Terms of use

These Terms of Use are the rules for using Legal Bearings. By using this website, asking to be matched with a lawyer, or using our tools, guides, or forms, you agree to these terms.

Legal Bearings is a free education and lawyer-matching service. We are not a law firm. We do not give legal advice, and we do not act as your lawyer. Legal advice means advice about what you should do in your specific case. Only a licensed attorney, which means a lawyer approved by a state to practice law, can give that kind of advice.

We try to make legal information easier to understand, especially for immigrants and non-native English speakers. But the information on this site is general education only. Laws change. Rules can be different by state, city, court, and agency. For advice about your own situation, talk with a licensed attorney.

We help people learn about common legal topics and connect with participating attorneys. If you use our free matching service at how it works or get matched, we may share the contact details you give us with a lawyer who handles that type of matter in your state.

Legal Bearings is paid a flat fee by participating attorneys for marketing and matching services. That means we do not take a percentage of your legal fees, and we do not take a share of any settlement or award.

We do not promise that a lawyer will take your case. We do not promise any result. A match is not the same as hiring a lawyer. An attorney-client relationship, which means the legal relationship between you and your lawyer, usually begins only after you and the lawyer both agree to work together.

Please do not treat messages sent through this website as private legal advice. Until a lawyer confirms that they represent you, do not send very sensitive documents or details you would not want shared for the purpose of finding a lawyer.

When you use Legal Bearings, you may give us information like your name, phone number, email address, state, and a short description of your legal issue. We use that information to operate the site, respond to you, and, if you ask, try to match you with a participating attorney.

Our privacy page explains more about how we collect, use, and share information. It also explains that we do not need full medical history or other extra details just to help with a match. Share only what is needed to describe your issue.

If you give us your phone number or email and ask us to contact you, you agree that Legal Bearings or a participating attorney may contact you about your request. These messages may include calls, emails, or texts. Message and data rates may apply. You can usually opt out of texts by replying STOP, or stop emails by using the unsubscribe link when available.

We try to protect information we receive, but no website or message system is perfectly secure. Because of that, please use care when sending documents or private facts online.

We work hard to keep the website useful, current, and available. But we cannot promise that the site will always be error-free, complete, secure, or available at all times. Information may be delayed, incomplete, or out of date.

We also cannot guarantee the quality, speed, price, availability, or results of any attorney or legal service. Lawyers are independent professionals. They make their own decisions about whether to offer a consultation, what fee to charge, and whether to accept a matter.

To the fullest extent allowed by law, Legal Bearings provides the site and content "as is." That means without promises that everything will always work perfectly for every user. If you rely on information from this site, you do so at your own risk. For important legal decisions, speak with a licensed attorney.

If a dispute comes up from your use of this site, the law that applies, and the rights available, may depend on where you live and other facts. These terms do not limit rights that the law does not allow us to limit.

The text, design, logo, and other content on Legal Bearings belong to Legal Bearings or its licensors unless stated otherwise. You may read, print, and use the material for personal, non-commercial use. Please do not republish, sell, scrape, or copy large parts of the site without permission.

Some pages may link to outside websites or services. We provide those links for convenience only. We do not control those outside sites, and we are not responsible for their content, policies, or security.

We may update these Terms of Use from time to time. When we do, the updated version will apply when posted on this site. If you keep using the site after changes are posted, that usually means you accept the updated terms.

If you do not agree with these terms, please do not use the site. If you want help finding a lawyer, you can still use our free matching service at get matched. If you need advice about your own rights or case, talk with a licensed attorney.