Shpoonkle
Encyclopedia
Shpoonkle.com is an interactive reverse auction
web site that provides a marketplace where lawyers and potential clients can connect. Shpoonkle aims to help its users find more affordable legal assistance. It also aims to provide a venue where lawyers can find casework.
. As a law student Robert Niznik argues that legal assistance is often too expensive for many people to obtain. He says he conceived Shpoonkle as a means to make access to the law more affordable. In 2011, The Wall Street Journal
quoted Niznik: "Middle-class Americans who don't qualify for legal aid
but also can't afford to pay for legal advice have few other places to go." Niznik conceived the reverse auction model as a marketplace where legal fees would fall to rates well below the $284 per hour national average.
Many young lawyers, struggling to repay student loans, could benefit from an online legal marketplace. In several interviews Niznik has referred to the decline in American legal jobs, citing a study by the Northwestern University Law School that found that since 2008 over 15,000 attorney and legal-staff jobs have been eliminated and that according to Forrester Research
, about 50,000 American legal jobs will be outsourced overseas by 2015.
, wrote about Shpoonkle in his blog, Simple Justice: "Any lawyer who signs up for this service should be immediately disbarred, then tarred and feathered
, then publicly humiliated." Susan Cartier Liebel, in her blog Solo Practice University, wrote: "Here you have a race to the bottom
as lawyers bid against one another to pay the lowest fee to anonymous clients with legal problems." And lawyer Charles Cooper wrote in his blog, NonTradLaw: "Why the ridiculous name? Is the service provided not demeaning enough to lawyers already without adding to their shame?" A less critical discussion of Shpoonkle in The Wall Street Journal called it an "eBay
for lawyers" and the ABA Journal
called Shpoonkle "a playfully named Web site that allows attorneys and law firms to bid on legal requests submitted by clients."
again wrote about Shpoonkle stating that "Shpoonkle may have a funny-sounding name, but it is no joke." NBC Miami featured a story on Shpoonkle and how it is saving money for consumers with free services.
In July 2011, the The Docket The Denver Bar Association wrote Change isn’t always bad, my friends … even with a name like Shpoonkle."
There is a shift in the legal profession and virtual practices are becoming a reality. As Hank Peters of Bitter Lawyer
says: "BigLaw, meet Shpoonkle." Gregory Karp wrote in the Chicago Tribune
that "technology is a huge help for consumers to spend money smarter." In August 2011, the Wall Street Journal stated that Shpoonkle uses a competitive bidding model to match customers with attorneys and smaller law firms. The average hourly fees its clients pay are a third of the national average, which hovers around $280 an hour."
Reverse auction
A reverse auction is a type of auction in which the roles of buyers and sellers are reversed. In an ordinary auction , buyers compete to obtain a good or service, and the price typically increases over time...
web site that provides a marketplace where lawyers and potential clients can connect. Shpoonkle aims to help its users find more affordable legal assistance. It also aims to provide a venue where lawyers can find casework.
History
Shpoonkle was founded by Robert Grant Niznik, a 21 year-old third year student at New York Law SchoolNew York Law School
New York Law School is a private law school in the TriBeCa neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. New York Law School is one of the oldest independent law schools in the United States. The school is located within four blocks of all major courts in Manhattan. In 2011, New York Law School...
. As a law student Robert Niznik argues that legal assistance is often too expensive for many people to obtain. He says he conceived Shpoonkle as a means to make access to the law more affordable. In 2011, The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
quoted Niznik: "Middle-class Americans who don't qualify for legal aid
Legal aid
Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people otherwise unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right to counsel and the right to a fair trial.A number of...
but also can't afford to pay for legal advice have few other places to go." Niznik conceived the reverse auction model as a marketplace where legal fees would fall to rates well below the $284 per hour national average.
Many young lawyers, struggling to repay student loans, could benefit from an online legal marketplace. In several interviews Niznik has referred to the decline in American legal jobs, citing a study by the Northwestern University Law School that found that since 2008 over 15,000 attorney and legal-staff jobs have been eliminated and that according to Forrester Research
Forrester Research
Forrester Research is an independent technology and market research company that provides its clients with advice about technology's impact on business and consumers. Forrester Research has five research centers in the US: Cambridge, Massachusetts; New York, New York; San Francisco, California;...
, about 50,000 American legal jobs will be outsourced overseas by 2015.
Controversy
Even before Shpoonkle was officially launched, it became the subject of controversy within the legal community. Scott Greenfield, a noted New York criminal defense lawyerCriminal defense lawyer
A criminal defense lawyer is a lawyer specializing in the defense of individuals and companies charged with criminal conduct. Criminal defense lawyers can be permanently employed by the various jurisdictions with criminal courts. Such lawyers are often called public defenders. For a much more...
, wrote about Shpoonkle in his blog, Simple Justice: "Any lawyer who signs up for this service should be immediately disbarred, then tarred and feathered
Tarred and Feathered
"Tarred and Feathered" is a song by English punk rock band Dogs and is featured on their debut album, Turn Against This Land. Released on November 28, 2005, it was the fifth and final single taken from the album....
, then publicly humiliated." Susan Cartier Liebel, in her blog Solo Practice University, wrote: "Here you have a race to the bottom
Race to the bottom
A race to the bottom is a socio-economic concept that is argued to occur between countries as an outcome of regulatory competition, progressive taxation policies and social welfare spending...
as lawyers bid against one another to pay the lowest fee to anonymous clients with legal problems." And lawyer Charles Cooper wrote in his blog, NonTradLaw: "Why the ridiculous name? Is the service provided not demeaning enough to lawyers already without adding to their shame?" A less critical discussion of Shpoonkle in The Wall Street Journal called it an "eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
for lawyers" and the ABA Journal
ABA Journal
The ABA Journal is a monthly legal trade magazine and the flagship publication of the American Bar Association. It claims to be "read by half of the nation's 1 million lawyers every month"...
called Shpoonkle "a playfully named Web site that allows attorneys and law firms to bid on legal requests submitted by clients."
Reception
In June 2010, the ABA JournalABA Journal
The ABA Journal is a monthly legal trade magazine and the flagship publication of the American Bar Association. It claims to be "read by half of the nation's 1 million lawyers every month"...
again wrote about Shpoonkle stating that "Shpoonkle may have a funny-sounding name, but it is no joke." NBC Miami featured a story on Shpoonkle and how it is saving money for consumers with free services.
In July 2011, the The Docket The Denver Bar Association wrote Change isn’t always bad, my friends … even with a name like Shpoonkle."
There is a shift in the legal profession and virtual practices are becoming a reality. As Hank Peters of Bitter Lawyer
Bitter Lawyer
BitterLawyer.com is a legal humor and news blog targeted at disgruntled lawyers. The site features a webshow titled Living the Dream, created by Rick Eid, which follows the bumblings of fictional big law junior associate Nick Conley . Accompanying blog posts describe the real-life inspirations...
says: "BigLaw, meet Shpoonkle." Gregory Karp wrote in the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
that "technology is a huge help for consumers to spend money smarter." In August 2011, the Wall Street Journal stated that Shpoonkle uses a competitive bidding model to match customers with attorneys and smaller law firms. The average hourly fees its clients pay are a third of the national average, which hovers around $280 an hour."