Committee on Professional Ethics Topic: Attorney Newsletters; Advertisement Digest of the Committee: Whether a publication by a lawyer or law firm is an ‘advertisement’ depends on its content, its intended purpose, and the targeted audience. With certain exceptions, if a publication is an advertisement, it must be labeled ‘Attorney Advertising,’ and if it makes certain […]
Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility – Formal Opinion 10-457 Topic: Lawyer Websites “Websites have become a common means by which lawyers communicate with the public. Lawyers must not include misleading information on websites, must be mindful of the expectations created by the website, and must carefully manage inquiries invited through the website. Websites that […]
The New York City Bar Committee on Professional Ethics prepared a series of common questions regarding New York’s lawyer advertising and solicitation rules that were adopted within the past few years and included in the Rules of Professional Conduct that became effective in April 2009. The full text is available at http://www.nycbar.org…
Committee on Professional Ethics Topic: Lawyers Referrals of Clients Digest of the Committee: E-mails to other lawyers requesting referrals of clients are not ‘solicitations’ regulated by Rule 7.3. However, the e-mails must comply with Rules 7.4 and 8.4(c). Rules: New York Rules of Professional Conduct 1.0(a), 1.5(g), 7.1, 7.3, 7.3(b), 7.4, 8.4(c) The full text is […]
Ethics Committee Topic: Obligations of a Lawyer who Receives Confidential Information via Law Firm Website or Telephone Voicemail From the opinion “Standing alone, publication of a telephone number in a yellow pages advertisement cannot reasonably be construed as an invitation by the lawyer or firm to an individual to submit confidential information. The Committee believes the lawyer does […]
Opinion No. 342 of the District of Columbia Bar’s Legal Ethics Committee Topic: Internet-Based Lawyer Referral Services Digest of the Committee: Lawyers may participate in both not-for-profit and for-profit lawyer Internet-based referral services where the services require a flat fee for participation, a flat fee for transmitting the lawyer’s name to a potential client, and/or […]
Committee on Professional Ethics Explains: Opinion No. 779 (2004) Topic: Advertising and solicitation; internet website directory Digest of the Committee: “Lawyer may not participate in website that charges lawyer a fee to provide information about potential clients whom lawyer will then contact, where the website purports to analyze the prospective client’s problem and selects which […]
ISBA Professional Conduct Advisory Opinion No. 06-02 [This Opinion was AFFIRMED by the Board of Governors in January 2010] Topics: Law firm use of marketing firm. Lawyer as speaker at community events. Use of non lawyer to screen potential clients. Digest of the ISBA: “A lawyer is responsible for marketing firm’s conduct that would be in […]
Professional Ethics Committee for the State Bar of Texas Topic: Internet; Referral Services Conclusion of the Committee: Under the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, a lawyer may pay a fee to participate in an internet client-lawyer connection service of the type described in this opinion provided that the requirements specified in this opinion are […]
Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee Topic: Lawyers’ Use of Television Advertising Program When the activities of a company that produced television commercial for attorneys operate under certain requirements described in the relevant opinion (such as for example monthly flat fee, no matching services, callers do not pay the company, etc.) they “do not […]