Basic Ethics For Lawyer Advertising
The State Bar of Wisconsin provides some guidelines on lawyer advertising that every lawyer should be aware of. The following blog post will discuss these guidelines, which include what lawyers may not say about themselves and what constitutes false, misleading, or deceptive advertisement. It also covers some other restrictions for lawyer advertising such as "Don't Quote Your Own Advertising".
Your State Bar Lawyer Advertising Guidelines
The Wisconsin State Bar Association (WSBA) regulates all lawyer advertising in the state. They have done an excellent job of providing guidelines to follow when you are creating your own legal marketing plan. All lawyers in the state of Wisconsin must follow the provisions of advertising rules #9, #10, #11 and #12. Here is a brief summary of each rule.
Rule 9 - Advertising Problem Areas
Here are some common areas that are problematic for lawyer advertising:
· Guarantees or promises of results or success (when one cannot be made with reasonable certainty)
· Referral to other attorneys in your firm
· Use of trade names, logos or catch phrases that can be mistaken as an endorsement by the State Bar association. The State Bar only endorses one product: "Find a Lawyer" which is available on their website at: http://discoveradlawyer.com
· Use of your own picture in a television or radio ad (which is deceptive because it suggests the viewer has an appointment, which they do not have)
· "Don't Quote Your Own Advertising" (see more below)
· Claims that you are a "trial lawyer" – because no lawyer who is not a "specialist" in trial law can predict whether or not a case will go to trial. The vast majority of cases are settled before trial, and even if the case does go to trial it is impossible to predict how that case will turn out until after the fact.