Can I advertise that I handle divorce, annulment, or alimony cases in Rhode Island?

Plain-English summary

An attorney asked the panel whether he could properly advertise a willingness to represent clients in divorce matters, given R.I.G.L. 1956 (1981 Reenactment) Section 11-27-20. That section of the General Laws, originally enacted in 1905 and titled "Advertising assistance in divorce, annulment or alimony proceedings," provides a criminal penalty for any lawyer advertising services regarding "any suit for alimony or divorce or the severance dissolution or annulment of any marriage."

The panel explained that under the Rhode Island Rules of Professional Conduct, adopted by the court effective November 15, 1988, an attorney may not engage in criminal conduct. It quoted Rule 8.4(b), which makes it professional misconduct for a lawyer to "commit a criminal act that reflects adversely on the lawyer's honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects." On that basis, the panel held that unless and until the General Assembly amends or repeals Section 11-27-20, an attorney engaging in the advertising conduct prohibited by that statute would violate the Rules of Professional Conduct.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in January 1989, shortly after the Rhode Island Supreme Court adopted the Model Rules of Professional Conduct effective November 15, 1988, and it applies Rule 8.4(b) as originally adopted. The Rhode Island Supreme Court later revised the Rules of Professional Conduct in 2007 as part of the nationwide Ethics 2000 process. The opinion's analysis also turns on the continued existence of R.I.G.L. Section 11-27-20; this page does not verify whether that statute remains in force, has been amended, repealed, or held unconstitutional in the years since 1989. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify the statute's current status and Rule 8.4's current text before relying on anything stated here.

Common questions

Q: Can I advertise that my firm handles divorce cases in Rhode Island?

A: According to this 1989 opinion, doing so risked violating Rule 8.4(b), because a specific 1905 Rhode Island statute, Section 11-27-20, made such advertising a crime, and the panel held that committing that crime would itself be professional misconduct. Verify the statute's current status before relying on this analysis.

Q: Does the panel say this statute is unconstitutional or outdated?

A: No. The opinion states only that "unless and until the General Assembly amends or repeals Section 11-27-20," an attorney engaging in the prohibited advertising would violate the Rules; it does not address the statute's constitutionality.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applies Rule 8.4(b) of the Rhode Island Rules of Professional Conduct, as adopted effective November 15, 1988, which makes it professional misconduct for a lawyer to commit a criminal act reflecting adversely on honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness to practice, to a lawyer's proposed advertising of divorce-related representation in light of a specific state criminal advertising statute, R.I.G.L. Section 11-27-20.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• MR 8.4 (misconduct)
• RI RPC 8.4(b) (criminal act reflecting adversely on honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness)

Statutes:

• R.I.G.L. 1956 (1981 Reenactment) Section 11-27-20 ("Advertising assistance in divorce, annulment or alimony proceedings," enacted 1905)

Cases:

• None cited.

Other opinions cited:

• None cited.

See also

No sibling opinions yet indexed.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.courts.ri.gov/attorney-resources/Pages/Ethics-Advisory-Panel-default.aspx
• Original PDF: https://www.courts.ri.gov/Opinions/EAP%2088-32.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain; the linked PDF is authoritative.

DIGEST OF ETHICS ADVISORY PANEL
Opinion #88-32, Request #42
Issued January 12, 1989

An attorney seeks Panel advice as to whether he, as a Rhode Island attorney may properly advertise a willingness to represent clients in divorce matters given R.I.G.L. 1956 (1981 Reenactment) Section 11-27-20. This section of the General Laws, originally enacted in 1905, is entitled "Advertising assistance in divorce, annulment or alimony proceedings." It provides a criminal penalty for any lawyer advertising his or her services with regard to "any suit for alimony or divorce or the severance dissolution or annulment of any marriage..."

Under the Rhode Island Rules of Professional Conduct, adopted by this court November 15, 1988 an attorney may not engage in criminal conduct. Rule 8.4 provides, in pertinent part:

It is professional misconduct for a lawyer to:

(b) commit a criminal act that reflects adversely on the lawyer's honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects;

Unless and until the General Assembly amends or repeals Section 11-27-20, the attorney would be in violation of the Rules if he were to engage in conduct prohibited in the cited chapter.

Ethics Advisory Panel advice is protective in nature. There is no requirement that an attorney abide by a Panel opinion, but if he or she does, he or she is fully protected from any charge of impropriety.