Can a Texas lawyer advertise that he was formerly a military attorney, and does that claim require a board-certification disclaimer?

Plain-English summary

The inquiry asked whether a lawyer may state in a public advertisement that he was formerly a military attorney in the armed forces, and whether such an advertisement would be a claim of specialization requiring a disclaimer.

The Committee concluded that descriptions of previously held job titles are not expressly prohibited by the Disciplinary Rules. It noted that EC 2-10 lists information that may be published in lawyer advertising but is not an exclusive list, citing Opinion 418 (1984), which had allowed areas of non-legal study to be included. On that basis, including a former military-attorney title would not be misleading and could help a person selecting an attorney.

On the disclaimer question, the Committee found that advertising such a job title would give both civilian and military readers the impression that the attorney has expertise in the area of law involving military personnel. Because that is not an area recognized by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, DR 2-101(C)(2) requires the advertisement to state "Not Certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization" and permits the additional statement that no designation has been made by the Board for a certificate of special competence in the area. The Committee found the statement proposed by the inquiring attorney insufficient because it omitted the mandatory disclaimer. By a 9-0 vote, the Committee held that military job titles related to legal experience may be included in advertising, but job titles implying expertise within an area of law must include proper disclaimers.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1985, under the former Texas Code of Professional Responsibility, which the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct replaced effective January 1, 1990. The Disciplinary Rules have since been amended, and Texas never adopted the ABA's Ethics 2000 framework. The current Texas rules on advertising and communication of fields of practice are in Part VII (Rules 7.02-7.04), with closest ABA analogs Model Rules 7.1 and 7.4. Subsequent rule changes or later opinions may 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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 Texas lawyer advertise that he was a former military attorney?

A: Per the opinion, yes. The Committee concluded that a former military-attorney job title related to legal experience may be included in advertising, because such information is not prohibited, is not misleading, and may help a person selecting a lawyer.

Q: Did the ad require a disclaimer?

A: Yes. The Committee concluded the title conveys an impression of expertise in the area of law involving military personnel, which is not recognized by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, so DR 2-101(C)(2) requires the "Not Certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization" disclaimer.

Q: Why was the attorney's proposed statement insufficient?

A: The Committee found the proposed statement did not include the mandatory disclaimer required by DR 2-101(C)(2) and was not technically in conformity with the optional additional disclaimer the rule permits.

Background and rules framework

The opinion interprets DR 2-101(C)(2) of the former Texas Code of Professional Responsibility (requiring a "Not Certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization" disclaimer for advertised areas not recognized by the Board) together with EC 2-10 on permissible advertising content. The closest current concepts are Texas Rules 7.02-7.04 and Model Rules 7.1 and 7.4 on advertising and communication of fields of practice. The analysis turns on whether a job title conveys an impression of expertise in an area of law.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• MR 7.1 (communications concerning a lawyer's services)
• MR 7.4 (communication of fields of practice and specialization)
• DR 2-101(C)(2), EC 2-10, Texas Code of Professional Responsibility

Other opinions cited:

• Texas Professional Ethics Committee Opinion 418 (1984): areas of non-legal study may be included in advertising; EC 2-10 is not an exclusive list

See also

• TX Ethics Op. 428: Listing Fields of Law in a Legal Directory
• TX Ethics Op. 440: Specialization Claims on Firm Letterhead and Business Cards
• TX Ethics Op. 425: Lawyer's Educational Newspaper Column on Taxation

Source

• Landing page: https://www.legalethicstexas.com/resources/opinions/opinion-424/
• Original PDF: https://tcle-web.s3.amazonaws.com/public/documents/Opinion_424.pdf

Original opinion text

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

QUESTION PRESENTED

May a lawyer state in a public advertisement that he was formerly a military attorney while in the armed forces?
Would such an advertisement be considered to be a claim of specialization in an area of law and thus require a disclaimer?

DISCUSSION

Descriptions of job titles previously held are not expressly prohibited by any of the Disciplinary Rules of the Texas Code of Professional Responsibility. EC 2-10 allows certain information to be published in advertising by an attorney, and does not list former job titles as one of the permissible topics; however, EC 2-10 is not an exclusive list. See State Bar of Texas Professional Ethics Committee Op. 418 (1984). No prior opinions prohibit publishing such information. Just as Opinion 418 allowed areas of non-legal study to be included, the inclusion of this type of information would not be misleading and may be helpful to one selecting an attorney.

The question of whether a disclaimer is required hinges on whether allowing the above-mentioned job titles constitutes a claim of specialization in an area of law. The undeniable impression that both a civilian or a member of the military would receive from the advertising of these job titles is that the attorney has expertise in the area of law involving military personnel, regardless of whether this is a bona fide "area of law." Since this is not an area recognized by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, DR 2-101(C)(2) provides that the advertisement must state "Not Certified by the Texas Board of Specialization" and may additionally state "No designation has been made by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization for a Certificate of Special Competence in this area." The statement recommended by the attorney who has presented the question to the Committee does not include the mandatory statement noted above, and is thus insufficient. It is also not technically in conformity with the latter disclaimer above.

The military job titles related to legal experience may be included in advertising.

Job titles implying expertise within an area of law must include proper disclaimers under a strict construction of these rules. (9-0)

CONCLUSION

The military job titles related to legal experience may be included in advertising.

Job titles implying expertise within an area of law must include proper disclaimers under a strict construction of these rules. (9-0)

Tex. Comm. On Professional Ethics, Op. 424 (1985)