May a lawyer publish a notice in a general-circulation legal newspaper announcing availability to serve other lawyers in a specialized field, and may the notice describe his past industry experience?

Plain-English summary

The committee was asked whether a lawyer could publish a notice in the Daily Legal News or a similar legal publication announcing that, after a long career in a specialized field in industry, he was available for a limited number of appointments to consult with attorneys on government contracts and labor and industrial relations problems. The committee read the inquiry as turning on Canon 46, which it quoted in its 1956-amended form: a lawyer available to act as an associate of other lawyers in a particular branch of the law may send to local lawyers only, and publish in his local legal journal, a brief and dignified announcement of his availability, in a form that does not state or represent special experience or expertness.

The committee explained that before the 1956 amendment only a lawyer in "a specialized legal service" could use the canon, and the Association recognized no specialized services except admiralty, patent, and trademark law. Citing its own Advisory Opinion No. 195 (May 5, 1958), it accepted that a brief, dignified announcement directed to lawyers only may be sent to local lawyers and published in a local legal journal. The decisive point was the publication chosen: the committee concluded that the Daily Legal News is by statutory definition a paper of general circulation, with wide readership outside the Bar, and is therefore not a "legal journal" within the meaning of the canon, so advertising in that type of publication is improper.

The committee added that the announcement could not be cast in a form intended to advertise special experience or expertness, and that the proposed text was improper because it referred to the attorney's past experience. It set out an acceptable form that stated only the lawyer's availability to consult on government contracts and labor and industrial relations, with name and address and without the self-laudatory recital.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1962, decades before Oklahoma replaced its original Rules of Professional Conduct (patterned on the ABA Canons of Professional Ethics) with the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct (adopted 1988) and the later Ethics 2000 revisions. The advertising and solicitation restrictions underlying this opinion no longer reflect current law: the United States Supreme Court held in Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, 433 U.S. 350 (1977), that categorical bans on truthful lawyer advertising violate the First Amendment. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against current rules before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Could the lawyer place the availability notice in a general-circulation legal newspaper?

A: No. The committee concluded that Canon 46 allowed publication only in a local legal journal, and that the Daily Legal News, as a paper of general circulation reaching readers outside the Bar, was not a "legal journal" within the canon.

Q: Could the notice describe the lawyer's specialized industry background?

A: No. The committee found the drafted notice improper because it referred to the attorney's past experience, and the canon required a form that did not state or represent special experience or expertness.

Q: What form of announcement would have been acceptable?

A: The committee set out a stripped-down version stating only the lawyer's availability for a limited number of appointments with attorneys to consult on government contracts and labor and industrial relations, with name and address, omitting the recital of past service.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied Canon 46 of the Canons of Professional Ethics, as amended in 1956 and adopted in Oklahoma, which governs announcements by a lawyer of his availability to act as an associate of other lawyers in a particular branch of the law. It relied on the Association's earlier Advisory Opinion No. 195 construing the same canon. The opinion predates the Model Rules and made no Model Rule citation.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Canon 46 (ABA Canons of Professional Ethics, as amended 1956, adopted by the Oklahoma Bar): permits a brief, dignified announcement of availability to serve other lawyers, sent to local lawyers and published in a local legal journal, without representing special experience.

Other opinions cited:

• Oklahoma Advisory Opinion No. 195 (May 5, 1958): a brief, dignified availability announcement directed to lawyers only may be sent to local lawyers and published in a local legal journal.

See also

• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 195: Firm reorganization announcements in legal publications
• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 214: FAA-qualified examiners list and bonded lawyers
• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 216: Writing or thanking jurors after trial

Source

• Landing page: https://www.okbar.org/ethics/ethics-opinion-no-219/

Original opinion text

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

Adopted October 18, 1962

INQUIRY

An attorney desires to publish a notice in the Daily Legal News or similar legal publication as follows:

“TO LAWYERS ONLY: After a lengthy period of service in a highly specialized legal field in industry, the undersigned is available for a limited number of appointments with attorneys for consultation and assistance in connection with legal and regulatory problems peculiar to government contracts and labor and industrial relations. (Name and Address)”

Would it be proper for the lawyer to advertise in the above manner?

OPINION

This inquiry necessitates an interpretation of Canon 46 which was amended in 1956 and now reads as follows:

“A lawyer available to act as an associate of other lawyers in a particular branch of the law or legal service may send to local lawyers only and publish in his local legal journal, a brief and dignified announcement of his availability to serve other lawyers in connection therewith. The announcement should be in a form which does not constitute a statement or representation of special experience or expertness.”

Prior to the 1956 amendment, only a lawyer engaged in “a specialized legal service” could utilize the provisions of said canon and the Oklahoma Bar Association recognizes no specialized legal services except admiralty, patent and trademark law. The amendment to Canon 46 has been recognized by this Association. In Advisory Opinion No. 195, dated May 5, 1958, it was said:

“A brief, dignified announcement directed to lawyers only and announcing only the availability of the lawyer to act as an associate in a particular branch of law may be sent to local lawyers and published in a local legal journal.”

If the proposed announcement were to be published in a “legal journal” it would, with the elimination of the self-laudatory phrases, be permitted; however, the Daily Legal News is by statutory definition a paper of general circulation and it and similar publications do in fact have a wide circulation outside the Bar, and in our opinion are not “legal journals” within the meaning of the canon. Therefore, it is improper to advertise in this type of publication.

It should be further noted that the announcement should not be in a form intended to advertise special experience or expertness. The announcement, as set out above, would be improper in that it refers to the attorney’s past experience. An acceptable form would be as follows:

“The undersigned is available for a limited number of appointments with attorneys for consultation and assistance in connection with legal and regulatory problems peculiar to government contracts and labor and industrial relations. (Name and Address)”