Ethical Marketing of Legal Services
Thursday, August 19, 2010, 3:00 – 5:00 pm
Toll-Free Teleconference w/ Online Powerpoint
2.0 Live WA MCLE ETHICS Credits
(Approved #261934)
$110 1st attorney / $85 each add'l att’y (same line)
The first requisite of practicing law is attracting
clients. Are you considering marketing your services, or expanding existing
marketing? Whether you use
traditional media, the latest social networking media, email newsletters, or
some combination thereof, it is imperative that you comply with Chapter 7 and
other applicable provisions of the RPCs.
This two-hour teleconference gathers together the key provisions of the
RPCs, plus the teaching of the most significant case law and WSBA Ethics
Opinions, all in one well-organized and lively presentation.
Online registration for this CLE is now closed - thank-you!
Notice to registrants: You will receive course materials and instructions for accessing the conference by email about 48 hours prior to the CLE start time. If you register closer to the CLE start time do not fear - you will receive your materials before the CLE begins.
Michael
Schein – Mr. Schein is a
Principal of Rubric, LLC, as well as an appellate litigator who is Of Counsel
to Sullivan & Thoreson in Seattle.
He was Articles Editor of the Oregon Law
Review, and is the author of Commercial Speech and the Limits of Legal
Advertising, 58 Or. L.Rev.
193 (1979). Mr. Schein was an
Adjunct Professor of American Legal History, at UPS Law School & Seattle
University Law School, from 1988-2003. Mr. Schein is the author of Just Deceits: A Historical Courtroom
Mystery (Bennett &
Hastings 2008), based on a case tried by John Marshall, and of the forthcoming novel Bones Beneath Our Feet. He is also a contributing editor to the
WSBA’s Washington Appellate Practice Deskbook, and a founding member of the
Washington Appellate Lawyers Association.
SCHEDULE
3:00 – 3:10 Bates v. State Bar of Arizona (1977) – A quick review of the long history of prohibition of legal advertising and the Supreme Court decision which found that it was a protected form of commercial speech – subject to regulation.
3:10 – 3:50 Rules 7.1 & 7.2: Telling the Truth Shouldn’t be This Hard – Delves into the meaning of “false or misleading” communication, the bedrock threshold which all legal marketing must rise above. Then examines what is and is not permitted in legal advertising. Includes (among other topics) advertising fee arrangements, comparative statements of competence, what to – and what not to – put on your business card, and many other topics of direct relevance to how you get seen by prospective clients.
3:50 – 4:20 Marketing Flotsam: Referral,
Specialization, Firm Names and Letterheads – The ethics of referral
agreements, referral services, and prepaid legal service plans. A cogent explanation of why we can’t
tell our clients what they really want to know – that we specialize in their
problem – which is intended to help you comply with this rule while ensuring
that you get accurate information to prospective clients. A discussion of the
relatively recent advent of the use of trade names for law firms. Partners that live beyond the
grave. And much more!
4:20 – 5:00 Rule 7.3: Ambulance Chasing and Other No-No’s – Here we consider the many forms of direct solicitation of clients, why it is nearly always forbidden, and some very effective ways in which it is permissible. Includes the special problems arising from email solicitation and the new “social media,” such as Facebook and Twitter.
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