Can a lawyer advertise 'Save up to 1/3 on attorney's fees'?

Short answer The committee was of the opinion that an advertisement reading 'Save up to 1/3 on attorney's fees' is inherently misleading, because there is no standard 'attorney's fees' against which such savings could be measured.

Bar

WSBA

Issued

1990

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1990. Ask about yours and see what the current Washington Rules of Professional Conduct say for your facts, with citations.

Disclaimer: Advisory only. Not binding precedent.

About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official ethics opinion. The original opinion (linked on this page) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

Plain-English summary

The inquiry concerned an advertisement reading "Save up to 1/3 on attorney's fees." The committee was of the opinion that the advertisement is inherently misleading because there is no standard "attorney's fees" against which one could measure the claimed savings.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1990, before the Washington State Bar Association's adoption of the 2006 revisions to the Washington Rules of Professional Conduct. Subsequent rule amendments 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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: Can a lawyer advertise a percentage of savings on fees?

A: Under this 1990 opinion, the specific claim "Save up to 1/3 on attorney's fees" was found inherently misleading because there is no standard fee to measure the savings against.

Q: Why did the committee call the ad misleading?

A: Because there is no standard "attorney's fees" baseline; without one, a "save up to 1/3" comparison has nothing to measure against.

Background and rules framework

At the time of this opinion, Washington's RPC 7.1 prohibited false or misleading communications about a lawyer's services, the subject the Model Rules place in Rule 7.1. The committee treated a savings claim measured against a nonexistent standard fee as inherently misleading under that rule.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

ABA Model Rule 7.1 (false or misleading communications)
Washington RPC 7.1

Source

Landing page: https://ao.wsba.org/print.aspx?ID=451

Original opinion text

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

The Committee reviewed your inquiry and was of the opinion that an advertisement reading "Save up to 1/3 on attorney's fees" is inherently misleading because there is no standard "attorney's fees" against which one could measure such savings.

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