I want to publish a newspaper advice column as an advertisement. Does Rule 7.2 let me satisfy the filing requirement by sending Disciplinary Counsel a subscription to the paper instead of each ad?
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This page answers the general question as of 1993. Ezel answers yours: whether it's allowed on your facts, under the current rules of professional conduct in your state, with citations.
Plain-English summary
An attorney proposed to publish in local newspapers an advice column addressing various law-related topics, enclosed a copy of the advertisement, and asked whether the column fell within the scope of Rule 7.2. The attorney also asked whether sending Disciplinary Counsel a subscription to the newspapers would comply with Rule 7.2.
The opinion first notes that the Panel does not undertake the task of editing advertisements for attorneys. It then quotes Rule 7.2(b), which requires that a copy of each print advertisement (other than yellow-page advertisements) be sent to the Supreme Court Disciplinary Counsel prior to or within 48 hours of first dissemination, and that another copy be retained by the lawyer for two years along with a record of when and where it was used.
Applying the Rule, the opinion concludes that mailing a subscription to Disciplinary Counsel is unreasonable because it would require the staff to search out the advertisement in each issue, and therefore does not comply with Rule 7.2. The attorney must send a copy of each print advertisement to Disciplinary Counsel to comply with the Rules of Professional Conduct.
In practice
Under this opinion, the Rule 7.2(b) filing obligation is satisfied only by sending Disciplinary Counsel a copy of each print advertisement itself, within the 48-hour window, not by providing a subscription that would leave the office to locate the ad within each issue. The opinion also states that the Panel does not edit the content of attorney advertisements.
Common questions
Q: Does sending Disciplinary Counsel a newspaper subscription satisfy the Rule 7.2 filing requirement?
A: No. The opinion concludes that a subscription does not comply, because it would require the staff to search out the advertisement in each issue.
Q: What does Rule 7.2(b) require a lawyer to file, and when?
A: The opinion quotes Rule 7.2(b) as requiring a copy of each print advertisement to be sent to the Supreme Court Disciplinary Counsel prior to or within 48 hours of first dissemination, with another copy retained by the lawyer for two years.
Q: Will the Panel review the content of a proposed advertisement?
A: No. The opinion states that the Panel does not embark on the task of editing advertisements for attorneys.
Background and rules framework
The opinion interprets Rhode Island Rule of Professional Conduct 7.2, the analog of Model Rule 7.2, governing lawyer advertising. Rule 7.2(b) sets a filing-and-retention requirement: a copy of each print advertisement (other than yellow-page advertisements) must be sent to Supreme Court Disciplinary Counsel prior to or within 48 hours of first dissemination, and another copy must be retained by the lawyer for two years along with a record of when and where it was used.
Citations and references
Rules of Professional Conduct:
- MR 7.2 (advertising)
- RI RPC 7.2(b) (filing a copy of each print advertisement with Disciplinary Counsel; two-year retention)
See also
Source
- Landing page: https://www.courts.ri.gov/attorney-resources/Pages/Ethics-Advisory-Panel-default.aspx
- Original PDF: https://www.courts.ri.gov/Opinions/EAP%2093-09.pdf
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
Final
ETHICS ADVISORY PANEL
Opinion #93-9, Request #339
Issued March 15, 1993
An attorney seeks Panel advice with regard to the ethical propriety of a print advertisement. The attorney proposes to publish in local newspapers an advice column regarding various law related topics. The attorney encloses a copy of such advertisement and asks whether the column falls within the scope of Rule 7.2. In addition the attorney would like to know if a subscription to the newspapers to the Disciplinary Counsel's office would comply with Rule 7.2.
It is important to note that the Panel does not embark on the task of editing advertisements for attorneys.
Rule 7.2(b) entitled "Advertising" states that: A copy of each print advertisement (other than yellow page advertisements), . . . shall be sent to the Supreme Court Disciplinary Counsel prior to or within 48 hours of the first dissemination of such advertisement and another copy of each print advertisement . . . shall be retained by the lawyer for two years after its last dissemination along with a record of when and where it was used.
The attorney's suggestion of mailing a subscription to the Disciplinary Counsel is quite unreasonable to expect the staff to search out advertisement in each issue; and therefore is not in compliance with Rule 7.2. The attorney must send a copy of each print advertisement to the Disciplinary Counsel in order to comply with the Rules of Professional Conduct.
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