Florida Senate - 2005                      COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. SB 192
                        Barcode 692200
                            CHAMBER ACTION
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11  The Committee on Judiciary (Campbell) recommended the
12  following substitute for amendment (144328):
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14         Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 
15         Delete everything after the enacting clause
16  
17  and insert:  
18         Section 1.  Section 454.37, Florida Statutes, is
19  created to read:
20         454.37  Attorney advertising.--
21         (1)  Each advertisement for legal services which is
22  submitted by a member of The Florida Bar; by a legal plan,
23  organization, or association that is composed entirely of
24  members of The Florida Bar and located in this state; or by a
25  combination of such legal plans, organizations, or
26  associations that are located in this state, for publication
27  in this state in print or electronic media, must be
28  accompanied by an affidavit signed under oath by the lawyer
29  whose services are being advertised or, in the case of a legal
30  plan, organization, or association, or a combination thereof,
31  a member lawyer whose services are being advertised, and
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Florida Senate - 2005 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 192 Barcode 692200 1 affirming, under penalty of perjury, that he or she: 2 (a) Is a member in good standing of The Florida Bar; 3 (b) Is presently practicing law in this state; 4 (c) Has read and understands the Rules Regulating The 5 Florida Bar which govern lawyer advertising; 6 (d) Represents, if the advertising entity is a legal 7 plan, organization, or association, or a combination thereof, 8 that it is composed entirely of members of The Florida Bar and 9 is located in this state; 10 (e) Acknowledges that he or she is the person 11 responsible for the advertisement and the appropriate person 12 for the Supreme Court of Florida to discipline if the 13 submitted advertisement is found to be in violation of the 14 rules of The Florida Bar governing lawyer advertising; and 15 (f) States one of the following: 16 1. That the person has filed the advertisement for 17 review with The Florida Bar; 18 2. That the person is responsible for filing and will 19 file the advertisement for review with The Florida Bar in 20 compliance with the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar; or 21 3. That the advertisement is exempt from the filing 22 requirement as set forth in the Rules Regulating The Florida 23 Bar. 24 (2) For advertisements for legal services or for 25 lawyer referral services which are submitted for publication 26 in this state in print or electronic media and to which 27 subsection (1) does not apply: 28 (a) Each advertisement must comply with the rules that 29 govern lawyer advertising by members of The Florida Bar as set 30 forth in the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, and as 31 interpreted by The Florida Bar. 2 11:29 AM 03/09/05 s0192.ju32.t02
Florida Senate - 2005 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 192 Barcode 692200 1 (b) Each advertisement submitted by a lawyer referral 2 service for publication must contain prominently within the 3 body of the advertisement the statement: "This advertisement 4 is by a lawyer referral service. Attorneys pay this service 5 for referrals of potential clients who respond to this 6 advertisement. This lawyer referral service is not licensed to 7 provide legal services in Florida." The provisions of this 8 paragraph do not apply to pro bono lawyer referral services. 9 (c) Each advertisement submitted for publication 10 pursuant to this subsection must be accompanied by the 11 following statement signed under oath: "The advertiser states 12 that, although not directly subject to the Rules Regulating 13 The Florida Bar which govern advertising for legal services, 14 the advertiser has read and, by submitting this advertisement, 15 agrees to comply with the rules governing advertising by 16 members of The Florida Bar, and that the submitted 17 advertisement complies with those rules as interpreted by The 18 Florida Bar. The advertiser further acknowledges that a 19 knowing violation of those rules shall subject the advertiser 20 to a civil penalty of $1,000 for the first offense and a civil 21 penalty of $10,000 for each subsequent offense." 22 23 A person who violates this subsection is liable for a civil 24 penalty of $1,000 for the first offense and a civil penalty of 25 $10,000 for each subsequent offense. The Florida Bar or the 26 Attorney General may, in a court of competent jurisdiction, 27 seek to enforce such penalties and seek an injunction against 28 any person who violates this subsection. For purposes of this 29 subsection, the term "offense" means a single advertisement 30 published in a single print publication or through a single 31 electronic media outlet, regardless of the number of times or 3 11:29 AM 03/09/05 s0192.ju32.t02
Florida Senate - 2005 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 192 Barcode 692200 1 in how many issues it is republished in the same publication 2 or through the same media outlet. 3 (3) Within 30 days after acceptance for publication of 4 an advertisement to which this section applies, the publisher 5 shall send a copy of the advertisement and the original 6 affidavit required pursuant to subsection (1) or the original 7 statement required by paragraph (2)(c), as applicable, to The 8 Florida Bar for review. The publisher shall retain a copy of 9 the affidavit or statement for a period of two years. The 10 entity submitting the advertisement for publication shall 11 provide to the publisher a copy of the advertisement for this 12 purpose. This subsection does not preclude an advertiser from 13 submitting an advertisement to The Florida Bar for review 14 before submitting it for publication. The requirement for a 15 publisher to submit an advertisement and affidavit does not 16 apply if the affidavit provided under subsection (1) states 17 that the advertisement is exempt from the filing requirements 18 as set forth in the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar. 19 (4) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the 20 contrary, it is an unfair and deceptive trade practice for 21 purposes of s. 501.204(1) for legal services to be advertised 22 in this state in a false, deceptive, or misleading manner, 23 including, but not limited to, by the use of a name other than 24 the name of the law firm or lawyer that will be providing the 25 services, unless it is a qualified lawyer referral service, 26 except that a lawyer may advertise under a trade name that is 27 not otherwise false, misleading, or deceptive if the same name 28 appears on the lawyer's letterhead, business cards, office 29 sign, or fee contracts and appears with the lawyer's signature 30 on pleadings and other legal documents. 31 (5) This section shall be taken to be cumulative and 4 11:29 AM 03/09/05 s0192.ju32.t02
Florida Senate - 2005 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 192 Barcode 692200 1 shall not be construed to amend or repeal any other valid law, 2 code, ordinance, rule, or penalty now in effect. 3 (6) As used in this section, the term "electronic 4 media" includes but is not limited to computer-accessed 5 communications. 6 Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2005. 7 8 9 ================ T I T L E A M E N D M E N T =============== 10 And the title is amended as follows: 11 Delete everything before the enacting clause 12 13 and insert: 14 A bill to be entitled 15 An act relating to advertising for legal 16 services; creating s. 454.37, F.S., relating to 17 advertising for legal services in print or 18 electronic media; requiring an affidavit 19 certifying certain information to accompany an 20 advertisement for legal services submitted by 21 an attorney licensed in this state or by a 22 legal plan, organization, or association 23 composed of lawyers licensed in this state and 24 located in this state; requiring other 25 advertisements for legal services to include 26 certain statements; requiring that such 27 advertisements be accompanied by a sworn 28 statement certifying that the advertisement 29 complies with the standards required for 30 advertisements placed by lawyers licensed in 31 this state; providing for civil penalties and 5 11:29 AM 03/09/05 s0192.ju32.t02
Florida Senate - 2005 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 192 Barcode 692200 1 for enforcement; requiring publishers of 2 advertisements to send a copy of the 3 advertisement and accompanying document to The 4 Florida Bar and retain certain copies for a 5 specified period; providing an exemption for 6 certain advertisements; providing that false, 7 deceptive, or misleading advertising of legal 8 services is an unfair and deceptive trade 9 practice; specifying that these provisions are 10 cumulative; providing a definition for the term 11 "electronic media"; providing an effective 12 date. 13 14 WHEREAS, the rule of law and the justice system play a 15 vital role in our democracy, and 16 WHEREAS, the lawyers that serve the justice system 17 therefore have both a special license and a special duty to 18 conduct themselves in a manner that fosters respect for the 19 rule of law and the justice system, and 20 WHEREAS, the Supreme Court of Florida through The 21 Florida Bar is the rulemaker for lawyer advertising and has 22 the sole jurisdiction over discipline of members of The 23 Florida Bar, and 24 WHEREAS, the Supreme Court of Florida has adopted rules 25 governing advertising by members of The Florida Bar which are 26 designed to protect the public's confidence and trust in our 27 judicial system, and 28 WHEREAS, the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar governing 29 lawyer advertising are recognized as among the most strict in 30 the country, and 31 WHEREAS, the authority of the Florida legislature and 6 11:29 AM 03/09/05 s0192.ju32.t02
Florida Senate - 2005 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 192 Barcode 692200 1 the authority of the Supreme Court of Florida to regulate 2 advertising by corporations and lawyers from outside the State 3 that advertise for legal services within the State are 4 co-extensive; and 5 WHEREAS, many of these advertising non-Florida lawyers 6 and corporations are accustomed to lower advertising 7 standards, or no standards at all, when advertising outside 8 Florida, and 9 WHEREAS, as a result, there is a significant amount of 10 lawyer advertising in Florida by non-Florida lawyers and 11 corporations which falls below the standards set for members 12 of The Florida Bar and thereby holds the law and lawyers up to 13 ridicule and diminishes the public's trust, respect, and 14 confidence in the law, and 15 WHEREAS, the Legislature also has a duty to see that 16 the public is protected from false, deceptive, or dishonest 17 advertising, and 18 WHEREAS, the use of fictitious names in advertisements 19 for legal services often creates an unreasonable expectation 20 of results and contains an implied promise of performance; 21 fails to disclose to the public the lawyers that would provide 22 the services, and, therefore, prevents the public from making 23 an informed attorney selection decision; and fails to identify 24 the lawyer or firm involved for purposes of accountability to 25 The Florida Bar under its advertising regulatory authority or 26 identify the proper person to notify and serve with any 27 enforcement action under the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure; 28 NOW, THEREFORE, 29 30 31 7 11:29 AM 03/09/05 s0192.ju32.t02