Lawyer Regulation
Rules Regulating The Florida Bar
4 RULES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT
4-7 INFORMATION ABOUT LEGAL SERVICES
RULE 4-7.5 ADVERTISEMENTS IN THE ELECTRONIC MEDIA OTHER THAN COMPUTER-ACCESSED COMMUNICATIONS
(a) Generally. With the exception of computer-based advertisements (which are subject to the special requirements set forth in rule 4-7.6), all advertisements in the electronic media, including but not limited to television and radio, are subject to the requirements of rule 4-7.2.
(b) Appearance on Television or Radio. Advertisements on the electronic media such as television and radio shall conform to the requirements of this rule.
(1) Prohibited Content. Television and radio advertisements shall not contain:
(A) any feature that is deceptive, misleading, manipulative, or that is likely to confuse the viewer;
(B) any spokesperson’s voice or image that is recognizable to the public; or
(C) any background sound other than instrumental music.
(2) Permissible Content. Television and radio advertisements may contain:
(A) images that otherwise conform to the requirements of these rules; or
(B) a non-attorney spokesperson speaking on behalf of the attorney or law firm, as long as the spokesperson is not a celebrity recognizable to the public. If a spokesperson is used, the spokesperson shall provide a spoken disclosure identifying the spokesperson as a spokesperson and disclosing that the spokesperson is not an attorney.
Comment
Television is now one of the most powerful media for conveying information to the public; a blanket prohibition against television advertising, therefore, would impede the flow of information about legal services to many sectors of the public. However, the unique characteristics of electronic media, including the pervasiveness of television and radio, the ease with which these media are abused, and the passiveness of the viewer or listener, make the electronic media especially subject to regulation in the public interest. Therefore, greater restrictions on the manner of television and radio advertising are justified than might be appropriate for advertisements in the other media. To prevent abuses, including potential interferences with the fair and proper administration of justice and the creation of incorrect public perceptions or assumptions about the manner in which our legal system works, and to promote the public's confidence in the legal profession and this country's system of justice while not interfering with the free flow of useful information to prospective users of legal services, it is necessary also to restrict the techniques used in television and radio advertising.
This rule is designed to ensure that the advertising is not misleading and does not create unreasonable or unrealistic expectations about the results the lawyer may be able to obtain in any particular case, and to encourage the provision of useful information to the public about the availability and terms of legal services. Thus, the rule allows lawyer advertisements in which a lawyer who is a member of the advertising firm personally appears to speak regarding the legal services the lawyer or law firm is available to perform, the fees to be charged for such services, and the background and experience of the lawyer or law firm. The prohibition against false, misleading, or manipulative advertising is intended to preclude, among other things, the use of scenes creating suspense, scenes containing exaggerations, or situations calling for legal services, scenes creating consumer problems through characterization and dialogue ending with the lawyer solving the problem, and the audio or video portrayal of an event or situation. Although dialogue is not necessarily prohibited under this rule, advertisements using dialogue are more likely to be misleading or manipulative than those advertisements using a single lawyer to articulate factual information about the lawyer or law firm’s services.
A firm partner or shareholder, of course, is a "member" of a law firm within the intent of the rule; likewise, a lawyer who is a law firm associate as defined in The Florida Bar v. Fetterman, 439 So. 2d 835 (Fla. 1983) is a firm "member." Whether other lawyers are "members" of a firm for purposes of this rule must be evaluated in light of criteria that include whether the lawyer's practice is physically located at the firm and whether the lawyer practices solely through the firm. There should be a presumption that lawyers other than partners, shareholders, or associates are not "members" of a law firm for purposes of this rule.
The prohibition against any background sound other than instrumental music precludes, for example, the sound of sirens or car crashes and the use of jingles.
[Updated:
01-02-2007
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