Can a Florida lawyer list an out-of-state lawyer's name on the firm letterhead when they work together but are not partners?

Plain-English summary

A member asked whether a Florida lawyer may include on his letterhead the name of a lawyer who does not practice in Florida, where the two work jointly on numerous legal matters.

The committee concluded it is ethically improper to include the out-of-state lawyer's name on the letterhead. It recognized that there are circumstances in which it is proper to list an attorney actually associated with a Florida firm even though that attorney is not admitted in Florida, and that there is some authority governing the letterheads of interstate partnerships. But in the case presented, no partnership existed between the Florida lawyer and the out-of-state attorney, so there appeared no justification for including the out-of-state attorney's name. The committee quoted Drinker's treatise: "A lawyer's stationery should not be used to advertise his connections with lawyers in other places or to bring their names before his correspondents."

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1964, before The Florida Bar's adoption of the 2006 revisions to the Rules of Professional Conduct. The opinion applied former Canons 27 and 33 of the Canons of Professional Ethics; the published opinion maps the analysis to current Rules 4-7.11 (advertising generally) and 4-7.21 (firm names and letterhead) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar (Model Rules 7.2 and 7.5). Florida's advertising rules were also substantially affected by Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, 433 U.S. 350 (1977), decided after this opinion. Subsequent rule amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against the current rules before relying on any specific requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Could the firm list the out-of-state lawyer on its letterhead?

A: No. With no partnership between them, the committee found no justification for putting the out-of-state lawyer's name on the Florida firm's letterhead.

Q: Are there situations where a non-Florida lawyer's name can appear?

A: The committee acknowledged some: an attorney actually associated with a Florida firm though not admitted in Florida, and interstate partnerships, which have their own authority. Those were not the facts here.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied former Canons 27 (advertising) and 33 (partnerships and firm names) of the Canons of Professional Ethics. Those subjects are now addressed by Rules 4-7.11 (advertising generally) and 4-7.21 (firm names and letterhead) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar (Model Rules 7.2 and 7.5). The committee's concern was that letterhead not be used to advertise a connection that did not exist as a partnership.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Canon 27 [Canons of Professional Ethics; advertising; see current Rule 4-7.11]
• Canon 33 [partnerships and firm names; see current Rule 4-7.21]

See also

• FL Bar Ethics Op. 67-2: An Out-of-State Office on Partnership Letterhead
• FL Bar Ethics Op. 65-25: A Two-Office Firm's Letterhead

Source

• Landing page: https://www.floridabar.org/etopinions/etopinion-64-59/
• Original PDF: https://www-media.floridabar.org/uploads/2017/04/FL-Bar-Ethics-Op-64-59-2.pdf

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

FLORIDA BAR ETHICS OPINION
OPINION 64-59
September 21, 1964
Advisory ethics opinions are not binding.
It is improper to include on the letterhead of a firm the name of an out-of-state lawyer if no partnership exists between the Florida lawyer and the out-of-state lawyer.
Canons: 27 [See current 4-7.11], 33 [See current 4-7.21]
Chairman Smith stated the opinion of the committee:
A member of The Florida Bar desires to know whether it is proper for a Florida lawyer to include on his letterhead the name of a lawyer who does not practice here when the Florida lawyer and the out-of-state lawyer work jointly on numerous legal matters.
It is the opinion of our Committee that it is ethically improper to include on the letterhead the name of the out-of-state lawyer. There are some circumstances when it is proper to list on the letterhead an attorney actually associated with a firm in Florida although the attorney is not admitted to practice in this State. There is also some authority governing letterheads of interstate partnerships. In the case presented, however, apparently no partnership exists between the Florida lawyer and the out-of-state attorney and there would appear no justification whatsoever for including the out-of-state attorney's name on the letterhead. Drinker, Legal Ethics, p. 230, states that:
'A lawyer's stationery should not be used to advertise his connections with lawyers in other places or to bring their names before his correspondents.'