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Attorney Advertising Rules
Guide: https://bluesevencontent.com/attorney-advertising-rules/minnesota/
At a Glance
- Rule 7.1 prohibits false or misleading service communications.
- Rule 7.2 requires a responsible lawyer or firm’s name and contact information.
- Current Rules 7.1–7.3 contain no general filing, preapproval, advertising-label or fixed ad-retention requirement.
- Specialist representations can require a same-paragraph statement that the attorney is not certified by a Board-accredited organization.
- Live person-to-person solicitation is restricted. Permitted written outreach remains subject to opt-outs, coercion rules and other law.
- Minnesota Statutes §§ 481.03–481.05 separately address paid solicitation of personal-injury and death claims.
current professional-conduct rules; § 481.03; § 481.04
Read source: current professional-conduct rules · § 481.03 · § 481.04
Minnesota lawyer advertising in context
Minnesota modernized its advertising rules in 2022, but retained a distinctive approach to specialist claims. An attorney who uses specialist language without certification from an organization accredited by the Minnesota Board of Legal Certification must make a same-paragraph disclosure. The state also has personal-injury solicitation statutes that need separate attention when a marketing company supplies leads.
Who Regulates
The Minnesota Supreme Court adopts the Rules of Professional Conduct and the lawyer-discipline framework. The Director of the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility investigates complaints under Rule 8 of the Rules on Lawyers Professional Responsibility. The Lawyers Professional Responsibility Board administers those rules, establishes policies for the Director and may issue professional-conduct opinions under Rule 4. Board opinions and educational material should be identified as interpretations, not substituted for the court’s rules. RLPR 4 and RLPR 8.
Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct, July 2026 compilation
Read source: Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct, July 2026 compilation
What Counts as Advertising
Rule 7.2(a) permits service information through any media, and Rule 7.1 reaches all communications about a lawyer’s services. The rules therefore apply to practice pages, search advertising, social accounts, videos and directory profiles without a special online exemption.
Rule 7.3(a) defines solicitation by reference to a specific person whom the lawyer knows or reasonably should know needs services in a particular matter. General-public advertisements, responses to information requests and automatically generated responses to electronic searches are distinguished in comment [1].
Rules 7.1–7.3
Read source: Rules 7.1–7.3
Required Disclosures
Any Rule 7.2 communication must identify at least one responsible lawyer or law firm and provide contact information. Comment [12] recognizes a website address, telephone number, email address or physical office location. Do not turn that current rule into an office-address-only requirement.
Rule 7.2(c) requires identification of a certifying organization, if any, when specialist status is represented. If the lawyer is not certified, or the certifier is not accredited by the Minnesota Board of Legal Certification, the same paragraph must clearly say that the attorney is not certified by any organization accredited by the Board. Current Rule 7.3 does not require the phrase “Advertising Material.” Rule 7.2(c)–(d).
Rules 7.2(c), 7.3
Read source: Rule 7.2
Filing, Review & Recordkeeping
Rules 7.1–7.3 do not prescribe general ad filing, preapproval or a fixed advertising-copy retention term. Keep a practical record of versions, claim support, client permissions and vendor terms, but distinguish that internal control from a mandated filing program. A purchased-lead campaign also needs a separate statutory and professional-independence review. Current rules.
Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct, July 2026 compilation
Read source: Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct, July 2026 compilation
Results, Testimonials & Comparisons
Rule 7.1 comments [2]–[3] explain why a literally true statement can still mislead. Past achievements should not imply that another client will receive the same result regardless of the individual facts and law. Unsupported claims or comparisons concerning services or fees can also mislead. A qualification may help explain context, but it does not supply missing evidence.
A testimonial is not exempt because a client wrote it. Evaluate its overall message, the payment restrictions in Rule 7.2(b), and confidentiality under Rule 1.6. A nominal appreciation gift is allowed only if it is neither intended nor reasonably expected as payment for a recommendation; a promised referral reward is outside that exception. Rules 1.6, 7.1 and 7.2.
Rules 1.6, 7.1, 7.2(b)
Read source: Revisor’s Rule 7.1 · Rule 7.2
Specialization & Certification
Minnesota’s disclosure rule reaches both stating and implying that a lawyer is a specialist and claiming certification. Identify the certifier, if there is one. Where certification by a Board-accredited organization is absent, use the same-paragraph disclosure required by Rule 7.2(c)(2).
Comment [9] permits truthful descriptions of concentration, specialty or specialization based on experience, training or education, but it must be read with the Minnesota-specific disclosure requirement and Rule 7.1. Do not copy another state’s rule that restricts only the word “certified.” Former Rules 7.4 and 7.5 have been deleted.
Rule 7.2(c) and comments [9]–[11]
Read source: Rule 7.2(c) and comments [9]–[11]
Firm, Trade & Domain Names
Rule 7.1 comments [5]–[8] now address firm names, trade names, domains and social-media usernames. They must not mislead about government or charitable affiliation, membership in a firm or the identity of lawyers associated with it. Geographic legal-clinic branding may need a clear explanation that the practice is not public legal aid.
Comment [6] permits a multistate firm to use the same name or professional designation in different jurisdictions. Separately, Rule 7.1’s prohibition on false or misleading communications prevents misleading licensure or relationship claims. A public official’s name can mislead if the person is not actively and regularly practicing with the firm.
Rule 7.1
Read source: Rule 7.1
Solicitation & Direct Contact
Rule 7.3(b) bars live person-to-person solicitation when a significant motive for doing so is the lawyer’s or law firm’s pecuniary gain. Its exceptions cover lawyers; people with a family, close personal, or prior business or professional relationship with the lawyer or firm; and people who routinely use the offered type of legal services for business purposes. Rule 7.3(c) requires respecting opt-outs and prohibits coercion, duress or harassment.
Comment [2] distinguishes live visual or auditory encounters from chat rooms, texts and other written communications a recipient can readily disregard. That distinction is not permission to disregard telephone, privacy or solicitation statutes.
Minnesota Statutes § 481.03 prohibits a lawyer’s use of employed nonlawyer runners or agents to solicit personal-injury or death claims and specified payments or promises for procuring that employment. Section 481.04 prohibits nonlawyers from soliciting those claims for money, fees or commissions, with a labor-organization proviso. Section 481.05 provides penalties. A lead arrangement needs analysis under these statutes as well as the ethics rules. Rule 7.3; §§ 481.03, 481.04, 481.05.
Rule 7.3(c); § 481.03
Read source: Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct, July 2026 compilation
Channel-Specific Notes
Rule 7.2 comment [5] permits paying for leads only within stated limits: no recommendation, compliant fee arrangements and independence, and truthful public communications. A service must not imply that it recommends the lawyer, refers without payment, or has analyzed the legal problem to select counsel. General advertising costs, qualifying service-plan charges and nonexclusive reciprocal arrangements with client disclosure have separate rule exceptions.
Read these permissions together with §§ 481.03–481.05 for injury and death leads. A vendor’s description of its fee as “marketing” does not settle what it actually does. Rule 7.2(b), comments [2]–[8].
Rule 7.2(b); § 481.03
Read source: Rule 7.2
Recent Changes & Scope
Checked November 11, 2026. The official compilation incorporates amendments through July 1, 2026. The Revisor identifies September 1, 2022 as the effective date of the revised Rule 7.2. This guide does not provide an exhaustive account of post-compilation orders and proposals; an incomplete recent-orders index does not establish that no later change exists. Statutory application to a particular lead model also remains fact-specific. Official current-rule listing; Rule 7.3.
Rules 7.2, 7.3
Read source: Rule 7.2
Official Sources
Read the official rules alongside other applicable law and obtain campaign-specific advice.
- Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct, July 2026 compilation. Binding rules and explanatory comments.Official source · Checked November 12, 2026
- Revisor’s Rule 7.1 and Rule 7.2.Official source · Checked November 12, 2026
- Minnesota Statutes, chapter 481. Statutory overlay.Official source · Checked November 12, 2026
- Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility rules pageOfficial source · Checked November 12, 2026