New York Sun on Attorney Advertising

by Greg Beck

Since this blog first covered the effect that New York's proposed advertising rules will have on attorney bloggers, the blogosphere has been abuzz about the new rules.  Legal blogs that have weighed in against the rules include the Volokh Conspiracy, the Trademark Blog, Recording Industry vs. the People, Law.com, Real Lawyers Have Blogs, and New York attorney Nicole Black at Sui Generis, one of the first to start blogging about the issue.  The FTC has also come down against the rules, concluding they are bad for consumers.

Now the story has  made the jump from the blogosphere to the mainstream press, as reporter Joseph Goldstein covered the issue in today's New York Sun.  It is clear from the article just how confusing the new rules would be in practice.  A federal defender who blogs on the Second Circuit Blog was unsure whether the rules would affect his blog.  Because the blog includes a short biography of the lawyer, there is no reason they would not.

Hopefully, the blog storm on the issue has resulted in some useful comments to New York's Office of Court Administration.  If you haven't yet commented, it's not too late.  The deadline has been extended until November 15.