Marketing Ethics in Mass Arbitration: Best Practices for Law Firms
Acquiring clients is a critical aspect of any plaintiff-side mass arbitration practice. Plaintiff-side attorneys have access to numerous effective, sophisticated, and ethical methods for soliciting and sourcing clients.
While attorneys/ law firms running advertising campaigns are ultimately responsible for compliance with all of the applicable rules of law and ethics, there are certain “best practices” that Pallas – as an advertising agency working in the space – recommends to their law firm clients as a baseline approach. We further recommend that attorneys seek advice from an ethics counsel before running campaigns.
We believe that if more attorneys and advertisers followed a similar approach, the defense attorneys’ criticisms of plaintiff bars’ client sourcing practices or questioning their ethics would have less basis.
Notably, being compliant with various state rules and regulations, making all the proper disclaimers and disclosure does not negatively impact the cost of case acquisition. We routinely deliver highly successful campaigns (with minimal cost per signed case) that check every box on the “ethics lawyer’s list.”
Regarding ad copy/content, we recommend writing advertising copy that informs and educates potential claimants about the substance of investigations and the relevant laws that may apply to their claims. We often reiterate this information in the advertising copy and on the webpage or form that claimants visit or submit to ensure that they fully comprehend the legal theory and case.
If we were to sum up the tips and best practices in a list, it would read as follows:
Use the “What happened” & “Why does this case matter” paragraphs in your ad copy.
Tell your clients what your case is about and why it is or should matter to them and the general public. Social media platforms, through their representatives and account reps, often advise advertisers to run ads with a short ad copy. We use a different approach and take the time and ad space to inform prospective claimants about the case. This improves the quality of leads and the level of their engagement.
Be Transparent and Honest
Transparency and honesty are essential when it comes to legal advertisement for mass arbitration firms. Provide accurate and truthful information about your services and fees. Avoiding misleading headlines, images, or testimonials that may give potential clients a false impression of the firm’s capabilities.
Avoid Solicitation
Solicitation is prohibited in mass arbitration, and firms must avoid any actions that may be considered solicitation, such as, for instance, sending direct chats to prospective clients on social media. Give your prospective clients the time and space to make an informed decision about whether to use the firm’s services or not.
Get an ethics lawyer to reveiw and sign off on your ads!
An ethics lawyer can help ensure that the legal advertising complies with all applicable rules of law and ethics. This can help prevent potential legal or ethical violations that could harm the reputation of the law firm or lead to disciplinary action.
In summary, legal advertising is an important aspect of marketing for mass arbitration law firms. To ensure that their advertising is ethical, law firms must provide honest and transparent information, respect client confidentiality, follow the rules and regulations set by governing bodies, avoid solicitation, and use professional language. Law firms must also clearly identify themselves in their advertising to comply with the legal requirements set by each state. By following these best practices, law firms can attract potential clients while maintaining their integrity and reputation in the legal profession.
If a State Bar in a particular state requires to have ads reported or approved before publication – comply with this requirement!
For instance, the State Bar of Nevada requires that attorneys submit their ads to the Bar within a certain time after publication. Alternatively, it also has an approval process; attorneys can get the State Bar authorities to sign off on their ads before they go live. How great is that? This is an OPPORTUNITY to make sure that your campaigns meet all standards, and attorneys who the Pallas team has worked with have taken advantage of this approval process on many occasions.
INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE?
Our team at Pallas has helped attorneys
- Generate, screen, and acquire;
- Manage thousands of mass arbitration cases
Contact us today to learn more about the case acquisition process.
About the author:
Sofia Wadler is the founder of Pallas Enterprise.
Before starting the agency, she worked as a marketing director for one of the largest consumer-protection law firms in the U.S. Academically; she holds a Russian and a U.S. law degree as well as a German legal studies certificate.
Sofia founded Pallas with three principles in mind: 1. Efficiency. 2. Transparency. 3. Ethics. Her team provides marketing & automation services as well as competitor research insights that allow attorneys to grow their practices with speed and efficiency.