Opinions of General Counsel, 0321 ALBJ, Vol. 82 No. 2 Pg. 140 (March, 2021)

AuthorRoman A. Shaul, J.
PositionVol. 82 2 Pg. 140

OPINIONS OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL

No. Vol. 82 No. 2 Pg. 140

Alabama Bar Lawyer

March, 2021

Roman A. Shaul, J.

roman. shaul@ alabar.org

Advertising Ability to Communicate in a Foreign Language

QUESTION:

May an attorney advertise the ability to communicate in a foreign language if an employee of the attorney, and not the attorney, will be communicating with clients in the second language? If so, what ethical obligations and responsibilities are imposed upon the supervising attorney?

ANSWER:

An attorney may advertise the ability of a nonlawyer employee to communicate in a foreign language if the advertisement makes it clear that the nonlawyer employee and not the attorney will be communicating with the client in the foreign language. Additionally, if the advertisement is placed using the foreign language being advertised, then the disclaimer required by Rule 7.2(e) must also be in that same foreign language. If the advertisement being placed uses both English and the foreign language, then the disclaimer must be communicated through both the foreign language and English. Finally, any attorney using a non-lawyer employee to communicate with a client in a foreign language assumes all responsibility for the accuracy of the information relayed between the non-lawyer employee and client.

DISCUSSION:

Rule 7.2, Alabama Rules of Professional Conduct, provides, in pertinent part, as follows: RULE 7.1 COMMUNICATIONS CONCERNING A LAWYER'S SERVICES

A lawyer shall not make or cause to be made a false or misleading communication about the lawyer or the lawyer's services. A communication is false or misleading if it: (a) contains a material misrepresentation of fact or law, or omits a fact necessary to make the statement considered as a whole not materially misleading;

As such, an attorney cannot imply an ability to speak a foreign language when, in fact, it is an employee of the attorney that will be communicating with the client in the foreign language. Rather, if the attorney wishes to advertise the fact that his law firm can communicate with a client in a particular language, the advertisement must state with particularity whether the attorney has the ability to communicate in the foreign language or whether an employee has that ability. Additionally, if the advertisement is going to be published via the foreign language, the disclaimer required by Rule 7.2(e) must also be...

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