Office of the General Counsel

• Citation: Vol. 27 No. 6 Pg. 0053
• Pages: 0053
• Publication year: 2022

Office of the General Counsel No. Vol. 27, No. 6 Pg. 53 Georgia Bar Journal June, 2022

Have I Got a Lawyer for You!

BY PAULA FREDERICK

"Wow! That GetNewClientsNOW! group is aMAAAAzing," your partner exclaims as she enters your office.

"I noticed that client intake is up; the receptionist is complaining that she can't keep up with the calls," you note. "Is that because of the lead generator?"

"Yep! Apparently, they join these online support groups for people who have lost a loved one in an accident, then they contact the members about hiring a lawyer! Brilliant!" your partner explains.

"Are they cold-calling people? That's against the rules!" you respond.

"No idea." Your partner replies. "I haven't asked how they do it!"

"Ummm ... don't you think you should?"

Is a lawyer responsible for a third party's solicitation of clients on the lawyer's behalf?

Maybe?and definitely, when the "third party" is an employee or a business paid by the lawyer.

In 2018, amendments to the Model Rules, the ABA defined "solicitation" as a communication seeking legal business, initiated by or on behalf of a law firm and aimed at a specific person known by the lawyer to need legal services in a particular matter (Model Rule 7.3(a)).

With limited exceptions, lawyers may not solicit business through live, in-person contact. The rationale for the prohibition is that it would not be fair for lawyers, trained in the art of persuasion, to unleash their persuasive superpowers on unsuspecting laypeople who are in need of legal services.

Of course, lawyers are responsible for training employees to comply with the rules of professional conduct. But what about your well-meaning brother who convinces his neighbor to hire you while...