Short answer: In New Jersey, Rules 7.1 through 7.5 of the Rules of Professional Conduct govern attorney advertising. The Committee on Attorney Advertising then supplements them with guidance. New Jersey is the strictest state in the country on one specific thing, and it is the thing almost every law firm website does: displaying awards and rankings. Referencing a recognition generally requires explaining the methodology behind it. This guide sets out the New Jersey attorney advertising rules that apply to a law firm website.
Look at the footer of almost any law firm website and you will find a row of badges — Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers, Avvo ratings, Top 100 listings, Million Dollar Advocates. On a New Jersey site, that row is the highest-risk element on the page, and it is usually the element nobody reviewed because it was treated as a design asset rather than an advertising claim.
Why New Jersey regulates this differently
The concern, in short, is that a prospective client cannot evaluate an award they know nothing about. “Top 100 Trial Lawyers” sounds like an objective ranking. In fact, it may be a paid listing, a peer nomination process, an editorial selection, or something in between. Without knowing which, the badge conveys authority the underlying process may not support.
New Jersey therefore requires you to describe how the recognition was conferred, so that the reader can weigh it. The Committee on Attorney Advertising has developed this position through published guidance, which is why the New Jersey picture is not fully visible from the rule text alone.
What a compliant badge presentation looks like
In practice, three points matter:
Proximity matters. The explanation belongs near the badge it qualifies. A disclosure buried on a separate page does not travel with the logo a reader is actually looking at.
Comparative superlatives inherit the problem. If an award is called “Best” anything, you are making a comparative claim by reproducing it, and the methodology disclosure becomes more important rather than less.
It applies wherever the badge appears. Footer, attorney bio pages, the homepage trust bar, and any campaign landing page. Firms typically place badges in a global template, which is convenient. However, it also means a single omission propagates sitewide.
Where firms get caught
| Pattern | Assessment |
|---|---|
| Badge with adjacent methodology note | Strongest position |
| Badge with methodology on a linked page | Weaker; depends on prominence |
| Badge row in footer, no explanation | The most common violation |
| “Award-winning attorneys” with no award named | Unsubstantiated comparative claim |
| Badges on paid landing pages only | Frequently overlooked entirely |
If you also advertise into New York or Pennsylvania
Moreover, New Jersey sits between two states with their own distinctive requirements, and many firms in the Philadelphia and New York commuter belts advertise into all three. A shared website then needs New York’s “Attorney Advertising” label and New Jersey’s award disclosures simultaneously. Neither is technically difficult. However, both are routinely missing. See the Pennsylvania guide for how to think about the stacking problem.
New Jersey attorney advertising rules: frequently asked questions
Can I display Super Lawyers or Best Lawyers badges on a New Jersey law firm website?
New Jersey is the strictest state in the country on this point. Referencing an award, honour or ranking generally requires a description of the methodology by which the recognition was conferred, so that a reader can judge what it actually means. A bare badge in the footer with no accompanying explanation is the most common violation on New Jersey law firm websites.
Which rules govern attorney advertising in New Jersey?
The New Jersey Rules of Professional Conduct, principally Rules 7.1 through 7.5, together with guidance issued by the Committee on Attorney Advertising, which is appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court. Confirm current guidance with the Committee.
What is the Committee on Attorney Advertising?
A body appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court that issues opinions and guidelines on lawyer advertising. Its published guidance is a significant part of the compliance picture in New Jersey and goes beyond the bare rule text.
Can a New Jersey firm say it is the best or a top attorney?
Comparative superlatives are treated sceptically and generally require substantiation that is difficult to produce. Where the claim derives from a third-party ranking, the methodology disclosure requirement applies as well.
Where should the award methodology disclosure appear?
Near the badge or claim it qualifies. A disclosure on a separate page, or in small footer type well away from the logos it explains, is unlikely to achieve what the requirement is for.
New Jersey attorney advertising rules: the short version
If you take one thing from this guide, take this: the New Jersey attorney advertising rules apply to every page a prospective client can reach, including campaign landing pages built outside your main website. That is usually where the gaps are.
Official source: the New Jersey Courts.
Legal Web Agency is a marketing agency, not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice. Committee guidance is updated over time and specific wording requirements are deliberately not quoted here. Confirm current requirements with the New Jersey Committee on Attorney Advertising or your ethics counsel before relying on anything above.
Related reading: Attorney Advertising Rules by State, plus the Florida, California, Texas, Illinois and Georgia guides.
