Attorney marketing was legitimized with a celebrated Supreme Court case in 1977. The Maricopa County Legal Aid Society in Arizona had used a single ad to attract more clients to their legal clinic. Since they dealt with low- and middle- income clients and charged modest fees, they needed as much business as possible to cover their expenses.

By advertising, they challenged the American Bar Association's ban on attorney marketing that dated back to 1908. Nonetheless, the firm--headed by John Bates and Van O'Steen--placed an ad in The Arizona Republic, much to the chagrin of the State Bar Association of Arizona. The state sued, creating a controversy that ended up in the Supreme Court.

Supreme Court Rules Attorney Marketing Legal

In a close 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the state of Arizona couldn't stop attorneys from advertising their legal services because attorney marketing was within the scope of the free enterprise system. While this created much controversy at the time, more than 25 years have passed and the marketing of legal services is now a given. The Bates v. State Bar of Arizona case opened doors for the marketing of legal services.

Lawyer ads are now a profitable industry themselves. In 2003, for instance, attorneys spent nearly $300 million just on local TV advertising, to say nothing of print ads or Yellow Page listings. As demographics become more identifiable and accessible, niche advertising like this will continue to be more successful.