INTRODUCTION

"Tune in the radio. Turn on the television. Check out the billboards on the highway. Stop at a light behind a bus. Crack open the phone book. At almost every turn, there is an advertisement for a lawyer or law firm, many with catchy toll-free numbers like 877-U-HURT-ME."1 Although many of these advertisements are placed in traditional media, such as newspapers, radio, and television, the Internet is a new medium of choice, presently evolving into one of the fastest growing methods of advertising.2

Today, a large number of law firms utilize the Internet as a principal medium to place firm advertisements. One benefit of utilizing the Internet is that "[w]ebsites ... make lawyer marketing easy [and] cheap."3 Most law firms and solo practitioners presently maintain websites that link the public to a list of its attorneys, recent news on the firm, a list of the overall services that the firm provides, and contact information for the firm and its attorneys.

It is important for attorneys to understand the ethical codes implicated by their actions, and thus, this Note argues for uniformity and simplicity in the laws that govern attorney website advertising. Through basic laws applied uniformly, the laws of fifty separate states can unite as one, helping to alleviate major issues such as the conflict in laws regarding which state law governs in the circumstance of an Internet advertisement created in one state and viewed in another. Part I of this Note begins with background information regarding attorney advertising from the 1970s to the present. Part II illustrates the trend of state regulation of attorney advertising, possibly leading to fifty variations in advertising laws. Part III of this Note describes the current American Bar Association ("ABA") regulations and state codes. Part IV highlights some differences that exist among states' governance of advertisements on the Internet. Part V addresses potential ethical issues with the global reach of Internet advertising. Finally, Part VI advocates for uniformity in this area of law.

I. BACKGROUND OF ATTORNEY ADVERTISING