Texas Bar Rule 7 Lawyer Advertising Compliance

Quick summary (for busy managing partners)

• Truthful, non-misleading communications across all media (Rule 7.01). We audit every claim, stat, and testimonial.
• Required content on ads: name of a lawyer responsible for the content and the lawyer’s primary practice location (Rule 7.02(a)).
• Specialization claims: TBLS or TBLS-accredited orgs only, with the certifying body named. We enforce exact phrasing.
• Barratry/solicitation safeguards: 31-day blackout for accident/disaster outreach; compliant mail cadence; no runners or live solicitation of non-clients.
• Filing & pre-approval: we prepare, file within 10 days post-dissemination, or pre-file 30+ days for safe harbor; we track exemptions (website homepage rules, newsletters, socials).
• Actors & dramatizations: permitted only with clear labeling; no misleading portrayals.

What Rule 7 covers for Texas lawyer advertising

Rule 7 governs communications about a lawyer’s services, including firm names, websites, social media, commercials, and mail. Our builds comply with:

Rule 7.01 – Communications Concerning a Lawyer’s Services

• All statements must be truthful and not misleading; no unjustified expectations.
• Trade names allowed if not false or misleading; multijurisdictional naming must be clear.
• We flag risky superlatives (e.g., “best,” “guaranteed”) and add context or remove.

Rule 7.02 – Advertisements (what your ads must include)

• Publish the name of a lawyer responsible for the ad and identify that lawyer’s primary practice location.
• Specialization: only if TBLS-certified or by a TBLS-accredited organization, and you must name the certifying organization.
• Contingency-fee ads disclose whether clients owe costs beyond fees.

Rule 7.03 – Solicitation and Other Prohibited Communications

• No in-person or live, interactive electronic contact with non-clients for pecuniary gain (limited exceptions: lawyers, family/close contacts, or known experienced users for business matters).
• No paying for referrals beyond nominal gifts or legitimate advertising/qualified referral services.

Texas barratry (Penal Code §38.12) – what you must avoid

Separate from professional-conduct rules, the criminal statute on barratry prohibits certain solicitation practices. Our campaigns and CRM automations are structured to avoid violations.

• 31-day blackout: No direct solicitation about an accident or disaster until the 31st day after the event. We enforce delays in mail workflows.
• No runners / paid case solicitation: We never engage third parties to solicit clients.
• Defendant outreach: We time communications and scrub datasets to avoid any unlawful early contact related to pending matters.

Note: if the Legislature updates §38.12, we update your safeguards in-flight and re-document your policy.

Filing & pre-approval: how we keep you in the safe zone

1. Scope & exemptions: We triage what must be filed (most public ads) and what’s exempt (e.g., many newsletters, certain social posts, and—only sometimes—website homepages).
2. 10-day rule: For non-exempt ads, we file within 10 days of dissemination (or we can pre-file 30+ days in advance to seek pre-approval).
3. Safe harbor: If Advertising Review grants compliance pre-approval and the ad matches what was submitted, that finding is binding in your favor.
4. Evidence binder: We keep substantiation for claims (verdict amounts, actors/dramatizations labels, testimonial permissions, fee terms, TBLS references).

Website & ad compliance checklist (what we implement)

This page is informational and not legal advice. Your firm remains responsible for compliance decisions. We coordinate with your designated ethics counsel.

Helpful resources

• Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct – Part VII (PDF)
• State Bar of Texas – Advertising Review
• Legal Ethics Texas – Rule 7.02: Advertisements
• Texas Penal Code §38.12 (Barratry)
• TBLS – Board Certified® Logo Usage & Standards (PDF)