The changes clarify that the prohibition on paying
for a recommendation does not apply to lawyers
and employees who recommend a lawyer from the
same firm.
• Rule 7.3, which restricts in-person solicitation
for monetary gain, now includes a definition
of “solicitation.” The changes to the comments
make clear that live person-to-person contact
includes talking via Skype or Facetime, but not
via chat room or text. Exceptions to the in-person
solicitation rule for “experienced user” were
expanded to apply to in-house counsel and small
business owners who regularly engage lawyers.
NORTHERN PLAINS WEATHER SERVICE
Dr. Matthew Bunkers of Northern Plains Weather Services is a certified
consulting meteorologist (CCM) and forensic meteorologist with over 25
years of weather analysis and forecasting experience. He can provide reports,
depositions, and testimony in the areas of weather and forecasting, severe
summer and winter storms,
flooding, applied climatology
and meteorology, agriculture
meteorology, and statistics. More
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contact Matt at nrnplnsweather@
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• Rules 7.4 and 7.5 are removed in their entirety
and merged into existing rules. The provisions
under current Rule 7.4 about lawyers identifying
themselves as “specialists” were moved to Rule
7.2(c). Under those provisions, lawyers can’t imply
they’re specialized unless they’re certified by an
organization accredited by the ABA or app roved
by the relevant jurisdiction.
• Nominal gifts, in the form of “thank you for
thinking of me” gifts, are allowed in the proposed
changes, along with taking someone out for dinner.
This revision is an acknowledgement that such
practices occur in the real world.
Lawyer Advertising in North Dakota
As a member of the SBAND Board of Governors,
I was reminded about the controversy of lawyer
advertising in North Dakota just a few years ago. In
response to an invitation to attend the 2015 Annual
Meeting, 50-year member Leland F. Hagen wrote to
indicate he would not attend the recognition ceremony
at the annual meeting. Lee also indicated he would
have surrendered his membership years ago had it not
been for the requirement of a unified bar.
In 1984, Hagen was the first to use television
advertising to promote his practice in Fargo. After
about six months, the then-presidents of our
association used their columns to criticize the practice,
describing it as a lawyer “hawk[ing] their wares” and
other undesirable metaphors. While neither used Lee’s
name in their column, the negative implication was
clear.
Attorney Lee Hagen was really a trailblazer in our
profession. While uncomfortable for our profession
in the 1980s, Lee’s use of a television commercial was
certainly ahead of its time and undoubtedly provided
a service to many clients throughout the years. The
practice of television advertising was mild compared
to the recent reports of paid “runners” and targeted
mailings that started during the years of North
Dakota’s oil boom.
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SUMMER 2018
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