Men and women differ in hiring lawyers - Attorneys - Brief Article - Statistical Data Included

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Dec, 2001

According to a study conducted for lawyers.com, a legal website for individuals and small businesses, by Yankelovich Partners, men and women don't always see eye to eye when it comes to selecting, hiring, and using legal counsel, as evidenced by a few of the statistics derived from the poll:

* About 70% of men and 66% of women have hired an attorney at one time or anther.

* Women are more likely to require a lawyer for financial reasons such as estate planning (55% vs. 45% for men), while men are more likely to need legal representation in or against lawsuits (31% vs. 22% for women).

* 79% of females say it's more important that they feel they can trust their lawyer vs. 69% of males.

* 35% of women take into consideration how likeable an attorney is before making their hiring choice vs. 25% of men.

* 29% of men agree that they do not know how to find a good lawyer, compared to 23% of women.

* 12% of females report that not knowing where to start the search for an attorney would limit their ability to research their options, compared to eight percent of males.

* 62% of women consider an attorney's expertise in a particular field of law to be important vs. 54% of men.

* When it comes to their decision-making for legal counsel, 32% of women reported being extremely satisfied, compared to 24% of men.