LegalMatch. Photo: shutterstock

California's state bar has rejected LegalMatch's request for certification as a lawyer referral service and called again on the South San Francisco company to "cease and desist all operations" in the state.

In a June 23 letter to LegalMatch chief operating officer Anna Ostrovsky, bar program supervisor Lauren McCurdy presents more than seven pages of alleged "deficiencies" in the company's March application.

In an email to The Recorder, Ostrovsky said the issues the bar identified were "technicalities" that could be addressed within a week.

"I find it very troubling that while the State Bar has focused its energies on shutting down our operations or suing us for damages while we are doing our best to comply, there are currently certified referral services that don't meet some of the technical issues laid out by the State Bar's letter and numerous other referral services that have not applied for certification at all," Ostrovsky wrote. "We hope going forward the State Bar chooses to work with us in a collaborative manner so that we can jointly 'help Californians find qualified lawyers that best match their needs.'"

The bar's letter said certain panel attorneys do not carry required insurance and that LegalMatch has not established clear qualifications for lawyers asserting a specialized practice focus. The bar also alleged LegalMatch's automatic referral service doesn't provide clients a way to get technical help if they have a problem. And the site's promotional materials don't comply with state bar rules, the bar's letter said.

LegalMatch is continuing to operate illegally as an uncertified lawyer referral service, McCurdy said in the letter.

"Accordingly, unless and until LegalMatch obtains certification by the State Bar, it must cease and desist all operations in California and its attorneys may not accept referrals until such time as LegalMatch is duly certified," McCurdy wrote.

McCurdy also warned that lawyers who accept referrals from LegalMatch could face bar discipline.

The letter is the latest skirmish in the battle between the bar and LegalMatch over the site, which promises users they can "find the right lawyer now."

The bar sued LegalMatch in San Francisco County Superior Court in May, alleging that it was operating illegally under California attorney referral rules. Judge Ethan Schulman of the San Francisco Superior Court, however, rejected the bar's request for a temporary restraining order to stop LegalMatch's services, noting that bar officials were still reviewing LegalMatch's application. The remaining lawsuit continues, with a case management conference set for October.

The suit followed a decision in an unrelated case by the First District Court of Appeal, upheld by the California Supreme court earlier this year, that concluded LegalMatch is operating as an unauthorized lawyer referral service.