Can a lawyer's professional card describe him as a 'Personal Injury and Workmen's Compensation Lawyer'?
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This page answers the general question as of 1954. Ezel answers yours: whether it's allowed on your facts, under the current Texas Rules of Professional Conduct, with citations.
Plain-English summary
The inquiry asked whether the Canons would be violated by a professional card reading "John Doe / Personal Injury and Workmen's Compensation Lawyer," followed by an office address, "By Appointment Only," and a phone number.
The Committee concluded that use of the quoted card would violate Canons 24 and 39 (7-3). The headnote explains that the defect is the card's indication that the attorney deals in personal injury and workmen's compensation practice, because those are not recognized specialties.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1954, under the former Texas Canons of Ethics, which the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct replaced effective January 1, 1990. The advertising restrictions the opinion applies predate Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, 433 U.S. 350 (1977), which held that categorical bans on lawyer advertising violate the First Amendment, so the Canon 24 framework used here has since been substantially narrowed; the field-of-practice and specialization rules are now in ABA Model Rule 7.4. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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's card call him a "Personal Injury and Workmen's Compensation Lawyer"?
A: No. The Committee held the card would violate Canons 24 and 39 (7-3).
Q: Why was the card improper under the opinion?
A: The opinion's stated ground is that personal injury and workmen's compensation are not recognized specialties.
Background and rules framework
The opinion interprets former Texas Canons 24 (advertising) and 39, applied to a professional card claiming a field of practice. The modern analogs are ABA Model Rule 7.4 (communication of fields of practice and specialization) and Model Rule 7.1.
Citations and references
Rules of Professional Conduct:
- MR 7.4 (communication of fields of practice and specialization), as the modern analog
- MR 7.1 (communications concerning a lawyer's services)
- Texas Canon 24 (advertising)
- Texas Canon 39
See also
- TX Ethics Op. 112: Specialty Announcement in Administrative and Labor Law
- TX Ethics Op. 107: Bold-Faced Type in a Telephone Directory
- TX Ethics Op. 133: Office-Location Sign and Window Lettering
Source
- Landing page: https://www.legalethicstexas.com/resources/opinions/opinion-98/
- Original PDF: https://tcle-web.s3.amazonaws.com/public/documents/Opinion_98.pdf
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
QUESTION PRESENTED
Would the Canons of Ethics be violated by the use of a professional card containing the following language:
"John Doe
Personal Injury and Workmen's Compensation Lawyer
123 Blank Building
Main and First
Blank 1, Texas
By Appointment Only
Phone EX-1234"
18 Baylor L. Rev. 235 (1966)
SOLICITATION - PROFESSIONAL CARD
It is improper for a professional card to indicate that an attorney deals in personal injury and workmen's compensation practice since those are not recognized specialties.
Canons 24, 39.
The committee is of the opinion that use of the above quoted card would violate Canon 24 and 39. (7-3)
Tex. Comm. On Professional Ethics, Op. 98 (1954)
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