May a lawyer be listed in a civic club or Chamber of Commerce directory if he pays an extra fee, or if the directory circulates outside the membership?

Plain-English summary

The committee was asked whether attorneys who belong to a civic club or Chamber of Commerce may let their names appear in a classified portion of the organization's directory if they must pay an extra fee for inclusion, or if the directory is distributed outside the organization's membership.

On the first question, the committee said it is improper for an attorney to purchase a listing in any directory except an approved law list under Canon 43, so paying "extra" for the listing is improper. On the second, applying the same canon as construed in its Opinion No. 170, the committee concluded that if the directory is distributed beyond the organization's membership, including an attorney's name in a classified section is prohibited unless all members of the Bar in the community are included.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1964, 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 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, and directory listings are treated differently today. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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 a lawyer pay an extra fee to be listed in his civic club's directory?

A: No. The committee said Canon 43 bars purchasing a listing in any directory except an approved law list, so paying extra for inclusion is improper.

Q: Could a lawyer be listed if the directory went out to the general public?

A: Only if all members of the Bar in the community were included. The committee said outside-the-membership distribution prohibits a classified listing of one attorney unless every local lawyer is listed.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied Canon 43 of the Canons of Professional Ethics, adopted in Oklahoma, which restricts a lawyer's directory listings to approved law lists, to classified listings in civic club and Chamber of Commerce directories. It relied on its own Opinion No. 170 construing the same canon. The opinion predates the Model Rules and made no Model Rule citation.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Canon 43 (ABA Canons of Professional Ethics, adopted by the Oklahoma Bar): bars a lawyer from purchasing a directory listing except in an approved law list.

Other opinions cited:

• Oklahoma Opinion No. 170: a classified directory listing distributed beyond an organization's membership is prohibited unless all local Bar members are included.

See also

• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 226: Multiple classifications in a city directory
• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 227: Solicited listing in a private classified directory
• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 224: Paid "Who's Who" directory listings

Source

• Landing page: https://www.okbar.org/ethics/ethics-opinion-no-225/

Original opinion text

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

Adopted April 16, 1964

INQUIRY

Is it proper for attorneys who are members of a civic club or Chamber of Commerce to permit their names to be included in a classified portion of the directory published by such organization if:

(1) They must pay an extra fee for such inclusion, or

(2) The directory is to receive distribution outside the membership of the organization?

OPINION

It is improper for an attorney to purchase a listing in any directory except an approved law list (Canon 43). Obviously, therefore, if he pays “extra” for such listing it is improper. Under the construction of the same Canon in Opinion No. 170, if the directory receives distribution beyond the membership of the organization, the inclusion of an attorney’s name in a classified section is prohibited unless all members of the Bar in the community are included therein.