Search for almost any Phoenix personal injury attorney and a handful of numbers and badges show up alongside their name — an Avvo score, a Martindale-Hubbell rating, a Super Lawyers mention. These attorney ratings get treated as interchangeable trust signals. They’re actually built from different data and measure genuinely different things. Knowing what each one scores makes them far more useful.
Avvo attorney ratings: an algorithm built from public data
Avvo generates a numeric score largely from public information — years in practice, disciplinary history, professional achievements, and endorsements from peers or clients. An algorithm produces it, rather than a human panel. That makes it fast to generate, but it also means a newer attorney with a clean record can score lower simply for having less public history to draw on, not because of any real deficiency.
Martindale-Hubbell: peer review, old-school
Martindale-Hubbell’s rating system predates the internet and still runs largely on confidential peer review. Other attorneys and judges evaluate a lawyer’s legal ability and ethical standards. An “AV Preeminent” rating reflects a high bar cleared through that peer process, rather than a client-satisfaction score. That’s part of why it’s historically carried weight inside the legal profession specifically.
Super Lawyers: nomination, then vetting
Super Lawyers works through nomination and peer evaluation across more than a dozen weighted factors. It caps recognition at a small percentage of attorneys in each state. It publishes both a “Super Lawyers” tier and a “Rising Stars” tier for attorneys earlier in their careers. Being listed reflects standing among peers in that process, not a guarantee of outcome in any specific case.
What attorney ratings can’t actually tell you
None of these systems can tell you how a specific attorney will handle your specific case, what their current caseload looks like, or whether they personally will be the one working your file. They’re a starting point for research, not a substitute for it. The most reliable verification of an attorney’s basic standing — active license, disciplinary history — still comes from the State Bar of Arizona directly, through the Bar’s own attorney directory, rather than any private ratings platform.
The bottom line
Avvo, Martindale-Hubbell, and Super Lawyers each measure something real, but not the same thing, and none replaces direct research. Use attorney ratings as one input among several — alongside how you choose a lawyer and the questions worth asking at a consultation — rather than the deciding factor on their own.
Frequently asked questions
It’s an algorithm built largely from public data, including years in practice, disciplinary history, and endorsements, rather than a panel review.
It reflects confidential peer review by other attorneys and judges, evaluating legal ability and ethical standards.
No. It reflects standing among peers through a nomination and vetting process, not a guarantee about how any specific case will turn out.
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This article is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship. Attorney ratings are one input among several. Verify any attorney’s standing directly with the State Bar of Arizona before you decide.