Can a lawyer who is also a state senator or representative note that office on his professional card?

Plain-English summary

The inquiry asked whether it was proper for a member of the State Bar who is a state senator or state representative to state that office on his professional card.

The committee answered that it was not. Such a reference in the professional card of a member of the State Bar would violate Canon 39. The vote was 7-0.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1948, under the former Texas Canons of Ethics, which the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct replaced effective January 1, 1990. Subsequent rule amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis; the content of a lawyer's card and letterhead is now addressed by ABA Model Rule 7.1 (communications about a lawyer's services) and former Model Rule 7.5 (firm names and letterheads). Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against current rules before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Could a lawyer-legislator put "State Senator" or "State Representative" on his professional card?

A: No. The committee held unanimously that doing so would violate Canon 39, which governed the professional card.

Q: Did the committee explain why?

A: The opinion is brief. It rested the conclusion on Canon 39, treating the legislative title on a professional card as outside what the card may properly contain.

Background and rules framework

The opinion interprets former Texas Canon 39, on the professional card, applied to a lawyer who also holds legislative office. The modern analogs are ABA Model Rule 7.1 (communications about a lawyer's services) and former Model Rule 7.5 (firm names and letterheads), which together govern what a lawyer's card may state.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• MR 7.1 (communications concerning a lawyer's services), as the modern analog
• MR 7.5 (firm names and letterheads), as the modern analog
• Texas Canon 39

See also

• TX Ethics Op. 31: Deceased Relatives on Letterhead as Self-Laudation
• TX Ethics Op. 14: A Departing Officeholder's Newspaper Announcement

Source

• Landing page: https://www.legalethicstexas.com/resources/opinions/opinion-11/
• Original PDF: https://tcle-web.s3.amazonaws.com/public/documents/Opinion_11.pdf

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

QUESTION PRESENTED

Whether it is proper for a member of the State Bar who is a state senator or state representative to so state on his professional card.

18 Baylor L. Rev. 198 (1966)

PROFESSIONAL CARDS - LEGISLATORS
An attorney may not state on his professional card that he is a State Senator or State Representative.

Canon 39.

Such a reference in the professional card of a member of the State Bar would violate Canon 39. (7-0)

Tex. Comm. On Professional Ethics, Op. 11 (1948)