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Harrell v. The Florida Bar

Representing a lawyer in Florida, Public Citizen challenged Florida’s rules governing attorney advertising on the ground that the rules restricted attorneys’ speech in violation of the First Amendment and Due Process. Florida’s rules were among the strictest in the country, prohibiting attorneys from using almost all common advertising techniques, including slogans, jingles, background noises, and descriptions of the quality of a lawyers services. The district court dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction, but that decision was reversed on appeal. On remand, the district court found all but one of the challenged rules to be unconstitutional.