What is RPC Rule 7.3?
RPC Rule 7.3
The Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC) for lawyers are outlined so that there are no questions concerning the ethical actions of lawyers. Each NJ attorney is required to conduct their legal matters and relationships with clients according to the official Rules of Professional Conduct as they are outlined. This not only protects clients from unethical practices but can also provide much needed protection for the lawyer. Rule 7.3 of the RPC offers guidelines that should be followed as it pertains to personal contact with prospective clients. There are specific requirements set forth in section 7.3 b which describe how contact with a prospective client is to be handled. Lawyers are allowed to initiate contact with prospective clients solely for professional reasons which pertain to obtaining employment but there are specific requirements which must be met. An attorney is not allowed to accept employment if they know that the person seeking the lawyer’s services is doing so in a manner which is prohibited under Rule 7.3.
RPC Rule 7.3 b
Lawyers who are initiating contact with potential clients in an attempt to obtain professional employment cannot do so under certain conditions. If the lawyer is aware that the state of the person, mentally, emotionally or physically is such that they are not able to properly exercise reasonable judgment in hiring a lawyer, then the NJ attorney cannot initiate communication in any form. When an individual makes it known to the lawyer that they do not wish to receive any communications from them, the lawyer is not allowed to communicate with them against these wishes. Communication which is initiated by coercion, harassment or duress is forbidden as well as any unsolicited direct contact with a potential client that occurs within 30 days of a mass-disaster event. It is specifically forbidden in cases which involve potential compensation that could arise from the specific event.
Section b of Rule 7.3 also states that unsolicited direct contact with a potential client is not forbidden when financial gain is a motive. However, an attorney is allowed to send a letter through postal delivery which meets certain criteria. The letter must openly display the word, “advertisement” on it. It must be at the top of the page as well as the outside of the envelope and consist of all capital letters. The following notice must be placed at the bottom of the last page of text: “Before making your choice of attorney, you should give this matter careful thought. The selection of an attorney is an important decision.” And on the bottom of the last page, there must be a notice which states that if the letter is in any way misleading or inaccurate it should be reported to the Committee on Attorney Advertising, Hughes Justice Complex, P.O. Box 037, Trenton, New Jersey, 08625.
RPC Rule 7.3 c - d
An attorney is not allowed to knowingly participate in an organization which pays for or furnishes legal services which will promote the use of the lawyer’s services. This includes their legal partner, associate or any other lawyer affiliation. The promotional activity must not involve any type of misleading or false statement pertaining to RPC 7.1 and it cannot involve coercion, compulsion, duress, threats, intimidation, overreaching, vexatious or harassing conduct, or unwarranted promises of benefits.
Lawyers are not allowed to compensate any person or organization which helps secure the lawyer’s employment with a client. There can be no reward for recommending the lawyer for employment other than payment for public communications permitted by RPC 7.1 and the usual fees which are charged by a lawyer referral service which is approved by the bar association.
RPC Rule 7.3 e
This section outlines in detail offices and organizations which can recommend the lawyer or law firm and thereby promote the lawyer and his services, as well as his partner’s or associate’s services as long as there is not an interference with exercising professional judgment on behalf of the client. A legal aid office or an office of a public defender can make a referral to a specific lawyer or law firm if the office is operated or sponsored by a duly accredited law school, a bona fide nonprofit community organization, a governmental agency or an approved bar association. A lawyer referral service which is sponsored, operated or approved by a bar association as well as a military legal assistance office can make recommendations. This section also lays out precise conditions that must be met for a bona fide organization to recommend, furnish or pay for legal services for its members or beneficiaries.
RPC Rule 7.3 b
Lawyers who are initiating contact with potential clients in an attempt to obtain professional employment cannot do so under certain conditions. If the lawyer is aware that the state of the person, mentally, emotionally or physically is such that they are not able to properly exercise reasonable judgment in hiring a lawyer, then the NJ attorney cannot initiate communication in any form. When an individual makes it known to the lawyer that they do not wish to receive any communications from them, the lawyer is not allowed to communicate with them against these wishes. Communication which is initiated by coercion, harassment or duress is forbidden as well as any unsolicited direct contact with a potential client that occurs within 30 days of a mass-disaster event. It is specifically forbidden in cases which involve potential compensation that could arise from the specific event.
Section b of Rule 7.3 also states that unsolicited direct contact with a potential client is not forbidden when financial gain is a motive. However, an attorney is allowed to send a letter through postal delivery which meets certain criteria. The letter must openly display the word, “advertisement” on it. It must be at the top of the page as well as the outside of the envelope and consist of all capital letters. The following notice must be placed at the bottom of the last page of text: “Before making your choice of attorney, you should give this matter careful thought. The selection of an attorney is an important decision.” And on the bottom of the last page, there must be a notice which states that if the letter is in any way misleading or inaccurate it should be reported to the Committee on Attorney Advertising, Hughes Justice Complex, P.O. Box 037, Trenton, New Jersey, 08625.
RPC Rule 7.3 c - d
An attorney is not allowed to knowingly participate in an organization which pays for or furnishes legal services which will promote the use of the lawyer’s services. This includes their legal partner, associate or any other lawyer affiliation. The promotional activity must not involve any type of misleading or false statement pertaining to RPC 7.1 and it cannot involve coercion, compulsion, duress, threats, intimidation, overreaching, vexatious or harassing conduct, or unwarranted promises of benefits.
Lawyers are not allowed to compensate any person or organization which helps secure the lawyer’s employment with a client. There can be no reward for recommending the lawyer for employment other than payment for public communications permitted by RPC 7.1 and the usual fees which are charged by a lawyer referral service which is approved by the bar association.
RPC Rule 7.3 e
This section outlines in detail offices and organizations which can recommend the lawyer or law firm and thereby promote the lawyer and his services, as well as his partner’s or associate’s services as long as there is not an interference with exercising professional judgment on behalf of the client. A legal aid office or an office of a public defender can make a referral to a specific lawyer or law firm if the office is operated or sponsored by a duly accredited law school, a bona fide nonprofit community organization, a governmental agency or an approved bar association. A lawyer referral service which is sponsored, operated or approved by a bar association as well as a military legal assistance office can make recommendations. This section also lays out precise conditions that must be met for a bona fide organization to recommend, furnish or pay for legal services for its members or beneficiaries.