Misdirection and the ability to sell an idea are strong advantages for lawyers in the courtroom, but the New Jersey Supreme Court was split over where the line lies between unethical attorney behavior and valid self-promotion when lawyers compete with rivals using search engines.
The justices are considering new ethics rules for New Jersey’s nearly 100,000 lawyers regarding the ways they draw in clients on search tools like Google, Bing, or Yahoo. The state bar is urging the justices to prohibit ads that use a competing lawyer’s name and forbidding lawyers from using Google Ads to purchase competing lawyers’ or law firms’ keywords.
Some members of the court expressed concerns that such prohibitions could violate free speech principles, while others highlighted the potential for misleading consumers and creating an uneven playing field. The ethical dilemma underscores the increasingly competitive environment faced by legal professionals attempting to attract clientele in a digital age.
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