Law Firms Can Text Clients

The Florida Bar has given the green light for law firms to send text messages advertising services to prospective clients. Prior to the decision, only Ohio had allowed text advertising. The bar said it considered text messaging to be simply another form of written advertising, and thus must adhere to the same ethics rules as other ads. Jacob Stuart Jr., of the Traffic Knights law firm in Orlando, pushed for the approval because he plans to obtain the cell phone numbers of Florida drivers who have received tickets, and send ads to those who accept free texts from cell service providers. The opponents had argued that texts are more akin to prohibited phone calls.