Tennessee Bar Rules for Attorney Advertising

Before you launch a new website or internet marketing strategy for your law firm, consider the bar rules in Tennessee related to attorney marketing. The first step is reading the applicable rules found in Chapter 7 which deals with how attorney communicate information about their legal services to the public. The rules found in Chapter 7 include:

• Rule 7.1Communications Concerning a Lawyer’s Services
• Rule 7.2Advertising
• Rule 7.3Solicitation of Potential Clients
• Rule 7.4Communication of Fields of Practice and Specialization 
• Rule 7.5Firm Names and Letterheads
• Rule 7.6Intermediary Organizations

The bar rules on advertising deal with different topics including making comparisons with the services or fees of other lawyers, accepting endorsements by clients, making comments on fields of practice, using lead generators, discussing prior results in advertisements or on a website, and retaining a copy of the advertisements.

Additional information can be found in the comments to each rule and the advisory ethics opinions interpreting the rules.

If you don't follow these rules, you might be subjected to disciplinary action. For this reason, it is important to find a website design and internet marketing company that understands the bar rules in Tennessee for attorney advertising.

At Lawyer Legion, we developed this online attorney directory to help the public find a lawyer in the State of Tennessee. This online attorney directory also provides information on legal organizations and lawyer referral services located throughout the state.

Our parent company, Internet Lava, LLC, builds websites and internet marketing strategies for lawyers across the United States. Contact us to find out more about the services we can provide to your law firm.

Call 1-800-292-5282.

Resources for Attorney Ads in Tennessee

2018 Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct - Visit the website of the Tennessee Bar Association to find the 2018 EDITION of the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct, with all amendments in effect as of and through October 31, 2017. The index and finding aids to the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct were adapted from an index contained in Model Rules of Professional Conduct by the American Bar Association.

Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct - Visit the website for the Tennessee State Courts to find the ethical rules and rules of professional conduct all attorneys licensed in Tennessee must abide by when engaging in communications or advertisements.

Tennessee Ethical Rules and Opinions - Visit the Tennessee Bar Association website to access the ethical rules and ethics opinions, in addition to an overview of the rules of professional conduct in Tennessee. The Tennessee Bar Association can be contacted at:

Tennessee Bar Association
221 4th Avenue N., Ste. 400
Nashville, TN 37219
Phone: (615) 383-7421

Tennessee Bar Rules Information Center

• Tennessee Bar Rule Guidelines
• Truthful Information on Tennessee Lawyer Websites
• Tennessee Attorney Website Disclaimers
• Practice Areas on Tennessee Legal Websites

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Tennessee Bar Rule Guidelines

Attorney advertisements and other types of communications can include written, recorded or electronic communication, public media, in addition to websites and content published on the internet by the attorney or law firm. These forms of communications by attorneys and law firms are regulated by the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct.

According to Rule 7.2, a copy of all attorney and law firm advertisements must be retained for a period of two years after the advertisement was last used. The attorney must also save information about when and where the ad was used.

The comments to Rule 7.2 of the Rules of Professional Conduct state that an attorney is permitted to advertise the following on their website:

• Name, address and phone number of the attorney or law firm;
• The services the attorney provides;
• The attorney's foreign language ability;
• Names of clients regularly represented (if the attorney has first obtained the client's consent);
• Whether credit cards or other payment services are accepted;
• The prices of specific services;
• Names of references; and/or
• The basis of how fees are determined.

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Truthful Information on Tennessee Lawyer Websites

As stated in Rule 7.1 of the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct, an attorney may not make a statement that is false or misleading. The Rule states a communication may be false or misleading if it contains a material representation of law or fact. The statement, even when true, could be considered false or misleading if it omits a fact that is necessary to make a statement (when taken as a whole) not materially misleading.

Examples of misleading truthful statements can include:

• Statements that omit a fact that is necessary to make the attorney's communication not materially misleading when taken as a whole;
• Statements that are substantially likely to cause a reasonable person to create an unfounded specific conclusion about the attorney or the services they provide;
• Past case results of former clients may be misleading if they cause a viewer of the website to create an unjustified expectation that the results could be attained in a similar case; and
• A comparison of the attorney's fees or services to that of another attorney may be misleading if they cannot be factually substantiated.

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Tennessee Attorney Website Disclaimers

According to the comments to Rule 7.1 of the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct, an appropriate disclaimer or qualifying language should be included when making any statement on the attorney's website if the statement is likely to create an unjustified expectation to the viewer of the website or otherwise mislead the viewer.

A disclaimer or disclosure that is suitable for an attorney's website should appear the same as other content, in the same manner, with equal prominence and with the same legibility as other content on the attorney's website.

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Practice Areas on Tennessee Legal Websites

According to Rule 7.4 of the Rules of Professional Conduct, an attorney or law firm may state on their website whether they do or do not practice in a particular field of law.

However, an attorney may not state they are a specialist, specializes in, is certified or is recognized as a specialist in a particular field of law, unless:

• The attorney may use the term "Patent Attorney" or something substantially similar if the attorney is admitted to engage in a patent practice before the United State Patent and Trademark Office; or
• The attorney has been certified as a specialist in a field of law by the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization;
• The Tennessee attorney has been certified as a specialist by an organization recognized or accredited by the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization.

An attorney who has been certified as a specialist must include one of the following disclosures on their website:

• "[Attorney] is certified as a specialist in [field of law] by the Tennessee Commission on C.L.E. and Specialization," or
• "[Attorney] is certified as a specialist in [field of law] by [organization]."

This article was last updated on Tuesday, June 11, 2019.