At a glance

Advertising is permitted subject to truthfulness and solicitation limits. Intermediary connecting services have additional requirements.

Rules 7.1–7.3

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.1 · Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025) · Illinois Rule 7.3

Who regulates

The Illinois Supreme Court adopts the rules that govern lawyer registration and discipline. Its Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) investigates complaints about lawyers’ conduct and prosecutes disciplinary cases. ARDC’s Inquiry Board decides whether formal charges should be filed, its Hearing Board hears cases and makes findings and recommendations, and its Review Board hears appeals from Hearing Board reports. The Hearing Board, the Review Board or the Supreme Court may issue a reprimand; all other discipline may be ordered only by the Supreme Court.

Illinois Supreme Court Rules, Article VII, Rules on Admission & Discipline of Attorneys (Rule 751 and following). The advertising rules themselves (Rules of Professional Conduct 7.1–7.5) are in Article VIII.

Read source: ARDC: agency responsibilities and disciplinary process · Illinois Supreme Court Rules, Article VII

What counts as advertising

The truthfulness rule covers all communications about legal services, including advertising.

Rules 7.1–7.5 do not define “advertisement.” Rule 7.2(a) permits advertising through written, recorded or electronic communication, including public media. The solicitation rule reaches a narrower set of messages: a solicitation is a targeted communication initiated by the lawyer, directed to a specific person, that offers or can reasonably be understood as offering legal services (Rule 7.3 comment [1]). General announcements, such as changes in personnel or office location, are not solicitations of a client known to need legal services, and messages sent in response to a potential client’s request do not need the “Advertising Material” label (Rule 7.3 comment [8]).

Rule 7.1 and comment [1]; Rule 7.2(a); Rule 7.3 comments [1], [8]

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.1 · Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025) · Illinois Rule 7.3

Required disclosures

Every advertisement must include the name and office address of at least one lawyer or law firm responsible for its content (Rule 7.2(a)).

Every written, recorded or electronic solicitation to anyone known to need legal services in a particular matter must include the words “Advertising Material” on the outside envelope, if any, and at the beginning and end of any recorded or electronic communication. The label is not required when the recipient is a lawyer or has a family, close personal or prior professional relationship with the lawyer (Rule 7.3(c)), or when the message responds to a potential client’s request (Rule 7.3 comment [8]).

When a client comes through an intermediary connecting service, the lawyer must disclose the relationship with the ICS, and applicable fees, to the client at the time of the connection or at the outset of the representation (Rule 7.2(c)).

An ad that uses “certified,” “specialist,” “expert” or a similar term to identify a certificate, award or recognition must state that the Supreme Court of Illinois does not recognize certifications of specialties in the practice of law and that the certificate, award or recognition is not a requirement to practice law in Illinois (Rule 7.4(c)(2)).

Rules 7.2(a), (c); 7.3(c) and comment [8]; 7.4(c)(2)

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025) · Illinois Rule 7.3 · Illinois Rule 7.4

Filing, review & recordkeeping

Illinois Rules 7.1–7.5 and their comments contain no requirement to file advertisements with any agency, get them preapproved, or keep copies or recordings of them. This answer is limited to those rules; other law that applies to a particular campaign or matter still needs its own check.

The review the rules do require concerns intermediary connecting services. Rule 7.2(c) requires the lawyer to take reasonable steps before and while participating in an ICS. If the ICS gives the lawyer a written certification that it meets paragraphs (c)(3) through (c)(8), the lawyer can rely on it for that due diligence (Rule 7.2(d)); the certification does not cover (c)(1) and (c)(2) and is not preapproval of any advertisement. Comment [8] describes initial and annual due diligence and points to the court’s sample certification letter. If a lawyer knows an ICS is not complying with paragraph (c), the lawyer must withdraw or ask the ICS to correct the problem, and must withdraw if it is not corrected within a reasonable time; matters the ICS already referred are not affected (Rule 7.2(e)). A lawyer may not direct, order or knowingly ratify any act of an ICS that would violate the Rules of Professional Conduct (Rule 7.2(f)).

Rules 7.1–7.5; Rule 7.2(c)–(f), comment [8]

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025) · Sample Rule 7.2(c) ICS certification letter

Results, testimonials & comparisons

Results, testimonials and comparisons can mislead even if literally true. A truthful statement is misleading if it omits a fact needed to keep the message from misleading, or if it is likely to lead a reasonable person to a conclusion with no reasonable factual basis (Rule 7.1 comment [2]). Reporting past results can mislead if it suggests similar results for other clients, and unsubstantiated comparisons with other lawyers can mislead (comment [3]). Qualifying language may help avoid unjustified expectations, but is not automatic clearance.

Rule 7.1 does not set out a separate testimonial checklist; testimonials and endorsements remain subject to its general ban on false or misleading communications. Payment matters too: Rule 7.2(b) prohibits giving anything of value to a person for recommending the lawyer’s services, and a communication is a recommendation if it endorses or vouches for a lawyer’s credentials, abilities, competence, character or other professional qualities (Rule 7.2 comment [5]). Check any paid review or testimonial arrangement against that rule.

Rule 7.1 and comments [2]–[3]; Rule 7.2(b), comment [5]

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.1 · Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025)

Before using client stories, testimonials or case results, check confidentiality as well as truthfulness. Rule 1.6 generally requires informed consent to disclose information relating to representation unless another authorization or exception applies. Removing a name is not enough when the remaining details could identify the client or matter.

Rule 1.6(a) and comments [3]–[4]

Read source: Illinois Rule 1.6 (current text, last amended effective July 1, 2025)

Specialization & certification

A lawyer may say that they do or do not practice in particular fields of law (Rule 7.4(a)). The Supreme Court of Illinois does not recognize certifications of specialties or of expertise by any agency or organization (Rule 7.4(b)). A lawyer may not use “certified,” “specialist,” “expert” or similar terms to describe their qualifications, except to identify a certificate, award or recognition issued by an agency or organization. Such a reference must be truthful, verifiable and not misleading, and must state that the Supreme Court of Illinois does not recognize certifications of specialties in the practice of law and that the certificate, award or recognition is not a requirement to practice law in Illinois (Rule 7.4(c)). A lawyer admitted to patent practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office may use “Patent Attorney” or a substantially similar designation (Rule 7.4(b)).

Rule 7.4(a)–(c)

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.4

Firm, trade & domain names

Names and letterheads must not mislead. Trade names cannot imply government or legal-aid affiliation. Multijurisdictional office listings must identify lawyers’ relevant licensing limitations; claimed firm relationships must be real. A distinctive website address is permitted, but it cannot mislead about the firm or its affiliations.

Comment [1] says a lawyer or firm may be designated by a distinctive website address or comparable professional designation, so Rule 7.5(a)’s bar on misleading designations applies to it. A private firm whose trade name includes a geographic name (the comment’s example is “Springfield Legal Clinic”) may need an express disclaimer to avoid a misleading implication that it is a public legal aid agency. Using the name of a lawyer not associated with the firm or a predecessor, or of a nonlawyer, is misleading. The name of a lawyer holding public office may not be used in the firm name, or in the firm’s communications, during any substantial period in which that lawyer is not actively and regularly practicing with the firm (Rule 7.5(c)). Lawyers who share office space but are not associated in a firm may not present themselves as one, for example as “Smith and Jones” (comment [2]).

Rule 7.5(a)–(d), comments [1]–[2]

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.5

Solicitation & direct contact

In-person, live telephone and real-time electronic solicitation is prohibited when a significant motive is the lawyer’s pecuniary gain, unless the person contacted is a lawyer or has a family, close personal or prior professional relationship with the lawyer (Rule 7.3(a)). Any solicitation, written or live, is prohibited if the person has made known a desire not to be solicited by the lawyer, if it involves coercion, duress or harassment, or if it seeks to represent the respondent in an ex parte protective-order case before the respondent has been served (Rule 7.3(b)). A lawyer may participate in a prepaid or group legal service plan, run by an organization the lawyer does not own or direct, that uses in-person or telephone contact to sell memberships to people not known to need legal services in a matter the plan covers (Rule 7.3(d)).

Rule 7.3(a)–(d) (last amended July 17, 2020)

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.3

Paying for recommendations, leads and referrals. Rule 7.2(b) prohibits giving anything of value to a person for recommending the lawyer’s services. The exceptions are paying the reasonable costs of advertisements and communications the rule permits, paying for a law practice under Rule 1.17, and reciprocal referral agreements with another lawyer or a nonlawyer professional that are not exclusive and that the client is told about. Comment [5] lists permitted advertising costs, including directory listings, domain-name registrations, sponsorships and Internet ads, and allows paying marketing staff and vendors such as website designers.

Intermediary connecting services, including lead generators, referral and matching services and similar marketplaces (comment [6]), have a separate conditional route under Rule 7.2(c), including client disclosures and ongoing due diligence; do not treat a paid lead platform as automatically permissible. Except for bar association and legal aid services, the ICS’s charges may not depend on the outcome of the matter or be a percentage of the lawyer’s fees; the ICS may not refer or recommend a lawyer or create that impression, though it may allow reviews and ratings; and it may not receive client funds except through a payment system that passes them to the lawyer when collected (Rule 7.2(c)(8)).

Rule 7.2(b)–(d), comments [5]–[6]

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025)

Channel-specific notes

Written, recorded and electronic advertising is permitted subject to other rules. Lead generators and similar marketplaces may qualify as ICSs; obtain the required due diligence and disclosures before participation. An ICS may be paid for generating client leads (comment [7]), and anything it says to the public must conform to the rules (comment [9]). The ICS definition does not include individual lawyer-to-lawyer referrals, reciprocal referrals between lawyers or with nonlawyer professionals, or a tribunal, or an agency acting for one, appointing lawyers to represent parties (comment [6A]).

Rule 7.2(a), (c)–(f), comments [6]–[9]

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025)

Changes & research gaps

Rule 7.2’s intermediary-service amendments took effect July 1, 2025. Rule 1.6 was amended on the same date (April 1, 2025, effective July 1, 2025); its current comments [22]–[23] address protecting information that potential clients give an ICS. Earlier changes: Rule 7.2’s comments were also amended July 6, 2023, effective immediately, and Rule 7.3 was last amended July 17, 2020, effective immediately. Rule 7.6 is reserved in Illinois. The court’s amendment archive and current public-hearing proposals were checked November 10, 2026; neither listed a later advertising-rule amendment or current advertising-rule proposal. This is a bounded source check, not a guarantee that no other proceeding could affect advertising.

Amendment history notes to Rules 1.6, 7.2 and 7.3; Article VIII rules listing

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025) · Illinois Rule 1.6 · Illinois Rule 7.3 · Illinois Supreme Court Rules, Article VIII

Current check: Illinois Supreme Court amendment archive

Official sources

Primary rule PDFs linked here were read live. Apply them alongside other applicable law and obtain named human review.

Rules 7.1–7.5

Read source: Illinois Rule 7.1 · Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025) · Illinois Rule 7.3 · Illinois Rule 7.4 · Illinois Rule 7.5

1. Illinois Rule 1.6 (current text, last amended effective July 1, 2025)Official source checked November 10, 2026.
2. Illinois Rule 7.1official rule/statute · Checked November 10, 2026
3. Illinois Rule 7.2 (amended 2025)official rule/statute · Checked November 10, 2026
4. Illinois Rule 7.3official rule/statute · Checked November 10, 2026
5. Illinois Rule 7.4official rule/statute · Checked November 10, 2026
6. Illinois Rule 7.5official rule/statute · Checked November 10, 2026
7. Illinois Supreme Court Rules, Article VIII (Rules of Professional Conduct listing)official rule listing · Checked November 10, 2026
8. Sample Rule 7.2(c) ICS certification letterofficial court form · Listed under Rule 7.2 on the Article VIII page
9. Illinois Supreme Court Rules, Article VIIAdditional official source referenced in this guide; see the relevant section for scope and limitations.
10. ARDC: agency responsibilities and disciplinary processAdditional official source referenced in this guide; see the relevant section for scope and limitations.
11. Illinois Supreme Court amendment archiveAdditional official source referenced in this guide; see the relevant section for scope and limitations.