Utah's Attorney Advertising and Solicitation Rules: What's Actually Allowed

Utah deleted Rules 7.2 through 7.5 in 2020 and rewrote Rule 7.1, so attorney advertising and solicitation are now governed mainly by Rule 7.1: no false or misleading statements, and no coercion, duress, or harassment of a prospective client. The exact rule text is always worth confirming directly with the Utah State Bar.

Utah, like every state, has its own Rules of Professional Conduct governing attorney advertising and solicitation. Utah's version changed substantially in 2020, as the State Bar's Ethics Opinion 22-02 explains. Older articles, including earlier versions of ours, may describe rules that no longer exist.

This is a general overview, not legal advice — confirm specifics with the Utah State Bar's ethics resources or your own ethics counsel before acting on anything here.

What is the difference between advertising and solicitation?

Many states treat general advertising (a website, a billboard, a mailer sent broadly) differently from targeted solicitation of a specific person known to need legal services. Utah used to have separate solicitation rules, but they were deleted in 2020. Opinion 22-02 says in-person solicitation is no longer prohibited, while coercion, duress, and harassment still are. Everything a lawyer says to the public, including a mailer, must not be false or misleading.

Why is written communication like mail treated more permissively?

Comment [6] to Rule 7.1 tells lawyers to "proceed with caution" when initiating contact, especially live contact where the person has no time for reflection. Mail avoids that problem because the recipient can review it at their own pace. This is a large part of why direct mail is a common, broadly accepted marketing channel for criminal defense specifically.

What should you verify before running a campaign?

• Whether any waiting period applies before contacting someone about a specific matter (we found none in the current Utah rules, but some states have them)
• Whether any disclosure label is required on a mailer. The old Rule 7.3(c) "Advertising Material" label was part of a rule that has been repealed, and we found no current Utah rule repeating it
• Rules on paying a third party for marketing or referrals, which moved to Rule 5.4 and Standing Order No. 15 (see Rule 7.2's withdrawal and what replaced it)

A reasonable starting point

A reasonable starting frame is that advertising is permitted and regulated for truthfulness, contact must not involve coercion or harassment, and payments to third parties need to fit Rule 5.4 and Standing Order No. 15. None of that substitutes for checking the current, exact rule text. For practical answers on how referral leads fit these rules, see common questions about criminal defense referral leads.

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