Forget Duplicate Content, What to do With Very Similar Content?

[JSOC]

All,

I operate a Wordpress blog site that focuses on one specific area of the law. Our contributors are attorneys from across the country who write about our niche topic. I've done away with syndicated posts, but we still have numerous articles addressing many of the same issues/topics. In some cases 15 posts might address the same issue. The content isn't duplicate but it is very similar, outlining the same rules of law etc.

I've had an SEO I trust tell me I should 301 some of the similar posts to one authoritative post on the subject. Is this a good idea? Would I be better served implementing canonical tags pointing to the "best of breed" on each subject?

Or would I be better off being grateful that I receive original content on my niche topic and not doing anything?

Would really appreciate some feedback.

John

[johnshearer]

If all 15 comments are written by 15 different people the content would clearly be unique...and you are fortunate to have that sort of engagement. Perhaps you could create a page where you link all the answers in one place..maybe sort out the answers..

You have probably already seen this this http://www.seomoz.org/learn-seo/duplicate-content

Good luck.