Frequently asked questions
The questions attorneys actually ask.
Plain answers, grounded in how the directory works and what the contract says. If a question is missing — or an answer reads like it's dodging — write the team at founders@gettortl.com and the page will be updated.
I
How the directory works
Verified, not ranked.
- How are attorneys ordered?
- Every attorney who clears the bar is shown in a random order that rotates daily. There is no ranking. Presentation is identical for everyone — no attorney appears higher, and none appears first for paying. How the bar and the ordering work is documented in full on the how-it-works page.
- Can an attorney pay to appear higher?
- No. There is no higher. There is no position to buy — the entire point of tortlconnect is that no attorney can pay to be seen first. The $149 subscription buys a listing, identical to every other listing, never a place in line.
- Can I filter the list?
- Yes. You narrow by neutral, verifiable facts — language, location, case type, whether the attorney is accepting clients. You choose; tortl never decides which filter matters. Narrowing is the consumer choosing, never tortl choosing for them.
- What if nothing matches my filters?
- tortl tells you plainly and names the filter doing the work, then lets you relax it. It never quietly drops a criterion to fill the screen. If nothing matches at any distance, it points you to your state bar's referral service.
- How do you know what's true on a profile?
- Every fact is labeled by source. Bar standing and licensure come from bar data and are shown as verified. Anything an attorney tells us about themselves is shown as attorney-attested, in the open, so the consumer always knows what is checked and what is claimed.
II
Business + billing
What the listing costs, and what it doesn't.
- Why $149? Does it go up?
- $149 a month is the founding rate, and it is locked for the life of the listing. No escalators, no tiered upsells, no surprise increases when the platform matures. The rate exists because launching a directory requires the attorneys who agree to be on it before there's a consumer flow — and the people who sign on at the founding stage get the price that reflects that risk.
- Is the fee flat, or are there per-lead charges?
- Flat. The founding subscription is a single monthly listing fee, the same for every attorney. There are no per-lead charges, no auctions, and nothing an attorney can pay to change where they appear — because there is no position to change. One product, one price.
- Can I pause my listing?
- Yes. Pause is a single toggle in your dashboard. It removes you from the directory and halts billing — the $149 base does not bill while paused — without canceling your listing or your founding rate. Use it when you hit your own caseload limit, when you're out on trial, or when you just need a quiet week, and toggle it back on whenever you want to be listed again; the $149 resumes on your next billing date. Cancellation, if you want to leave entirely, is month-to-month with no exit fee.
- Do you sell my data to other directories?
- No. tortl does not sell or syndicate attorney profile data, lead information, or consumer case data to third-party lead brokers or directories. Consumer information passes to you only when the consumer initiates contact through the app.
III
Compliance + ethics
How tortlconnect is structured.
- Is tortlconnect ABA Model Rule 7-compliant?
- tortlconnect is a flat-fee directory listing. Every attorney pays the same $149 a month regardless of case volume, value, or outcome. The subscription buys a listing, never a place in line, and never a share of any recovery. That is the structure the Model Rules and most state analogs treat as a directory. Each attorney remains responsible for confirming compliance under their own state's rules, and tortl provides the listing documentation needed for that review.
- What about state advertising rules — Florida's 30-day, Texas pre-filing, and so on?
- tortl is consumer-initiated. A user opens the app, completes their own intake, and is then shown every qualifying attorney in a random order they filter themselves. tortl does not contact accident victims on an attorney's behalf, and does not mail or call them within a state's solicitation window. Attorneys do not contact the consumer first — the consumer reaches out through the in-app message thread. That sequencing is intended to keep state solicitation rules out of the critical path; the attorney is still responsible for their own advertising posture on their profile copy.
- How are conflicts of interest handled?
- Contact itself does not create a representation. When a consumer messages an attorney through tortl, the attorney runs their normal conflict check before accepting. If the check fails, the attorney declines through the dashboard and the consumer returns to the directory to choose again. The footer language on every page is explicit: no attorney-client relationship exists until the attorney accepts representation in writing.
- How is bar verification done?
- At onboarding, tortl verifies bar standing against the public bar directory for each state the attorney lists. A standing check re-runs periodically; if an attorney's status changes — suspension, disbarment, voluntary inactive — the listing is paused automatically and the attorney is notified to resolve before the listing resumes.
IV
Onboarding + practical
What signing up looks like.
- How long does onboarding take?
- About ten minutes of attorney time, plus a verification step that runs in the background. The form collects licensed states, practice areas, whether you are accepting clients, and language coverage — the neutral, verifiable facts consumers filter on. A founding listing typically goes live within two business days of submission.
- How many inquiries should I expect?
- Inquiry volume depends on state, practice area, and how many attorneys the consumer's filters leave on their screen. Listings in launched states begin receiving inquiries as soon as the consumer flow opens in summer 2026. There is no guaranteed count — a consumer contacts whoever they choose from the attorneys who qualify.
- Can multiple attorneys in my firm share one listing?
- A tortlconnect listing is per-attorney, because the verified facts on it — bar standing, licensed states, practice areas — are per-attorney. Firms with multiple personal-injury attorneys can list each one separately under a shared firm record; per-attorney billing applies, and the firm dashboard rolls up intake and messaging across the team.
Still have questions?
The team reads every message and updates this page when an answer is worth publishing.
Email founders@gettortl.com for product or pricing questions, or legal@gettortl.com for compliance review. Both inboxes go to a human.
Free until launch