NYSBA 2016-07-12

Can a New York lawyer who is also a real estate broker link from the law firm website to a page about the brokerage?

Short answer: Yes. A lawyer may link from the firm site to a real estate brokerage profile if both the site and the linked page comply with the advertising rules; the lawyer must also heed Rule 5.7 on ancillary nonlegal businesses and may not act as lawyer and broker in the same deal.

Disclaimer: Advisory only. Not binding precedent.

About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official ethics opinion. The original opinion (linked at the bottom of this page) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

NY State Bar Ethics Opinion 1101: Linking a law website to a real estate brokerage

Short answer: A lawyer who is also a real estate broker may place a link on the law firm website to a page describing the lawyer's separate broker status, provided both the firm site and the linked page comply with the advertising rules and the lawyer observes Rule 5.7 on ancillary businesses.

Disclaimer: This is an advisory ethics opinion. Advisory opinions are not binding; they interpret the New York State Bar Association's rules of professional conduct and are persuasive authority. This summary is for research purposes only and is not legal advice. Verify current rules before acting on any specific guidance.

About this page: The plain-English summary and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official opinion. We do not reproduce the opinion text on this page; follow the linked source for the official text, which controls.

View original opinion

Plain-English summary

The inquirer was a lawyer and a part-time associate real estate broker. He wanted to add a link on his law firm website to a real estate profile page showing his brokerage background, listings, and the agency's contact information.

The opinion holds that nothing in the Rules forbids the link, as long as it complies with the advertising rules. The committee traced a line of opinions since the late 1970s permitting a lawyer to advertise a law practice and a brokerage together after Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, 433 U.S. 350 (1977) (¶ 3-4). Citing N.Y. State 915 and N.Y. State 888, it noted a firm website may link to a related nonlegal entity if the link does not mislead (¶ 4). Under Rule 1.0(a) and (c), if the link's primary purpose is to facilitate retaining the lawyer, the link and surrounding text become "advertisements" subject to Rule 7.1, so the linked material must not be false or misleading and the "Attorney Advertising" notation must appear on the home page (¶ 5).

The opinion then restated two limits that apply when one person provides both legal and brokerage services. First, because of the personal interest in a commission, a lawyer-broker may not in most instances act as both lawyer and broker in the same transaction, and that personal-interest conflict is ordinarily not consentable (¶ 7). Second, Rule 5.7(a) makes nonlegal services subject to the Rules where the recipient could reasonably believe a client-lawyer relationship covers them; Rule 5.7(a)(4) presumes that belief unless the lawyer gives a written warning that the services are not legal services (¶ 8-10). The committee suggested the linked brokerage pages carry that Rule 5.7(a)(4) warning to avoid confusion (¶ 10).

In practice

Under the New York advertising rules as they stood at the time of the opinion, the link itself is permitted; the constraint is content. If the link's primary purpose is to get the lawyer retained, the linked page is an advertisement and Rule 7.1 governs it (no false or misleading statements, "Attorney Advertising" on the home page). The opinion also flags the conflict line: a lawyer-broker generally may not serve as both lawyer and broker in the same deal, and may avoid Rule 5.7 confusion by stating on the brokerage pages that those services are not legal services.

Common questions

Q: Can a New York lawyer-broker link the law firm site to brokerage listings?

A: Yes, if the firm site and the linked page comply with the advertising rules; the committee found no rule barring the link itself (¶ 4, ¶ 11).

Q: When does the brokerage link become "attorney advertising"?

A: When the link's primary purpose is to facilitate retaining the lawyer, the link and related text are advertisements under Rule 1.0(a) and must comply with Rule 7.1, including the home-page "Attorney Advertising" notation (¶ 5).

Q: Can the lawyer act as both lawyer and broker in the same transaction?

A: Generally no. The opinion repeats that a lawyer-broker may not in most instances act in both roles in one transaction, and that the commission-based personal-interest conflict is ordinarily not consentable (¶ 7).

Background and rules framework

The opinion applies New York Rules 7.1 (advertising; ABA Model Rule 7.1) and 5.7 (responsibilities regarding nonlegal services; ABA Model Rule 5.7), along with the Rule 1.0(a) and (c) definitions of "advertisement" and "computer-accessed communication." Rule 5.7(a) treats nonlegal services as subject to the Rules where the recipient could reasonably believe they are part of a client-lawyer relationship, with a written disclaimer (Rule 5.7(a)(4)) rebutting that presumption.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

MR 7.1 / NY RPC 7.1(a), 7.1(f) (advertising)
MR 5.7 / NY RPC 5.7(a) (nonlegal services)
NY RPC 1.0(a), 1.0(c) (definitions of advertisement and computer-accessed communication)

Cases:

Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, 433 U.S. 350 (1977), extending First Amendment protection to lawyer advertising

Other opinions cited:

N.Y. State 915 (2012), N.Y. State 888 (2011): a firm website may link to a related nonlegal entity if not misleading
N.Y. State 1043 (2015), N.Y. State 1015 (2014), N.Y. State 933: limits on a lawyer acting as both lawyer and broker

Source

Landing page: https://nysba.org/ethics-opinion-1101/