Advertising Rules Change for Personal Injury Attorneys

If you have been involved in a motor vehicle accident within the last five years or so, you no doubt received an avalanche of advertising materials from personal injury lawyers from all over the state who wanted to handle your claim.  And you got some of those within hours after your accident.  That is all about to change.

The Indiana Supreme Court has adopted new guidelines for attorney advertising (effective Jan. 1, 2011) that requires attorneys to wait at least 30 days before they can send direct solicitation letters to potential claimants concerning personal injury or wrongful death.  The new advertising rules can be found at http://www.in.gov/judiciary/orders/rule-amendments/2010/prof-conduct-1014.pdf.

The change in the rules specifically deals with what some view as the objectionable practice of lawyers contacting victims of accidents or other disasters immediately after those events occur (sometimes referred to as “ambulance chasing).  Those who favor the new rule cite the abuses that sometimes accompany this kind of solicitation coupled with the vulnerable state of injured victims or family members who may be grieving over the loss of a loved one.  Opponents note the potential advantage for insurance companies, who are not restricted from contacting accident victims in the 30-day period, in their efforts to minimize the value of a claim before injured victims consult with an attorney.

What do you think?