Need information about lawyer advertising regulations? There’s a webpage for that
The latest information for complying with lawyer advertising regulations is a mere mouse click away.
To reach The Florida Bar’s “Advertising and Regulation Information” webpage, simply point the cursor here: www.floridabar.org/advertising.
The page is compiled under the supervision of Bar Ethics Counsel Elizabeth Tarbert and is packed with valuable resources.
For starters, the page includes links to the advertising rules themselves, and guides readers to Chapter 4 Rules of Professional Conduct, and Rules 4-7.11 through 4-7.22 of Subchapter 4-7, Rules Regulating The Florida Bar.
The page is packed with links and helpful guides, including the “Handbook on Lawyer Advertising and Solicitation.”
Published by the Standing Committee on Advertising, the handbook is a convenient reference “that gives general information on lawyer advertising, how to file advertisements with The Florida Bar, current rules regarding advertising, and sample ads for reference,” the page states.
Individual links include, “Sample Advertisements,” “Advertising Filing Requirements,” “Cover Sheets,” “Guidelines,” “Checklists,” “Qualifying Providers/Lawyer Referral Services,” and “Resources.”
Regarding advertising filing requirements, the page describes the Board of Governors Policy on Review of Advertisements, and notes that on March 8, 2014, the Board of Governors adopted a new policy interpreting Rule 4-7.19 regarding filing and review of lawyer advertisements, that became effective July 1, 2014:
“Any change of any kind to an advertisement renders the advertisements a new advertisement with a new filing fee of $150 per timely filed advertisement and $250 per untimely filed advertisement,” the page states. The only exception, the page notes, “is a revision to an existing advertisement that is solely to comply with a Bar opinion that the advertisement does not comply with the lawyer advertising rules, for which no additional fee will be charged. Any change includes, but is not limited to, any change to wording, illustrations photographs, typographical marks, layouts, or color scheme.”
The page includes a quick-reference checklist with items that are “intended to assist in developing advertisements that comply with the lawyer advertising rules, and are not a substitute for filing the advertisement as required by Rule 4-7.19.”
“Furthermore,” the page notes, “even if all the questions are answered ‘NO,’ it does not mean a particular advertisement complies with the lawyer advertising rules.”
The checklist items include, “direct mail,” “email,” “internet banner ads,” “print ads,” “targeted social media,” and “TV & radio.”
