Ethics Question of the Month July 2025

Do I Need to Pass a Site Inspection?

Are law firm websites considered “advertisements” by the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct?

The Situation

Garrett is an experienced attorney who is opening a solo law practice. He wants to market his law firm throughout Texas, so he is creating an extensive website that could serve as an enticing virtual storefront to potential clients across the state.

Garrett plans to put information on his website regarding his experience, specific matters that he has handled, general advice for potential clients, client testimonials, links to other websites that he thinks are of interest, articles from publications, video from his media appearances, and anything else that he thinks will enhance his image with potential clients.

He is aware that Rule 7.04 of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct requires that certain advertisements be filed with the Advertising Review Committee of the State Bar of Texas. But he is unsure of whether a website constitutes an “advertisement” under the Rule. And if his website is considered an advertisement, what parts of the website does he need to file? His website is sufficiently voluminous that filing everything on his site would be burdensome.

The Question

Which part of a law firm website are required to be filed by the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct?

The Correct Answer is B Of 148 Responses, 18% are correct.

  1. A 42
  2. B 28
  3. C 25
  4. D 1
  5. E 23
  6. F 29

The Explanation

Rule 7.04(a) of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct reads:

(a) Except as exempt under Rule 7.05, a lawyer shall file with the Advertising Review Committee, State Bar of Texas, no later than ten (10) days after the date of dissemination of an advertisement of legal services, or ten (10) days after the date of a solicitation communication sent by any means:

(1) a copy of the advertisement or solicitation communication (including packaging if applicable) in the form in which it appeared or will appear upon dissemination;

(2) a completed lawyer advertising and solicitation communication application; and

(3) payment to the State Bar of Texas of a fee authorized by the Board of Directors.

Rule 7.05(b) exempts from the Rule 7.04 filing requirements “information and links posted on a law firm website, except the contents of the website homepage, unless that information is otherwise exempt from filing.” Comment 2 to Rule 7.05 states:

While the entire website of a lawyer or law firm must be compliant with Rules 7.01 and 7.02, the only material on the website that may need to be filed pursuant to this Rule is the contents of the homepage. However, even a homepage does not need to be filed if the contents of the homepage are exempt from filing under the provisions of this Rule. Under Rule 7.04(c), a lawyer may voluntarily seek pre-approval of any material that is part of the lawyer’s website.

Only the homepage of the website must be filed with the Advertising Review Committee. The correct response is B. For more information about the Advertising Review Committee, and for assistance in filing websites and advertisements with the Committee, go to: https://www.texasbar.com/Content/NavigationMenu/ForLawyers/AdvertisingReview/default.htm .

Bluebook Citation

Do I Need to Pass a Site Inspection?: Ethics Question of the Month - July 2025, Texas Center for Legal Ethics (2025), from https://legalethicstexas.com/ethics-question-of-the-month/ethics-question-of-the-month-july-2025/ (last visited Jul 22, 2025)

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