Rule Text (verbatim from The Florida Bar)
(a) Applicability of Rule. A lawyer is prohibited from
participation with any qualifying provider that does not meet the
requirements of this rule and any other applicable Rule Regulating
The Florida Bar.
(b) Qualifying Providers. A qualifying provider is any person,
group of persons, association, organization, or entity that receives
any benefit or consideration, monetary or otherwise, for the direct
or indirect referral of prospective clients to lawyers or law firms,
including but not limited to:
(1) matching or other connecting of a prospective client
to a lawyer drawn from a specific group or panel of lawyers or who
matches a prospective client with lawyers or law firms;
(2) a group or pooled advertising program, offering to
refer, match or otherwise connect prospective legal clients with
lawyers or law firms, in which the advertisements for the program
use a common telephone number or website address and
prospective clients are then matched or referred only to lawyers or
law firms participating in the group or pooled advertising program;
(3) publishing in any media a listing of lawyers or law
firms together in one place; or
(4) providing tips or leads for prospective clients to
lawyers or law firms.
(c) Entities that are not Qualifying Providers. The
following are not qualifying providers under this rule:
(1) a pro bono referral program, in which the
participating lawyers do not pay a fee or charge of any kind to
receive referrals or to belong to the referral panel, and are
undertaking the referred matters without expectation of
remuneration; and
(2) a local or voluntary bar association solely for listing
its members on its website or in its publications.
(d) When Lawyers May Participate with Qualifying
Providers. A lawyer may participate with a qualifying provider as
defined in this rule only if the qualifying provider:
(1) engages in no communication with the public and in
no direct contact with prospective clients in a manner that would
violate the Rules of Professional Conduct if the communication or
contact were made by the lawyer;
(2) receives no fee or charge that is a division or sharing
of fees, unless the qualifying provider is The Florida Bar Lawyer
Referral Service or a lawyer referral service approved by The Florida
Bar pursuant to chapter 8 of these rules;
(3) refers, matches or otherwise connects prospective
clients only to persons lawfully permitted to practice law in Florida
when the services to be rendered constitute the practice of law in
Florida;
(4) does not directly or indirectly require the lawyer to
refer, match or otherwise connect prospective clients to any other
person or entity for other services or does not place any economic
pressure or incentive on the lawyer to make such referrals, matches
or other connections;
(5) provides The Florida Bar, on no less than an annual
basis, with the names and Florida bar membership numbers of all
lawyers participating in the service unless the qualifying provider is
The Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service or a lawyer referral service
approved by The Florida Bar pursuant to chapter 8 of these rules;
(6) provides the participating lawyer with documentation
that the qualifying provider is in compliance with this rule unless
the qualifying provider is The Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service or
a lawyer referral service approved by The Florida Bar pursuant to
chapter 8 of these rules;
(7) responds in writing, within 15 days, to any official
inquiry by bar counsel when bar counsel is seeking information
described in this subdivision or conducting an investigation into the
conduct of the qualifying provider or a lawyer who participates with
the qualifying provider;
(8) neither represents nor implies to the public that the
qualifying provider is endorsed or approved by The Florida Bar,
unless the qualifying provider is The Florida Bar Lawyer Referral
Service or a lawyer referral service approved by The Florida Bar
pursuant to chapter 8 of these rules;
(9) uses its actual legal name or a registered fictitious
name in all communications with the public;
(10) affirmatively discloses to the prospective client at
the time a referral, match or other connection is made of the
location of a bona fide office by city, town or county of the lawyer to
whom the referral, match or other connection is being made;
(11) does not use a name or engage in any
communication with the public that could lead prospective clients
to reasonably conclude that the qualifying provider is a law firm or
directly provides legal services to the public; and
(12) has lawyers from at least 4 different law firms
participating in the panel or group of lawyers to whom clients are
referred.
(e) Responsibility of Lawyer. A lawyer who participates with
a qualifying provider:
(1) must report to The Florida Bar within 15 days of
agreeing to participate or ceasing participation with a qualifying
provider unless the qualifying provider is The Florida Bar Lawyer
Referral Service or a lawyer referral service approved by The Florida
Bar pursuant to chapter 8 of these rules; and
(2) is responsible for the qualifying provider’s compliance
with this rule if:
(A) the lawyer does not engage in due diligence in
determining the qualifying provider’s compliance with this rule
before beginning participation with the qualifying provider; or
(B) The Florida Bar notifies the lawyer that the
qualifying provider is not in compliance and the lawyer does not
cease participation with the qualifying provider and provide
documentation to The Florida Bar that the lawyer has ceased
participation with the qualifying provider within 30 days of The
Florida Bar’s notice.
Educational reference. This page summarizes a Florida Rule of Professional Conduct for educational purposes. The rule text and Comment are mirrored from the Florida Bar's official publication and are public domain. The plain-English summary and any commentary are the opinion of Phillips, Hunt & Walker and are general information only — not legal advice. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship. If you believe a Florida lawyer has violated this rule, you can file a complaint with The Florida Bar at floridabar.org. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
What this rule means in plain English
A Florida lawyer can participate in a referral service or pooled advertising program — but only one that is approved by The Florida Bar and meets specific requirements: the service can’t take a fee tied to whether a referral becomes a client, can’t direct referrals to lawyers based on advertising payment, and must follow record-keeping rules. If you found your lawyer through a referral service, that service is regulated.
Florida Bar Ethics Opinions interpreting this rule
- Opinion 77-8 (1977)
<p>Florida lawyers cannot work with heir hunting services that find unclaimed inheritances and steer the heirs to a specific lawyer in exchange for a referral fee. Both direct and indirect arrangements count as improper solicitation. If a service contacts you about an estate you may be entitled to, the lawyer they recommend is in violation — find your own counsel.</p>
Read on floridabar.org → - Opinion 97-3 (1997)
<p>A Florida lawyer cannot accept referrals from an heir hunting service or represent the service and its target heirs together in a pending probate matter — at least until the personal representative of the estate has officially notified the heirs of their status. The rule blocks lawyers from being plugged into someone else's contact-the-heirs-first scheme before the legitimate notification happens.</p>
Read on floridabar.org → - Opinion 88-13 (1988)
<p>A law firm cannot set up a corporation that runs storefront offices to take public inquiries about legal problems and route every inquiry back to the law firm. The arrangement amounts to improper solicitation and unauthorized practice through a middleman. The Bar later allowed limited liability practice structures but never opened the door to storefront-funnels-to-one-firm setups.</p>
Read on floridabar.org →
Comment (verbatim from The Florida Bar)
Every citizen of the state should have access to the legal
system. A person’s access to the legal system is enhanced by the
assistance of a qualified lawyer. Citizens often encounter difficulty
in identifying and locating lawyers who are willing and qualified to
consult with them about their legal needs. It is the policy of The
Florida Bar to encourage qualifying providers to: (a) make legal
services readily available to the general public through a referral
method that considers the client’s financial circumstances, spoken
language, geographical convenience, and the type and complexity of
the client’s legal problem; (b) provide information about lawyers and
the availability of legal services that will aid in the selection of a
lawyer; and (c) inform the public where to seek legal services.
Subdivision (b)(3) addresses the publication of a listing of
lawyers or law firms together in any media. Any media includes but
is not limited to print, Internet, or other electronic media.
A lawyer may not participate with a qualifying provider that
receives any fee that constitutes a division of legal fees with the
lawyer, unless the qualifying provider is The Florida Bar Lawyer
Referral Service or a lawyer referral service approved by The Florida
Bar pursuant to chapter 8 of these rules. A fee calculated as a
percentage of the fee received by a lawyer, or based on the success
or perceived value of the case, would be an improper division of
fees. Additionally, a fee that constitutes an improper division of
fees occurs when the qualifying provider directs, regulates, or
influences the lawyer’s professional judgment in rendering legal
services to the client. See e.g. rules 4-5.4 and 4-1.7(a)(2).
Examples of direction, regulation or influence include when the
qualifying provider places limits on a lawyer’s representation of a
client, requires or prohibits the performance of particular legal
services or tasks, or requires the use of particular forms or the use
of particular third party providers, whether participation with a
particular qualifying provider would violate this rule requires a
case-by-case determination.
Division of fees between lawyers in different firms, as opposed
to any monetary or other consideration or benefit to a qualifying
provider, is governed by rule 4-1.5(g) and 4-1.5(f)(4)(D).
If a qualifying provider has more than 1 advertising or other
program that the lawyer may participate in, the lawyer is
responsible for the qualifying provider’s compliance with this rule
solely for the program or programs that the lawyer agrees to
participate in. For example, there are qualifying providers that
provide a directory service and a matching service. If the lawyer
agrees to participate in only one of those programs, the lawyer is
responsible for the qualifying provider’s compliance with this rule
solely for that program.
A lawyer who participates with a qualifying provider should
engage in due diligence regarding compliance with this rule before
beginning participation. For example, the lawyer should ask The
Florida Bar whether the qualifying provider has filed any annual
reports of participating lawyers, whether the qualifying provider has
filed any advertisements for evaluation, and whether The Florida
Bar has ever made inquiry of the qualifying provider to which the
qualifying provider has failed to respond. If the qualifying provider
has filed advertisements, the lawyer should ask either The Florida
Bar or the qualifying provider for copies of the advertisement(s) and
The Florida Bar’s written opinion(s). The lawyer should ask the
qualifying provider to provide documentation that the provider is in
full compliance with this rule, including copies of filings with the
state in which the qualifying provider is incorporated to establish
that the provider is using either its actual legal name or a registered
fictitious name. The lawyer should also have a written agreement
with the qualifying provider that includes a clause allowing
immediate termination of the agreement if the qualifying provider
does not comply with this rule.
A lawyer participating with a qualifying provider continues to
be responsible for the lawyer’s compliance with all Rules Regulating
the Florida Bar. For example, a lawyer may not make an agreement
with a qualifying provider that the lawyer must refer clients to the
qualifying provider or another person or entity designated by the
qualifying provider in order to receive referrals or leads from the
qualifying provider. See rule 4-7.17(b). A lawyer may not accept
referrals or leads from a qualifying provider if the provider interferes
with the lawyer’s professional judgment in representing clients, for
example, by requiring the referral of the lawyer’s clients to the
qualifying provider, a beneficial owner of the qualifying provider, or
an entity owned by the qualifying provider or a beneficial owner of
the qualifying provider. See rule 4-1.7(a)(2). A lawyer also may not
refer clients to the qualifying provider, a beneficial owner of the
qualifying provider, or an entity owned by the qualifying provider or
a beneficial owner of the qualifying provider, unless the
requirements of rules 4-1.7 and 4-1.8 are met and the lawyer
provides written disclosure of the relationship to the client and
obtains the client’s informed consent confirmed in writing. A lawyer
participating with a qualifying provider may not pass on to the
client the lawyer’s costs of doing business with the qualifying
provider. See rules 4-1.7(a)(2) and 4-1.5(a).
Adopted January 31, 2013, effective May 1, 2013 (108 So.3d 609),
amended March 8, 2018, effective April 30, 2018 (238 So.3d 164); amended
June 22, 2023, effective August 21, 2023 (SC22-1294).
4-8. MAINTAINING THE INTEGRITY OF THE PROFESSION