There is obviously great competition for clients in the legal marketplace. What started as advertising on matchbook covers slowly evolved into bus stop advertisements, billboards, radio advertisements, and, eventually, television. Now, social media is all the rage with law firms jockeying for position on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter. Some practitioners get straight to the point with direct advertising while others try the more subtle approach of a blog post or other informational release such as a scholarly article or legal update.

Florida lawyers know that there is sometimes a fine line between information releases and an advertisement. When it comes to advertising, Florida lawyers must satisfy the dictates of the Florida Bar that scrutinizes lawyer advertising. There are all sorts of things the Florida Bar has determined to be forbidden, such as holding yourself out as an “expert” without the ability for the claim of expertise to be objectively verified or promising a client a result in a particular case. Nonetheless, the advent of social media has placed lawyer communications with prospective clients in the cross hairs of the Florida Bar’s increasing scrutiny of the social posts of Florida lawyers.