| Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, is a tuming point from overall prohibition to acceptance, in the history of American lawyer advertising.Lawyer advertising had been prohibited for nearly 70 years for its "failing to accord with professionalism" till the ban was lifted by the U.S. Supreme Court in this case. The main purpose of this dissertation is to appraise the decision which endows lawyers with the right to advertise.Lawyer advertising has been accepted and prohibited altemately in history, and the reason lies on its benefit and harm. Advertising in the market is necessary to overcome the asymmetric and incomplete information, so is lawyer advertising in the market of legal services. The ban on lawyer advertising can be justified only if there are enough excuses to counteract its value in economics. Lawyer advertising was accused of undermining professionalism, harming the justice system, misleading clients, making legal services more inferior and expensive, and bringing excessive workloads to ethic supervisors in Bates v. State Bar of Arizona. However, most of them have not been confirmed in empirical studies, and the influence of lawyer advertising on professional dignity dominates the controversy. It is obvious that the decisive factor lies on lawyers, which is a profession as a whole.Pound defined professionalism as "a group of men pursuing a learned art as a common calling in the spirit of a public service." In the opinion of advocates of this definition, lawyer advertising, which signifies serf-interest, violates professional dignity, and betrays the public's trust, should be prohibited thoroughly. Leaders of the bar defend Pound's notion most determinedly, because they are impressed with the embarrassing history of American lawyers and cherish hard-earned professional dignity and image.However, the new situation in the market of legal services in the 1970s forced legal professionalism to make a concession. The increasing demand for legal services put heavier and heavier pressure on the ethic rules governing lawyer advertising, and lifted the ban in 1977.Posner's view of professionalism provides a solution to the puzzle arising from the conflict between legal professionalism and the demand for legal services. In the opinion of Posner, there are two kinds of professionalism, namely the good one and the bad one. Only the former can justify the profession's social importance, and its emphasis rests with applying specialized knowledge to what is significant to the society. In terms of lawyers, they are to preserve legal rights of the public via supplying legal services. As a result, if lawyer advertising could help lawyers do a better job, it accords with the good professionalism, the genuine professionalism.To supply legal services of high grade, is the most important duty in the social contract concluded between lawyers and the nation. The decision in Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, contributing to lawyers' efforts to meet the demand for legal services, accords with legal professionalism, and its significance should be affirmed. |
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