advertising and solicitation Flashcards
in the past many states had complete bans on atty ads – what changed it?
Bates!
SCOTUS held that these bans violated the First Amendment.
- States cannot ban ads, but some states highly regulate.
what are the pros of atty ads
access to justice – ads may let people know they need a lawyer
Drives price
Free speech principles
Free online advertisement
Humanizes the lawyers
what are the cons of atty ads
Make profession look corny
Costly
Emphasizes non legal skills
Increases in frivolous lawsuits
Misleading
what is 7.1 rule on ads
Communications about the lawyer/lawyer’s services cannot be false or misleading.
what does it mean for a communication to be false or misleading
material misrepresentation of fact or law or omits a fact necessary to make the statement considered as a whole not materially misleading.
are omissions of statements false/misleading?
what about things that are true but misleading?
yes and yes
what are considered communications see comm one
Ads, office signs, business cards, letterheads
why are disclaimers added to the ads
Disclaimers are often included in ads to proactively rebut any suggestions that they are misleading /Cures the misleading nature of ads
what is important to note about disclaimers
they must ACUTALLY cure the misleading nature of the ads
under 7.1 when is a firm name misleading
Layer not associated with the firm
Name of a non lawyer
Lawyer who hold public office
can the name of dead or retired partners be the firm name
yes
if someone says they are certified on an ad, what is actually required for this ot be okay
Must actually be certified
when can an ad say someone specilaies in an area of law
as long as its not false or misleading
what does the ad need to include for the purpose of the bar and enforcement
communication must include name and contact info of at least one lawyer or law firm responsible for its content lawyer
what is solicitation
a communication initiated by a lawyer or firm
directed to a specific person the lawyer knows or reasonably should know needs legal
services in a particular matter, and
- offers to provide legal services for that matter.
what is not an example of solicitation
billboards directed at the general public
whats the rule about live person to person solicitation
live person to person solicitation is prohibited when done for pecuniary gain
Includes zoom but not email, snail mail text
what is the excpetion to the ban on live person to person solicitation
(1) other lawyers;
(2) familial, close personal, or prior professional or business relationship (including current and former clients)
(3) routine business users of the type of legal services offered by the lawyer or firm
what can solication never do, regardless if an excpetion applies
1) the target someone the lawyer knows does not want to be solicited
(2) involves coercion, duress or harassment.
in re primus – the forced steriliation case
Primus informed sterilization victims about their legal rights and mentioned the prospect of future litigation.
Mary Etta Williams, previously sterilized by Dr. Clovis H. Pierce, attended the meeting.
The following month, Primus learned that the ACLU would provide representation for sterilization victims. Allen informed Primus that Williams wanted to pursue a lawsuit against Dr. Pierce.
Primus wrote Williams on letterhead of the Carolina Community Law Firm and told her about the opportunity for ACLU representation.
Primus had no further contact with Williams, but was publicly reprimanded by the state supreme court for directly soliciting a prospective client.
The issue in this case is whether a state law violates the First Amendment if it stops a nonprofit organization from directly asking potential clients to join a lawsuit, especially when the lawsuit is about political expression for the public good and the nonprofit won’t directly control the lawsuit.
live solicitation still permitted. L’s interests are not primarily pecuniary
