Oklahoma Bar Association Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Oklahoma Bar Association, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can an Oklahoma lawyer advertise specific jury verdict or settlement amounts they have obtained?
Yes, with conditions. The committee concluded a lawyer may list specific verdict or settlement amounts in advertising if the statement does not breach the duty of confidentiality, is factually accurat…
Can an Oklahoma-licensed lawyer who is board certified in Texas advertise that Texas certification in Oklahoma directories?
Probably yes. The committee concluded that Oklahoma's Rule 7.4 (which bars most specialty designations) likely would not survive a First Amendment challenge under Peel and related Supreme Court cases,…
Are older Oklahoma ethics opinions about lawyer advertising and solicitation still reliable?
Not necessarily. The committee concluded that, because the law on lawyer advertising and solicitation was liberalized by Bates v. State Bar of Arizona and the cases that followed, legal-ethics advisor…
May a lawyer let a national magazine publish a letter he wrote about a trial he handled, where the letter's context identifies him as the lawyer in the case?
No. The committee concluded that even though the letter contained no confidences and the facts had already appeared in newspaper accounts, and even though no 'attorney' designation followed the writer…
May a lawyer show earned law degrees (J.D., LL.M., S.J.D.) on letterhead and use the title 'Doctor'?
Yes. Superseding its earlier Opinion 247, the committee concluded that under DR 2-102(F) a lawyer may show earned law degrees (LL.B., J.D., LL.M., S.J.D.) on his letterhead, card, office sign, and sig…
May a lawyer who is also a CPA display both certificates in his office, list under both yellow-pages headings, and sign tax returns 'CPA'?
Yes to all three. The committee concluded a lawyer-CPA may display his bar and CPA certificates in his private office, list under both yellow-pages headings (with no cross-reference and neither listin…
May a lawyer be a 'designated attorney' under a for-profit motor club's plan giving members a prepaid telephone consultation on traffic problems?
No. The committee concluded that serving as a 'designated attorney' under a for-profit motor club's prepaid-legal-services plan violates DR 2-103(D), because the club is a for-profit organization that…
May a brochure advertising a small-claims seminar led by an attorney include the lawyer's photo and a short background sketch?
Yes. The committee concluded that a limited-circulation brochure advertising a seminar on a specific legal topic, containing only a brief non-laudatory background sketch and photo of the attorney lead…
May a county bar association sponsor a plan letting clients pay legal fees with a bank credit card?
The committee concluded a bar-association-sponsored credit-card fee financing plan is not improper merely because fees are paid through a credit card, but it could not approve the unsubmitted plan and…
Is a large, eye-catching attorney 'shingle' placed among commercial signs near a shopping-center thoroughfare, far from the office, improper advertising?
Yes. The committee concluded that a prominent, eye-catching attorney 'shingle' placed about 150 feet from the office among eight commercial advertising signs near a shopping-center thoroughfare did no…
May a lawyers' professional corporation list its name ending in 'Inc.' in the telephone directory?
Yes. The committee concluded a lawyers' professional corporation may be listed in the classified and alphabetical sections of the telephone directory ending with 'Corp.' or 'Inc.', but if it elects su…
May a lawyer compile and sell to the public a manual of small claims procedures and practices?
Yes. The committee concluded a lawyer may ethically compile and sell a procedural manual or reference book to the public, provided there is no unethical advertising or solicitation in its content or m…
May a lawyer be listed as an attorney in a new toll-free area-wide telephone directory that also covers towns where the lawyer has no office?
Yes. The committee held that a lawyer who maintains a bona fide office or residence anywhere within the area covered by a new toll-free area-wide directory may be listed in it, and the old 'exchange a…
What telephone directory listing details may a lawyer or firm use, such as alternate listings, bold type, extra address lines, or after-hours numbers?
The committee concluded that a lawyer's directory listing must look like every other lawyer's: no alternate listings, no listing firm members' names under the firm name, no bold or unusual type, no pa…
May a lawyer let a salaried investigator carry a business card showing the lawyer's name and 'attorney at law,' and what responsibility does the firm bear for the investigator's conduct?
Yes, within limits. The committee concluded that a firm may employ a salaried investigator and give him an identifying card, but the firm is fully responsible for his conduct as if a lawyer did it, th…
May a lawyer also run a real estate sales or brokerage business, from the same or a separate office, while practicing law?
Only under strict conditions. The committee concluded a lawyer may engage in a separate business only if it is not itself the practice of law, can be run without violating the Canons, is not used to a…
May a lawyer list his graduate degrees, or use 'Doctor' or 'Dr.' before his name, on his shingle, professional card, or letterhead?
No. The committee concluded that using degrees or the title 'Doctor' on a shingle, card, or letterhead, or in introductions, is improper self-laudation under Canon 27; such distinctions may appear onl…
May a bank's salaried trust officer who is also a lawyer give legal advice to bank patrons, and may the bank advertise his name as performing those services?
No. The committee concluded that an attorney-trust officer giving the public advice that constitutes the practice of law is unethical, that he may not let the bank use his name in advertising such ser…
May a lawyer rubber-stamp his firm name on the face of an abstract of title to show that the firm examined it?
No. The committee concluded that a permanent stamped notation naming the examining firm on the face of an abstract of title is unethical because it would serve to advertise that firm to everyone who l…
May an individual lawyer or law firm print 'SEE YOUR LAWYER FIRST' on their envelopes?
No for an individual lawyer or firm, yes for the organized bar. The committee concluded that the phrase is proper public education when used by the Oklahoma Bar Association, but on a lawyer's or firm'…
May a person qualified as both lawyer and doctor hold out in both professions, are all firm members responsible for one member's misconduct, and may a building be named 'Medical-Legal Building'?
The committee concluded that a lawyer-physician must choose to hold out as one or the other because practicing both is too fraught with conflicts and confidentiality dangers; that firm members who kno…
Who may receive a lawyer's professional announcement, what occasions justify one, what may it contain, and how should deceased partners or those on leave be shown?
The committee concluded that announcements may go to clients, relatives, and personal friends but not casual acquaintances; that a departing associate may send them to a former firm's clients only whe…
May a law firm put its name and occupation on office windows and doors, and on how many, and what wording may a shingle carry?
A single proper professional sign may mark the office entrance, but the committee concluded that placing the firm name on additional doors or windows is unethical, that a shingle may carry only the la…
May a lawyer or firm list their names in the classified or alphabetical sections of a telephone directory, including in exchange areas where they have no office?
A uniform classified listing in the lawyer's own exchange area is proper, but classified listings outside that area are improper. The committee concluded an individual lawyer (but not a firm) may list…
May a lawyer own an interest in an abstract company, and may he let his name appear as 'General Counsel' in the abstract company's advertisements?
Owning an interest is fine in itself, but it must not be used to solicit law business. The committee concluded that letting the lawyer's name appear as 'General Counsel' in an abstract company's adver…
May a lawyer in general practice be named as 'counsel' in a savings and loan association's published statement of condition or newspaper advertisement?
No. Following ABA Informal Decision No. 645, the committee concluded that publishing the name of the general counsel of a corporation, bank, or savings and loan association in any advertisement, lette…
May a lawyer buy a listing in a paid classified directory published by a private firm that solicited him?
No. The committee concluded that under Canon 43 a paid listing in such a private classified directory is clearly prohibited; the only permitted listings are a simple yellow-pages entry, legitimate cit…
May a lawyer have his name listed under more than one classification in a city directory's classified section?
No. The committee concluded that a lawyer may not appear under more than one classification, whether or not an extra charge applies, because directory listing is proper only when all local Bar members…
May a lawyer be listed in a civic club or Chamber of Commerce directory if he pays an extra fee, or if the directory circulates outside the membership?
No to the paid listing: the committee concluded that under Canon 43 a lawyer may not purchase a directory listing except in an approved law list. If the directory circulates beyond the membership, a c…
May a lawyer submit biographical data to a 'Who's Who' type directory when listing requires paying a fee or buying a copy of the publication?
No. The committee concluded that a lawyer may not submit biographical data to a 'Who's Who' type publication if he must pay a fee or, as a prerequisite, must subscribe to purchase the completed volume…
When a reporter names and quotes a lawyer about a case he is handling, is the lawyer responsible for the publicity, and what must he do?
The committee concluded that if lawyers knew their names and descriptions would be used in newspaper articles about their cases, the conduct violated Canon 27's bar on indirect advertising, and that a…
May a lawyer publish a notice in a general-circulation legal newspaper announcing availability to serve other lawyers in a specialized field, and may the notice describe his past industry experience?
No on both counts. The committee concluded that Canon 46 permits such an announcement only in a true local legal journal sent to lawyers, not in a paper of general circulation like the Daily Legal New…
May a lawyer who has moved offices send invitations to an 'open house' along with the announcement of the new location?
No. The committee concluded that coupling an 'open house' invitation with an office-move announcement goes beyond the truthful, dignified announcement Canon 27 allows and is personal publicity that am…
May a lawyer let his name appear on a government agency's list of 'qualified examiners,' and may a lay company advertise 'Bonded-Lawyers' on a form it gives its customers?
No to both. The committee concluded that letting one's name appear on the FAA's list of qualified examiners amounts to soliciting business in violation of Canon 27, and that a lay company's use of the…
May a lawyer write jurors to compliment their service, thank them for a verdict, or question them after discharge about their deliberations?
No. The committee concluded that writing jurors offends the spirit of Canon 23 and is indirect advertising under Canon 27, that thanking jurors for a verdict curries favor and embarrasses them, and th…
May a lawyer be on the FAA's distributed list of 'qualified examiners,' and may a lay company advertise 'Bonded-Lawyers' on its order forms?
No to both. The committee concluded that appearing on the FAA's distributed examiner list is soliciting business under Canon 27, and that a lay company's 'Bonded-Lawyers' advertising flagrantly violat…
May an attorney's name appear in a newspaper notice of an estate or bankruptcy sale without violating the advertising canon?
It depends on degree. The committee concluded that an attorney's name in such a notice is proper if it serves a real purpose and is not in oversized type or a prominent spot, but it violates Canon 27 …
May a lawyer write past will clients suggesting they bring their wills up to date with codicils or new wills?
Qualified yes. The committee concluded a lawyer may remind a former will client of legal or factual changes that may require a review, but he must not ask the client to come in or confer, and must con…
May a lawyer who is also a CPA practice law while holding himself out as an accountant on his door, letterhead, or elsewhere?
No. The committee concluded a lawyer-accountant must choose one profession to hold himself out in; practicing law while advertising as an accountant would indirectly solicit law business in violation …
May a lawyer let a life insurance company run an ad naming him a special representative and touting his legal specialties?
No. The committee concluded the ad flagrantly violates Canon 27 if the lawyer keeps a private practice, and that being paid by the insurer to serve its customers violates Canon 35's bar on a lay agenc…
May a lawyer send Christmas or greeting cards that show 'attorney,' his office address, or images referring to his profession?
No. The committee concluded such cards violate Canon 27's bar on indirect advertising; a lawyer may still send personal Christmas cards to friends and close clients so long as they carry no 'attorney'…
May a lawyer run a classified newspaper ad offering to prepare income tax returns and purchase refund claims?
No. The committee concluded the classified ad was a clear violation of Canon 27; that laymen offer the same service does not matter, because when an attorney performs it the work is the practice of la…
May a lawyer's professional card use the title 'Judge' and describe him as an 'Experienced Receiver'?
No. The committee concluded both are improper under Canon 27; a simple professional card may carry only the lawyer's name, address, telephone, associates or firm, and a plain designation of his profes…
May a newly admitted lawyer cooperate with an unsolicited newspaper feature story about his night-law-school education?
Yes, within limits. The committee concluded the lawyer may cooperate, preferably anonymously, if he insists the article be dignified, not advertising, and not an appeal for sympathy, and reviews it be…
May a lawyer list himself in the telephone directory of a town where he has neither an office nor a residence?
No. The committee concluded such a listing violates Canon 27 as advertising, because the only reason to appear in a directory where the lawyer neither lives nor practices is to advertise, not to be lo…
After the phone company left a lawyer's name out of the yellow pages, may it mail every subscriber a card correcting the omission?
No. The committee concluded that mailing correction cards to all subscribers would violate Canon 27 as indirect advertising; a correction may only go to other bar members and the lawyers' clients whos…
May a lawyer run a separate 'skip tracer' business locating missing persons for other lawyers without violating the canons?
Yes, but only narrowly. The committee concluded the lawyer was on dangerous ground; the side business is permissible if run from a separate office, conducted so as not to reveal his bar membership, an…
May a law firm list itself in the telephone directory under the heading 'Adjuster' without noting that its members are lawyers?
No. The committee concluded the listing violated Canon 27, because claims adjusting is so closely tied to the practice of law that an attorney doing it would inevitably be practicing law, and such spe…
May a lawyer run newspaper ads offering 'Income Tax Service' if the ads omit that he is an attorney?
No. The committee concluded that the ads flagrantly violated Canon 27, and that leaving out the lawyer's profession was a mere subterfuge to evade the canons; a lawyer performing tax work that is gene…
May a law firm publish or distribute announcements of a reorganization, new partners, or a change of address in a legal journal, and may those announcements list the firm's fields of practice?
No to the published versions. The committee concluded that Canon 27 bars publishing such announcements anywhere except an approved law list, and that listing the firm's areas of practice is improper s…
May a part-time city attorney run a private practice from his City Hall office and put a shingle by the door?
Yes. The committee concluded that because a small-town city attorney's salary contemplates simultaneous private practice, conducting that practice from a City Hall office is not unethical if the city …
May a lawyer running for office note on campaign literature that he is a bar member and held legal-type posts in veterans' groups?
Yes. The committee concluded that a lawyer genuinely seeking office may state his profession and his memberships and offices, including legal-type posts in veterans' organizations, on campaign literat…
May a new lawyer cooperate with an unsolicited newspaper feature story about his path through night law school?
Yes, with conditions. The committee concluded a lawyer may answer questions and supply personal data for such an unsolicited, unpaid feature, provided he insists the article be dignified, in good tast…
May a lawyer pay to have his photograph and biography published in a newspaper's special commemorative edition?
No. The committee concluded that paying, directly or indirectly, to publish a lawyer's photograph and biographical sketch in a special newspaper edition is a form of advertising barred by Canon 27, re…
May an attorney have his photograph taken and published in a local newspaper?
It depends on the purpose. The committee concluded a lawyer's photo published for a civic honor or community service is proper, but a photo tied to his cases, his litigation conduct, or any solicitati…
May a lawyer list fields of practice like 'Probate, Land Titles, Corporations' and 'General Practice in All Courts' on his letterhead?
No. The committee concluded that listing fields of practice on a letterhead represents that the lawyer is especially qualified in those fields and is a form of advertising barred by Canon 27, whose on…
May a lawyer state on his letterhead that he is also 'counsel' for a high-ranking state official?
No. The committee concluded that noting on a letterhead that the lawyer is 'counsel' for a top state official is a form of advertising, because it suggests special political or legal qualifications, a…
May a lawyer use a neon sign outside the building or in an office window?
No. The committee concluded that a neon sign, or any sign of unusual illumination, design, or size, is obviously intended to attract attention and is advertising in violation of Canon 27.
May a law firm call itself 'John Doe and Associates'?
No. The committee concluded that the firm name 'John Doe and Associates' is improper under Canon 33, because 'associates' is misleading and amounts to a trade name barred in the selection and use of a…
May a lawyer place a journal card advertising that he specializes in writing briefs for other lawyers?
No. The committee concluded such a card is improper, because Canon 46 allows a notice only for a genuinely specialized service rendered to other lawyers, and brief-writing is not a specialty: legal re…
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Legal ethics opinions from the Oklahoma Bar Association interpret the rules of professional conduct for working lawyers, in response to inquiries from members and committees. They are not binding like court discipline decisions, but courts and discipline boards treat formal opinions as substantial guidance on how the rules apply. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the original source on the bar's site.