Sec. 51-87a. Limitations on written communications to prospective clients.

(a) A lawyer shall not send, or knowingly permit to be sent, on behalf of himself, his firm, his partner, an associate or any other lawyer affiliated with him or his firm, a written communication to a prospective client for the purpose of obtaining professional employment if:

(1) The written communication concerns an action for personal injury or wrongful death or otherwise relates to an accident or disaster involving the person to whom the communication is addressed or a relative of that person, unless the accident or disaster occurred more than forty days prior to the mailing of the communication;

(2) The written communication concerns a specific matter and the lawyer knows or reasonably should know that the person to whom the communication is directed is represented by a lawyer in the matter;

(3) It has been made known to the lawyer that the person does not want to receive such communications from the lawyer;

(4) The communication involves coercion, duress, fraud, overreaching, harassment, intimidation or undue influence;

(5) The communication contains a false, fraudulent, misleading, deceptive, or unfair statement or claim; or

(6) The lawyer knows or reasonably should know that the physical, emotional or mental state of the person makes it unlikely that the person would exercise reasonable judgment in employing a lawyer.

(b) Written communications to prospective clients known to be in need of legal services in a particular matter for the purpose of obtaining professional employment are subject to the following requirements:

(1) Each page of such written communications shall be plainly marked “advertisement” in red ink, and the lower left corner of the face of the envelope containing a written communication likewise shall carry a prominent, red “advertisement” mark. If the written communication is in the form of a self-mailing brochure or pamphlet, the “advertisement” mark in red ink shall appear on the address panel of the brochure or pamphlet. Brochures solicited by clients or prospective clients need not contain the “advertisement” mark;

(2) The lawyer shall retain a copy of each written communication for three years;

(3) Written communications mailed to prospective clients shall be sent only by regular United States mail, not by registered mail or other forms of restricted delivery;

(4) If a contract for representation is mailed with the written communication, the top of each page of the contract shall be marked “SAMPLE” in red ink in a type size one size larger than the largest type used in the contract and the words “DO NOT SIGN” shall appear on the client signature line;

(5) The first sentence of any written communication concerning a specific matter shall be: “If you have already retained a lawyer for this matter, please disregard this letter.”;

(6) Written communications shall be on letter-sized paper rather than legal-sized paper and shall not be made to resemble legal pleadings or other legal documents. This provision does not preclude the mailing of brochures and pamphlets;

(7) If a lawyer other than the lawyer whose name or signature appears on the communication will actually handle the case or matter, or if the case or matter will be referred to another lawyer or law firm, any written communication concerning a specific matter shall include a statement so advising the client;

(8) Any written communication prompted by a specific occurrence involving or affecting the intended recipient of the communication or a family member shall disclose how the lawyer obtained the information prompting the communication; and

(9) A written communication seeking employment by a specific prospective client in a specific matter shall not reveal on the envelope, or on the outside of a self-mailing brochure or pamphlet, the nature of the client's legal problem.

(c) For the purposes of this section, “prospective client” shall not include a commercial entity.

(P.A. 92-245, S. 1, 2; P.A. 99-179, S. 2.)

History: P.A. 92-245 effective October 1, 1993; P.A. 99-179 amended Subsec. (b) to make requirements applicable to written communications to prospective clients “known to be in need of legal services in a particular matter”.