Shon
07-13-2004, 12:20 PM
Under pressure from the Legislature, The Florida Bar is prosecuting the Fort Lauderdale law firm that runs the notorious 1-800-PIT-BULL advertisements as part of a stepped-up campaign against aggressive lawyer ads.
That firm's lawyers are among 203 lawyers throughout the state that the Bar currently is prosecuting for violating the Florida Supreme Court's rules governing lawyer advertising, which are considered among the toughest in the country. Most attorneys under investigation practice in the areas of personal injury, traffic tickets and bankruptcy.
Following a complaint from a Stuart lawyer, a Bar grievance committee in August 2003 found probable cause that the series of TV and print ads run by the personal injury firm Chandler & Pape - featuring a drawing of a fierce-looking pit bull wearing a spiked collar - violated Supreme Court advertising rules.
According to Bar counsel Randi Klayman Lazarus, who is prosecuting the case, the image of a pit bull "is not objectively relevant because it is not informational and it is manipulative because it appeals to the emotions of the consumer, as the pit bull is commonly perceived as aggressive, unrelenting, loyal and determined."
The Bar will try the case against the law firm before Broward County Court Judge William Herring, who will serve as referee.
Chandler & Pape, which continues to use the pit bull image in ads, letterhead, envelopes, business cards and T-shirts, defends the image. "The American pit bull terrier is an animal that engenders the principles that characterize our law firm: strength, tenacity and loyalty," John Pape wrote in an Aug. 27, 2003, letter to the Bar. "As such, the logo speaks to the issues of integrity and whether we will zealously represent our clients."
The firm is also continuing to use the 1-800-PIT-BULL number, which it bought for more than $1,000 from a California collection agency.
That firm's lawyers are among 203 lawyers throughout the state that the Bar currently is prosecuting for violating the Florida Supreme Court's rules governing lawyer advertising, which are considered among the toughest in the country. Most attorneys under investigation practice in the areas of personal injury, traffic tickets and bankruptcy.
Following a complaint from a Stuart lawyer, a Bar grievance committee in August 2003 found probable cause that the series of TV and print ads run by the personal injury firm Chandler & Pape - featuring a drawing of a fierce-looking pit bull wearing a spiked collar - violated Supreme Court advertising rules.
According to Bar counsel Randi Klayman Lazarus, who is prosecuting the case, the image of a pit bull "is not objectively relevant because it is not informational and it is manipulative because it appeals to the emotions of the consumer, as the pit bull is commonly perceived as aggressive, unrelenting, loyal and determined."
The Bar will try the case against the law firm before Broward County Court Judge William Herring, who will serve as referee.
Chandler & Pape, which continues to use the pit bull image in ads, letterhead, envelopes, business cards and T-shirts, defends the image. "The American pit bull terrier is an animal that engenders the principles that characterize our law firm: strength, tenacity and loyalty," John Pape wrote in an Aug. 27, 2003, letter to the Bar. "As such, the logo speaks to the issues of integrity and whether we will zealously represent our clients."
The firm is also continuing to use the 1-800-PIT-BULL number, which it bought for more than $1,000 from a California collection agency.