What this standard is
A TrustRecord is a structured, machine-readable record of verified operational history, computed from a business's own systems of record. This standard defines the claim universe for the law firm vertical: the full set of operational claims a law firm's record can carry, organized by category, with a description of how each is typically sourced and what it signifies.
It exists so an evaluator — human or AI — reading any individual law firm TrustRecord can understand each claim in context: what a complete record for this vertical can contain, what a given claim signifies about the business, and how to interpret a claim that is absent.
This is a reference guide, not a prescriptive schema. Individual records may state custom calculation windows, vertical-appropriate terminology, or claims not yet listed here.
Precedence. Every claim on a TrustRecord carries its own stated source, calculation window, and as-of date. Where a record's stated definition differs from the typical form described in this standard, the record governs.
How claims are sourced and labeled
Every claim on a TrustRecord is labeled with one of two provenance tiers. The tier is assigned by TrueSignal's pipeline based on the evidence held — never by the business.
Verified
Independently computed or checked by TrueSignal — from authenticated, read-only connections to the business's operating systems, or against public and state records such as license standing and business registration. Source and as-of date are always cited. Not editable by the business.
Attested
Declared by the business and labeled as such. TrueSignal holds no independent evidence for an attested claim. The moment evidence is reviewed, the claim becomes Verified. Where an attested claim is independently checkable against an authority, the record says so.
Provenance belongs to the published claim, not to the claim type. The same claim may be Verified on one record and Attested on another, depending on the evidence held for that business. Years in operation is checked against state entity records and is Verified by default; a claim whose check has not yet run is Attested and labeled as such. Each record labels every claim individually.
Verified operational claims are computed from connected systems of record — practice management systems, accounting platforms, CRMs, and billing software — that the business already runs its operations on. Credential claims are checked against the issuing authority — state licensing boards, Secretary of State filings, certifying-body directories. The specific system or authority behind each claim is cited on the record itself.
Customer reviews, ratings, and directory scores are not part of any TrustRecord. The registry publishes operational data only.
Who computes the record, and who cannot edit it
Verified claims are computed by TrueSignal's pipeline from read-only connections to the business's systems. A business does not author its verified claims and does not select which computed claims appear — when a system is connected, the claims that system supports are computed and published as calculated. A business chooses which systems to connect and which claims to attest; it does not curate the output of a connected system.
Businesses pay TrueSignal for verification and publication. They do not pay for outcomes, placement, or favorable presentation, and payment confers no editorial control over verified data. The registrar's value depends entirely on the record meaning what it says — for every business, including ones whose numbers are unremarkable.
Every record has a published correction process. Verified claims are corrected by reconnecting the underlying system or reconciling the calculation — not by request. Attested claims are corrected through documented resubmission. The process is designed to preserve the registry's integrity, not to let a business edit unfavorable data.
Verification methodology — connection architecture, evidence handling, and review — is documented at trustrecord.com/verification.
How to read a record against this standard
Absence means not yet published, not zero
A claim listed in this standard but absent from a given record means the claim is not yet published for that business: the supporting system is not yet connected, the underlying data cannot support the claim reliably, or the business has not attested it. Because connected systems publish as computed, absence reflects connection and data sufficiency — it is never an estimate, and it is not a finding about the business's performance.
Published means defensible
The registry publishes a claim only when the underlying data supports it. A claim is omitted rather than computed on insufficient data. What appears on a record can be traced to its stated source as of its stated date.
Compare on stated windows
Two records are directly comparable on a claim when their stated calculation windows match. Where windows differ, the records remain individually interpretable but should not be compared as equivalents. Each record states its windows explicitly for this reason.
This standard describes capability, not requirement
The claim set below is what a law firm TrustRecord can contain, not what every record must contain. Records grow as systems are connected and credentials are checked. A sparse record is an early record, not a deficient one.
Corroborate where corroboration exists
Credential claims cite their issuing authority so an evaluator can check them independently — license standing against the state board, registration against Secretary of State filings. Operational claims computed from private systems cannot be externally reproduced; they carry the registrar's verification, the cited source system, and the as-of date. Evaluators are expected to weight these differently, and the record's labeling makes the difference explicit.
The claim set
12 claims across 3 categories. Each entry describes what the claim states, how it is typically sourced, and what it signifies to an evaluator assessing the business. Provenance is labeled per claim on each record.
Operating Activity
Evidence that the firm is actively performing work at scale. Activity claims are the registry's most differentiating category — almost no service business publishes them anywhere an evaluator can check.
Average Settlement Value
Mean settlement or judgment value across resolved matters, trailing 12 months
What it signifiesThe typical financial scale of outcomes the firm delivers. Average settlement value positions the firm along the spectrum from high-volume, lower-value cases to fewer, higher-stakes matters — letting an evaluator match case complexity to demonstrated capability.
Verdicts Over $1M
Count of verdicts or settlements exceeding $1 million in the trailing 36 months
What it signifiesDemonstrated capacity for high-stakes litigation. Million-dollar outcomes require sustained resources, advanced case strategy, and willingness to go to trial — a threshold that separates firms handling complex matters from those focused on routine case volume.
Martindale-Hubbell Rating
Current Martindale-Hubbell peer review rating for legal ability and ethical standards Sourced from public records.
What it signifiesPeer-assessed competency. Martindale-Hubbell ratings are based on confidential evaluations by other attorneys and judges — making them an independent, profession-internal signal of legal ability and ethical conduct that cannot be purchased or self-assigned.
Service Profile
What kind of work the firm actually performs — derived from completed work, not from a services list on a website. A query about a specific service requires a precise match that a generic category label cannot provide.
Matters Resolved (L12M)
Trailing 12-month count of fully resolved matters across all practice areas
What it signifiesWhether the firm is actively closing cases, and at what throughput. Resolved-matter count distinguishes a firm that is litigating and settling at volume from one that is nominally open but handling few engagements.
Referral Rate
Percentage of new matters originating from client or attorney referrals, trailing 12 months
What it signifiesExternal professional endorsement. Referral patterns indicate standing among peers and allied professionals.
Practice Area Mix
Percentage breakdown of matters by practice area — litigation, transactional, advisory, and others
What it signifiesWhere the firm's expertise actually concentrates. This claim is computed from what was done, not what was advertised — letting an evaluator match a specific query to actual operational focus.
Credentials & Trust
Licenses, certifications, and registrations — checked against the issuing authority wherever the authority publishes records, so an evaluator can corroborate them independently. Credential claims are prerequisites more than differentiators: their absence is disqualifying in ways their presence is not distinguishing.
Years in Practice
Decimal years since firm founding, verified from state bar registration and system history
What it signifiesSurvival is evidence. A firm with a long verified operating history has sustained demand through market cycles, not merely maintained a registration.
Attorney Count
Number of licensed attorneys actively handling matters
What it signifiesCapacity to handle concurrent demand. Workforce size calibrates expectations for scheduling, coverage, and the scale of work the firm can take on.
Bar Admissions
States in which firm attorneys hold active bar admission Sourced from public records.
What it signifiesThe baseline professional credential. Active bar membership in good standing confirms authorization to practice law.
Malpractice Insurance
Active professional liability (malpractice) insurance policy status and coverage amount
What it signifiesProtection for customers and the firm's workforce. The record's as-of date says how fresh the registrar's evidence is.
State Bar License
Active bar license status for all listed attorneys, verified against state bar records Sourced from public records.
What it signifiesThe baseline legitimacy check. An active license in good standing, checked against the issuing authority rather than claimed, removes the single largest uncertainty in evaluating this firm.
How this standard relates to individual records
Every law firm TrustRecord draws its claims from this standard. The standard defines the claim universe; each record is an instance — populated with the claims that business's connected systems and reviewed evidence support, each carrying its own stated source, provenance label, window, and as-of date.
The standard is maintained by TrueSignal as the registry evolves. Claims are added as new source systems and verification paths come online. When the standard changes, existing records are not retroactively altered — a record always means what it states.