered , and attorneys can sign up to provide services in locations for which they are licensed .
“the avvo rating is our effort to evaluate a lawyer’s background based on the information available in an attorney’s avvo profile . we create the rating using a model that considers information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to information we collect from public sources like state bar associations and lawyer websites . any information that affects the avvo rating is visible in an attorney’s profile . ”
michael jacobs , who specializes in auto , workplace and pedestrian accidents , received an avvo ranking of 7 . 0 , or
very good .
but jacobs , who has more than 35 years of legal experience , wondered how avvo derived the score .
so , the fate of previous legal claims against avvo may not give much indication on how these latest court challenges will fare .
further , avvo does not permit attorneys to delete their profiles or to
unclaim
their profiles once claimed . thus , some attorneys feel they are being forced to use avvo against their wills , just to keep incorrect information from being disseminated about them .
avvo also launched a free medical question and answer forum where certified doctors can answer patients’ health - related questions and medical concerns through the avvo website . and , because avvo believes the essence of its offering is the ability to link consumers directly with credible physician resources free of charge , the website also helps doctors to strengthen their medical leadership by inviting them to submit written contributions to avvo’s healthguides ( free research and medical information articles written exclusively by doctors who choose to participate in the avvo website ) . all medical q & a forum answers and healthguides submissions include the featured doctor’s photo and link to his or her contact information – all for free .
further , if a lawyer has been disciplined by his or her state bar association , that information is featured prominently on the lawyer ' s avvo profile . thus , some lawyers are quite pleased that avvo is sharing information that should be known about unethical attorneys .
in the wake of a new jersey ethics opinion prohibiting lawyers in the state from working with online legal service providers avvo , legalzoom and rocket lawyer , the latter two companies have taken steps to right the ship , while avvo says it is considering an exit .
contributor levels , which range from one to 20 , are your “reward” for answering the user - generated questions submitted to avvo’s popular “ask a lawyer” feature . but are they really that rewarding ? in short , is it worth your time to answer avvo questions ?
as to avvo’s possible defense under section 230 of the communications decency act , the judge noted that
[ p ] laintiffs have disavowed any claim based on content that avvo obtained from a third - party and the court need not consider this defense further .
answer box results haven’t shown up heavily in legal . although that might have just changed – specifically for lawyer name searches . google is now pulling data directly from avvo profiles for name search information – pulling titles and work history directly into the search results on a simple name search . this also includes a click through to the avvo website – which could provide avvo with a huge traffic jump .
urltoken is a tremendously powerful tool for attorneys , and having a strong avvo rating — ideally a 10 / 10 — can help direct a significant amount of business to your practice . but in order to harness avvo’s full strength , you need to ensure your attorney profile has been filled out as thoroughly as possible . if you follow these simple tips , your avvo rating should start to climb .
however , you should also be advised that avvo vets each link for quality , authority , and accuracy . if the press release exists only on your website , avvo may reject the link . nonetheless , it’s worth a shot . if avvo accepts the link ( s ) , you’ll see a slight increase in your rating on avvo for each speaking engagement you list successfully . unlike peer endorsements , there does not appear to be a point threshold for how much you can increase your attorney rank on urltoken based on speaking engagements .
let ' s get to the bottom of what avvo is , what ' s to love , and what ' s to hate .
josh king , avvo’s chief legal officer , described bernstein’s lawsuit to the aba journal as being “bizarre” and “completely ludicrous . ” he told the journal that he expects the case to be dismissed . to date , avvo has yet to file an answer to bernstein’s complaint .
if you’re a lawyer , you probably have a profile on avvo at this very moment – even if you didn’t make one yourself . before you can start making changes to your information , the first step you need to take is to claim your profile on avvo .
providing tranparency for the legal consumer… ironically , avvo does provide transparency : it shows which lawyers need to hype themselves to get business .
each lawyer’s avvo rating is derived from a multifaceted mathematical algorithm that weighs many factors . avvo is constantly adapting its system to be as current and impartial as possible , and the algorithm itself is both carefully guarded and regularly updated to prevent attorneys from “gaming” the system .
browne v . avvo , c07 - 0920rsl ( w . d . wash . motion to dismiss granted dec . 18 , 2007 )
healthtap has a similar q & a - style ; service , and will integrate avvo ' s network of doctors into its own . king said avvo had been shopping around the medical side of its business for a little while , and decided healthtap was a good match .
after years of scrutiny from bar association groups , avvo parent company internet brands has decided to scrap the company ' s bespoke service offering .
avvo acknowledges that it does not currently collect criminal records but otherwise
cannot disclose the contents of the avvo rating .
because cnet urltoken agreed not to publish the story until tuesday , we were not able to contact some of the attorneys who received poor scores for comment .
3 . high scores . it ' s probably no coincidence that the lawyers who like avvo the most are the ones who have received relatively high ratings from the system . after all , if your avvo rank indicates you are a mediocre lawyer , how happy could you be with it ? however , if avvo calls you
superb ,
you can ' t help but feel a little flattered . while not all attorneys are going to reach the top scores , with a little work most attorneys can get their avvo ratings up to a reasonable level .
absolutely not . avvo creates a profile for every licensed attorney we are able to locate , and calculates a rating for lawyers who appear to be working with clients . profiles are free to attorneys , and the avvo rating cannot be influenced by advertising or other forms of payment .
if information on your avvo profile is incorrect , out of date , or not dated at all , it’s going to hurt your ranking .
in the beginning , like many curious lawyers , i grabbed my avvo profile and put in some stuff to see what i could make of my rating . it started the day as a 6 . 5 and ended as a 10 , the highest rating avvo gave . we had some fun playing with avvo that day , but our work was done and that was the last time i bothered screwing with my profile .
britton notes that client reviews do not contribute to an attorney’s rating on avvo . although clients can be very passionate about their lawyers , they often have difficulty understanding what constitutes a legal “win” . positive client reviews do , however , help lawyers appear higher in avvo’s sort order .
on june 14 , 2007 , two prominent lawyers in seattle , wa filed a class action lawsuit against avvo inc . , the operator of avvo . com , a website that profiles and rates lawyers and allows users to submit reviews of lawyers they . . . read full description
seattle reviews company avvo announced thursday that it will sell its health business to healthtap , a palo alto company that provides a similar service .
healthtap announced this morning that it has acquired avvo health in an all - cash deal . while the specific terms of the deal weren’t revealed , avvo will be turning over all assets of its health business to they buyer and will be shutting down its health vertical beginning today .
peer endorsements do affect your avvo rating , though reviews do not . this is because peer endorsements - - one lawyer endorsing another’s skills and experience - - are a way to assess industry recognition , which is a factor in how we calculate an attorney’s avvo rating . reviews do play a very important role for people looking to hire an attorney , but we have chosen to not include that information when calculating the avvo rating .
avvo is a website , not a mind - reader . you cannot receive credit for information that isn’t included in your profile . you could be one of the most renowned and accomplished attorneys in your field ; but if avvo doesn’t know that , it won’t help your avvo attorney rating at all . that’s why it’s so critically important to ensure that your profile is as complete as possible . this simply cannot be stressed enough .
it also has been reported that some supreme court justices and law school deans rank lower on avvo than attorneys with little experience or past transgressions .
an attorney may request we remove the rating from their profile , and we honor those requests for attorneys who have not been disciplined and who are not looking for clients . these profiles will read “avvo rating not displayed” , and will not appear on practice area search listings in avvo’s directory .
complaints about the lawyer rating system grew particularly intense in early 2011 when many lawyers discovered their avvo scores had dropped even though nothing had changed in their profiles . avvo indicated that it changed the algorithm used for calculating attorney rankings , which resulted in the ranks of many lawyers being lowered .
avvo’s new medical website offers an easy - to - navigate informational and community forum that delivers patients detailed background on a doctor’s credentials , experience and disciplinary record , as well as a completely unbiased and editorial “avvo rating” for every doctor , and patient and peer ratings , all in one place .
it is free to claim your profile in the avvo directory . avvo pro starts at $ 49 / month and removes competitive ads from your profile page , displays contact information in search results , allows for lead conversion tracking , lets you highlight reviews , and customize your headline . avvo advertising starts at $ 100 / month and gives you sponsored listing at the top of its directory page and a display ad featured on high - traffic pages .
there’s no particular reason not to add a badge , but don’t fixate on this step . an avvo rating badge might have a positive psychological impact on a potential client who’s viewing your profile , but missing a badge won’t affect your ability to achieve a 10 . 0 “superb” rating on avvo . completing your profile will not increase your avvo score , but you cannot attain a perfect 10 rating unless your profile is at least 95 % complete .
well done laura . avvo is a fact for legal professionals so gaining every insight and practice tip is hugely valuable ! thanks for the helpful information .
a second criticism of avvo is their attorney rating system . this aspect of avvo is what makes them stand out the most from other lawyer marketing websites , and has been praised by many non - lawyers . while companies like martindale - hubbell have used a general peer - review system for grading attorneys for many years , avvo goes far beyond a peer - review system and only considers the opinions of other lawyers as one of many factors in evaluating an attorney . avvo gives each attorney a numerical score on a scale of 1 to 10 based on the information in that attorney ' s profile .
avvo goes beyond standard lawyer marketing websites on what it offers to users . while some sites enable lawyers to post their names , addresses , phone numbers , and website ( often for a fee ) , avvo provides a much greater depth of information . avvo allows attorneys to post what is essentially an online resume , providing a place to list academic and employment history , publication credits , awards , and significant cases . lawyers can post links to their own website or to articles they have published ( whether on other sites or on avvo ) , and they can answer legal questions posted by potential clients .
but a heavily funded seattle startup by the name of avvo hopes it can help consumers navigate the legal maze and choose the best attorney for the job .
avvo does not provide any rating in instances where it would not be useful , such as if the attorney is deceased or serving as a public official .
scott , you’re leaving some folks with the impression that your hard - earned honor from the world of bronies contributed to the rise in your avvo rating .
avvo already has strong support from prominent members of the physician community who welcome an online intermediary committed to putting the right information into the hands of patients and ensuring that physician records are validated through a credible third - party channel . supporting avvo’s new medical offering is a world - class board of medical advisors :
for starters , some lawyers discovered that they already have avvo profiles that they did not personally create . avvo mines data that is publicly available to create profiles for attorneys , regardless of whether the attorney is actually using their service . attorneys can then claim ownership of the profile by following a few steps to verify their identities . however , if an attorney fails to claim the profile , then inaccurate or incomplete information about the attorney could be published on the avvo site .
avvo , which also allows consumers and other lawyers to provide feedback on attorneys ' performances , attaches a ranking on a scale from one ( extreme caution ) to 10 ( superb ) . attorneys also are permitted to update their profile pages , though they cannot alter avvo ' s rating or eliminate public record information .
founded in 2006 , avvo has raised $ 132 million to date , including a substantial $ 71 . 5 million round that closed this past july . avvo also offers a q & a forum with more than 9 million questions and answers , along with profiles for 97 percent of practicing lawyers in the united states .
britton is sticking by the rating , saying that browne ' s beef should be
with the public records of the state of washington rather than avvo .
in his complaint , darsky admits that avvo’s attorney listings “may be a permissible first amendment exercise . ” however , he claims , “avvo’s business practices go far beyond that mere exercise” by using the names and likenesses of the attorneys in their directory , without their consent , to sell advertising or marketing services to other attorneys .
additionally , it is the responsibility of attorneys to ensure that any information or advertisements they place on avvo , and any communication they may have with prospective clients through the avvo site , comply with the rules of professional conduct regulating the form , manner , and content of communications with clients , advertising , or other matter .
from a ranking standpoint , probably not . answering questions – and in turn , earning a higher contributor level – will not add points to your attorney score on avvo . com . on a similar note , it is a poor utilization of your time to write legal guides for avvo . considering how time - consuming they are to prepare , review , and submit , avvo’s legal guides yield a poor roi , frequently getting lost in the overwhelming volume of content on the site .
more important to the lawyers actively using avvo is the amount of business it can generate for their law practices . a search for the names of many attorneys will bring that attorney ' s avvo profile up on the first page of google , so the search engine optimization ( seo ) value of their system is very high . some lawyers like having their profiles on a site that has so many consumers looking for information about attorneys , particularly those lawyers who have received a high avvo ranking . other lawyers are discovering that responding to legal questions posted on the avvo website is a great way to get new clients calling or emailing their offices .
on avvo , potential clients can search by specialty and zip code , and they will be presented with a list of ranked possibilities . nothing wrong with that .
avvo will continue to provide their legal answers service , which was their initial focus when they launched in 2007 . they added their health section in november 2010 .
one perceived problem with avvo is that its rating system only takes into account hard facts : time in practice , published cases , and the like . the formula doesn ' t factor in how personable an attorney is , what it ' s like to work with her , and if she returns calls in a timely manner . avvo believes—and states on its website—that to combat this , users must not rely solely on avvo to vet the best possible attorney for any given case . instead , avvo managers encourage those in need of legal advice to look at client ratings , information from the state bar association , and the website or web presence of the attorney . they argue—and i agree—that while an avvo rating should factor into the decision to hire an attorney , it ' s only one piece of the puzzle .
the biggest complaint about avvo is that you are likely listed on the site , whether you approve of the company or want a listing . and more than listed , you are rated . the problem with this is that avvo gets its information from independent internet research , and some of the info has been found to be inaccurate—no shock there ! more than one attorney has checked out their listings on avvo only to find that essential information is incorrect . wrong city , wrong firm name , wrong partner , you name it : avvo can get it wrong . unless you claim your profile , that is . which brings me to my next point .
that means your avvo rating needs to be as high as possible – ideally a perfect 10 / 10 score . whether you’re a bankruptcy attorney , a personal injury lawyer , a criminal defense attorney , or any other type of lawyer , this guide will explain step - by - step how to increase your ranking on avvo .
it ' s the most critical piece of guidance that we provide ,
mark britton , a former vice president of expedia who is avvo ' s chief executive , said about the numeric score .
it ' s our assessment of how good a job that lawyer is going to do for you .
avvo says it has received $ 14 million in funding , including money from benchmark capital and ignition partners , co - founded by microsoft alum and avvo board member brad silverberg .
avvo ' s plan is ambitious : to award a numeric score to every attorney in the united states , along with a profile , client recommendations and peer endorsements .
darsky’s lawsuit points out that , according to a july 2015 bloomberg news article , avvo had a valuation of $ 650 million and raised $ 132 million in funding .
while all endorsements are helpful , it’s important to be aware that some are worth more value than others , depending on their source . avvo endorsements can come from :
when a lawyer is rated av by martindale - hubbell , the rating remains for the rest of his career . yesterday , i learned that avvo ratings don’t work quite the same way . i was told that my avvo rating , 10 as of the end of business on day 1 , had decayed . as of yesterday morning .
“i googled this other guy and he was ranked real high on avvo . your guy had like a 6 . 3 . i went with the better guy . ”
attorneys can lose their licenses for falsifying data , and we don’t believe they will take that risk on their avvo profile . we also rely on our community of users to ensure data on avvo is as accurate as possible . if you see information on an attorney profile that you know to be incorrect , please contact us and we will investigate the issue . if an attorney is found to have intentionally posted false information , it will impact their level of professional conduct and negatively impact their avvo rating .
if you have an avvo rating of “no concern” or “attention” , you can receive a numerical rating by claiming your profile . when you claim your profile on avvo , we will automatically calculate the numerical rating and display it on your profile and in search results . a profile cannot be unclaimed once you have claimed it as your own .
essentially , both lawsuits allege that avvo has been using the identities and likenesses of attorneys who do not advertise or market on urltoken to generate revenue without the attorneys’ consent .
for obvious reasons , endorsements from other attorneys are the most valuable . here’s how many points your avvo score will increase from endorsements , depending on who they come from :
fix mistakes in the public record . if you claim your profile and find that avvo has inaccurate information from your state , you will need to address this with the appropriate organization within your state , asking them to have your record changed . you can alert avvo to the change , or simply wait until they do one of their periodic updates .
one important thing to keep in mind : when linking to your avvo profile from your website , make sure you add the rel = ”nofollow” attribute to the links . this will help ensure that they are not viewed as reciprocated links , and you can retain as much of the benefit of having links from your activity on avvo to your website .
avvo is on a mission to make it easier for everyone to get the legal help they need . but you don’t need to be an attorney to join our . . .
if you type without thinking , you too could be reprimanded by your state bar , something that would most defiantly show up on avvo—and across the web—and negatively impact your image .
avvo started out in 2005 as a lawyer rating and legal question - and - answer forum , and added the doctor reviews and health q & a ; two years ago .
avvo’s legal business is booming , and . . . we’ve decided to focus 100 percent of our attention on expanding our consumer legal services and helping lawyers grow their business ,
mark britton , founder and ceo of avvo , said in a statement .
just as avvo is the premier destination for people looking for legal advice , healthtap is the leading source for trusted answers to health questions and peer - reviewed medical professionals , which makes healthtap the right choice to carry on the conversation between consumers and medical professionals .
i think they will continue doing well in legal ,
gutman said of avvo .
they were excited to sell and it was a quite a competitive deal .
namely , you will only earn avvo points for speaking engagements if you are able to supply a link back to the event . ( supplying links makes the process more transparent and lends credibility for viewers who are browsing through your profile . ) you will gain 0 . 1 point toward your avvo rating for each speaking engagement you are able to link to .
still , because avvo attempts to affix a rating to every lawyer - - just as zillow attempts to place a value on every home - - it is bound to generate controversy .
a venture capital - backed web site called avvo that launches tuesday claims to offer a
game - changing
alternative to the yellow pages for anyone interested in hiring a lawyer .
you should watch these cases as they develop to see if they end up striking at the heart of avvo’s business model – or fare as poorly as previous claims against the company .
as both lawsuits note , avvo has compiled a free online directory of lawyers from states across the country based on information from public records such as bar admissions . each listed lawyer receives an avvo profile page , regardless of whether the lawyer has asked for one . a lawyer can claim the profile and manage the information that is listed or simply leave it alone .
what this means is that if you claimed your avvo profile in the beginning , then did what every thoughtful attorney does and ignored it since , there is a good chance that you’re rating will slide . if you weren’t a baby lawyer back when , and want to keep your rating , you have to go back to avvo and tweak it with new blood .
by now , almost all lawyers know about martindale hubbell’s lawyer ratings , but not everyone is aware of avvo’s ratings . do you know that there might be a profile about you on www . avvo . com , which might display peer and client reviews as well as rating you as a lawyer ? if you know about it , are you happy with your rating ? not all attorneys think their rating is accurate , so i interviewed mark britton , avvo’s founder and ceo , to gain some insights on his company and its lawyer rating system .
plaintiffs ' primary challenge is to the accuracy and validity of the numerical rating system used by avvo to compare attorneys . defendants assert that the opinions expressed through the rating system , (
avvo reports that its directory contains information on more than 95 percent of licensed attorneys in the united states . to come up with a rating for each attorney it lists , avvo takes public information from across the internet ( including your website ) and plugs that data into its ranking algorithm . their algorithm is made up , in part at least , of the following :
we will not change numerical ratings upon request . because the avvo rating is based on a mathematical model that is applied in the same way to every attorney , we are unable to change individual ratings . when you update your profile with more information , your rating may change : the more we know about you , the better we can determine your numerical avvo rating .
both lawsuits seek an injunction that would stop avvo from using the likenesses and identities of the named plaintiffs and other putative class members . they also seek statutory , compensatory and punitive damages .
fees . avvo sets a flat fee for the services attorneys can offer and facilitates a referral to a lawyer who contacts the consumer directly . avvo handles payment processing and transfers fees to a lawyer once the work is complete . lawyers are charged a marketing fee based on the services provided . lawyers perform their own conflict checks and are encouraged to have clients sign a representation agreement .
on june 14 , 2007 , two prominent lawyers in seattle , wa filed a class action lawsuit against avvo inc . , the operator of urltoken , a website that profiles and rates lawyers and allows users to submit reviews of lawyers they have worked with . plaintiffs also sued mark britton , avvo ' s ceo , and 25 anonymous
john doe
users of the site .
having an attorney profile on urltoken is great . if you have any external profiles that you can link to , that’s even better . try to provide the most comprehensive view of yourself possible , showing that you’re active and reliable outside of avvo , too . if you belong to any other groups that rate attorneys , like urltoken or superlawyers . com , let avvo ( and your potential clients ) know . it shows that no matter where or by whom you’re being rated , you’re consistently found to be skilled and knowledgeable , and that can boost your avvo ranking significantly .
britton said that client reviews are just
one leg
of the avvo stool , whose ratings also are generated through peer reviews and information compiled from attorneys ' web sites and other sources .
instead , according to the lawsuits , avvo makes money by selling advertising and marketing space on the lawyer profile pages . the two marketing services that are specifically at issue in the lawsuits are :
mr . browne said he had lost two potential clients thanks to his avvo rating . he would not name the lost clients because , he said , “they have not been indicted yet . ”
beyond the rating basics , avvo offers some other , more
advanced
options . one of these is the ability to pay to have your ad displayed on the website . if you choose , you can also pay to get a premium membership . a premium membership would allow you to come up higher in search results on avvo and remove other attorney advertisements from displaying on your profile .
in interviews with the seattle p - i , browne has called the avvo service a
joke
and said that the poor rating has damaged his reputation and business . the p - i reported friday that browne was pursuing litigation against avvo , but he had not yet retained counsel . with berman in his corner , the criminal defense attorney expressed confidence in a positive outcome in the matter .
the avvo rating is based only on the information we have collected and that the attorney has provided , so we don’t recommend the avvo rating as the only piece of information you use to evaluate whether an attorney is right for you . the rating is a tool that provides a snapshot assessment of a lawyer’s background , and should be considered alongside other information such as client reviews and peer endorsements .
however , in case you don’t want to watch the video , here’s how to request a peer endorsement on avvo . it’s incredibly fast and easy , so there’s no excuse not to do it .
whether avvo , the self - proclaimed lawyer rating service , justified by its altruistic claim that it would bring transparency to lawyers for the benefit of legal consumers , would survive . it’s still there .