Could a lawyer pay to run a card stating he specializes in insurance litigation in a weekly insurance trade magazine that endorses him to its readers?

Plain-English summary

A bar member paid to place his card in a weekly insurance magazine circulating primarily among insurance salesmen and claim men. The card stated that he specialized in handling insurance litigation, and the magazine was published each week with a statement endorsing and recommending him. The query asked whether the member was guilty of unethical practice.

The Board answered in the affirmative. Rule 45 permits inserting a professional card in a reputable law list, but the magazine described was not a reputable law list for two reasons: its prime purpose was not the listing of attorneys, and by circulating the names of its lawyer subscribers among prospective clients it engaged in solicitation of business by advertisement for the lawyer, in violation of Rule 29, which prohibits the "solicitation of business by ... advertisements."

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1935, 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 flat ban on advertising and solicitation it applied was later narrowed by constitutional decisions on lawyer advertising, beginning with Bates v. State Bar of Arizona (1977). Subsequent rule amendments and case law have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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 advertise a specialty in an industry trade magazine?

A: Not under this opinion. The Board held that a card in an insurance trade magazine reaching prospective clients was unethical solicitation by advertisement, not a permitted listing in a reputable law list.

Q: Why was the trade magazine not a reputable law list?

A: The opinion gave two reasons: the magazine's prime purpose was not listing attorneys, and circulating subscribers' names among prospective clients amounted to soliciting business by advertisement under Rule 29.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied Rules 29 and 45 of the canon-era Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct: Rule 45's limit allowing a card only in a reputable law list, and Rule 29's bar on soliciting business by advertisement. It predates the Model Rules and made no Model Rule citation.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Rule 29 (1929 Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct): prohibits the solicitation of business by advertisements.
• Rule 45 (1929 Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct): permits a professional card only in a reputable law list.

See also

• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 95: A card in a directory circulated to laymen
• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 92: Paid photograph and name in a newspaper edition

Source

• Landing page: https://www.okbar.org/ethics/ethics-opinion-no-98/

Original opinion text

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

Adopted December 26, 1935

Query:

"A member of the State Bar pays for the privilege of placing his card in a weekly insurance magazine circulating primarily among insurance salesmen and claim men. The card states that the member specializes in handling insurance litigation. The magazine is published each week under the statement that it endorses and recommends the member.

Query:

Is the member of the bar guilty of unethical practice?"

In response:

The question must be answered in the affirmative. Rule 45 of the Rules of Professional Conduct permits the insertion of his professional card in a reputable law list. The magazine described is not a reputable law list for two reasons: (1) It is not a publication for the prime purpose of which is the listing of attorneys. (2) By circulating among prospective clients the names of its lawyer subscribers, it is engaged in the solicitation of business by advertisement for the lawyer subscriber in violation of Rule 29 of the Rules of Professional Conduct of the State Bar of Oklahoma. By that rule the lawyer is prohibited from the "solicitation of business by … advertisements."