By Jack Crittenden

Law School Numbers is one of the most popular websites for law school applicants. It allows them to post information about themselves and compare themselves to other applicants.

But does it provide accurate data? And who runs the site?

The first question is easier to answer than the second.

Law School Numbers relies on law school applicants to submit their data (LSAT scores and GPAs) and then follow up with information about where they were admitted and where they were denied.

It's similar to other software programs such as Naviance, which is a tool used by high school students to access their chances of landing at undergrad schools by using GPA and SAT scores. Some argue these programs gives an unfair advantage to the well-heeled, who can afford such services. In the case of the Naviance, the school purchases the program, and it's free to students. But free is relative. If a public school district subscribes, taxpayers are footing the bill.

Mike Spivey, a law school consultant and a former admissions director at Vanderbilt University Law School in Nashville, Tenn., has written that the number of applicants who submit data to the site is only about 5 percent of the total number of applicants in any given year.

But the numbers are far better for prestigious schools. Spivey posted a column on his blog that was written by a then-applicant, Warren Buff. Buff wrote that the site’s posters represent 10 percent of the applicants at top schools. They also represent a higher percentage of admitted applicants.

“It tells us more about what successful applicants look like than unsuccessful ones,” Buff wrote.

Buff said he feels that Law School Numbers is accurate for top schools, but not necessarily for all schools.

Kyle McEntee, executive director and founder of Law School Transparency, agrees with Buff. McEntee knows something about Law School Numbers. He previously worked on the site, helping to make it more user-friendly.

Law School Numbers was founded in 2003, and McEntee offered his web services in 2008, after he had used the site as an applicant before starting law school at Vanderbilt in 2008.

But who owns Law School Numbers, and why do they run the site? That’s a mystery. McEntee said the owners he worked for in 2008 (whom he declined to name) later sold the site

The website states that Law School Numbers is owned by Meyer Media LLC and is based in San Francisco. But there is no LLC or corporation currently listed under that name in California.

A Meyer Media LLC was previously registered, but its registration has expired. That registration was made by a Southern California accountant named Kyle Mealey, who graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2008. Mealey is unwilling to release the name of the client who hired him to register the entity.

McEntee said he does not know Mealey and that the connection to Vanderbilt is coincidental.

While most websites can be found through a domain-name search, Law School Numbers uses a privacy service based in the Cayman Islands, which conceals the identity of the owners.

As one online sleuth said, companies only go to such lengths to be anonymous when there is a reason.

But why would Law School Numbers want to be anonymous? That remains a mystery.