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Bar News - January 4, 2002 NH Supreme Court Loosens Rule on Specialist Advertising Rule 7.4 amended THE NH SUPREME COURT last month approved a proposal that had been pending for several years that will allow lawyers to now advertise themselves as "specialists" in a field of law if they have been certified by an organization accredited by the American Bar Association. The court amended Rule 7.4 of the Rules of Professional Conduct that previously limited specialist declarations to patent and admiralty areas. The court deleted a paragraph that only allowed additional certifications approved by the Supreme Court and replaced it with a new paragraph (c) that reads: "a lawyer who is certified as a specialist in a particular field of law by an organization that has been accredited by the American Bar Association may hold himself or herself out as a specialist certified by such organization." John Griffith, of Wilton, who holds a certification as a trial specialist from the National Board of Trial Advocacy, had pushed for the change for years. Griffith maintains that consumers, as well as attorneys seeking to make referrals to attorneys with expertise in other areas of the law, would benefit from lawyers being able to advertise their specialty certifications. Griffith believes it will enhance the competence of the legal profession by encouraging more attorneys to become certified in their predominant fields of law. The ABA’s Standing Committee on Specialization maintains a useful series of Web pages that provide information on entities and their requirements for specialist certification, as well as a state-by-state review of regulation of lawyer advertising regarding specialization. The Web site can be found at http://www.abanet.org/specialization/home.html. A patchwork of regulations exists in this area. While a number of states do not regulate use of the term "specialist," there is a wide variation of applicable rules in other states. Some allow ABA-accredited certifications to be advertised, while others do not recognize ABA accreditation but maintain their own state-specific boards to determine whether a lawyer can declare a specialty. In New England, Vermont and Maine preceded New Hampshire in allowing lawyers to advertise their specialty status, while Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island remain more restrictive.
NH Supreme Court Order Pursuant to Part II, Article 73-a of the New Hampshire Constitution, and Supreme Court Rule 51 A(7), the Supreme Court of New Hampshire approves, on a temporary basis, effective immediately, amendments to Rule 7.4 of the Rules of Professional Conduct as set forth in Appendix A. The amendments shall be referred to the advisory committee on rules for consideration of whether they should be adopted as permanent amendments to Rule 7.4. December 18, 2001 ATTEST: Eileen Fox, Clerk of Court APPENDIX A Amend Rule 7.4 of the Rules of Professional Conduct by deleting paragraph (c) and replacing it with a new paragraph (c), so that the rule as amended shall state as follows: Rule 7.4. Communications of Fields of Practice A lawyer may communicate the fact that the lawyer does or does not practice in particular fields of law. A lawyer shall not state or imply that the lawyer is a specialist except as follows:
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