Research
What state bars charge to file lawyer ads
Seven states make lawyers send their ads to a bar or court office: Florida, Louisiana, Nevada, Texas, Mississippi, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Florida charges the most, $250 an ad. The middle fee is $100, and no state sells a faster review. Three more file only targeted letters, and 20 states make you keep copies of your ads.
Key facts
- States that file ads
- 7
- Highest fee per ad (Florida)
- $250
- Middle fee, of 7 published
- $100
- States selling a faster review
- 0
- States that make you keep copies
- 20
- Answered from primary sources
- 49 of 51
Download the CSV Download the JSON Free under CC BY 4.0. No email or login.
What did we find?
- Seven states file ads: Florida, Louisiana, Nevada, Texas, Mississippi, Connecticut and Rhode Island.
- Three more file only targeted letters and emails sent to people known to need a lawyer: Indiana, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
- Kentucky reviews ads only if you ask, for $75 an ad.
- Fees run from $0 to $250 an ad. The middle of the 7 published fees is $100. Rhode Island, South Dakota and Wisconsin require filing but name no fee.
- Filing late costs more in four states: Florida $750, Louisiana $275, Texas $250 (a fine the Bar may add to the fee) and Mississippi $150.
- No state sells a faster review. Seven offer an advance opinion instead: you send the ad before it runs and they tell you if it complies.
- Keeping copies is the wider duty. 20 states make you keep your ads for 1 to 6 years, even though most of them file nothing. The longest is 6 years, in Alabama and Indiana.
How much does one ad cost to file?
The solid bar is the fee for an ad filed on time; the light bar, where there is one, is the late fee. Rhode Island, South Dakota and Wisconsin require filing but name no fee, so they have no bar.
Which states file, when, and for what fee?
Every state that asks for a filing or offers a review, highest fee first. Click a state for the rest of its ad rules.
| State | What’s filed | When | Fee per ad | Late fee | Keep copies | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | Ads | At least 20 days before first use | $250 | $750 | 3 years | R. Regulating Fla. Bar 4-7.19, 4-7.20 |
| Louisiana | Ads | At or before first use | $175 | $275 | 5 years | La. Rules of Prof'l Conduct 7.2(a)(3), 7.4, 7.6, 7.7, 7.8 |
| Nevada | Ads | Within 15 days after first use | $100 | None named | No rule | Nev. RPC 7.2A, 7.2B (and 7.1-7.3) |
| Texas | Ads | Within 10 days after first use | $100 | $250 fine the Bar may add | No rule | Tex. Disciplinary R. Prof'l Conduct 7.04, 7.05 |
| Indiana | Targeted letters only | At or before first use | $50 | None named | 6 years | Ind. R. Prof. Conduct 7.2(c), 7.3(c) |
| Mississippi | Ads | Before first use | $25 | $150 | 3 years | Miss. R. Prof. Conduct 7.2(h), 7.5; Bar Policies and Procedures for Submission of Advertisements (approved by Supreme Court order Dec. 9, 2004) |
| Connecticut | Ads | At or before first use | No fee | None named | 3 years | Conn. Practice Book 2-28A, 2-28B; Conn. Rules of Prof'l Conduct 7.2(b) |
| Kentucky | Review on request | Any time; answer within 30 days | $75 if you ask | None named | 2 years | SCR 3.130(7.01)-(7.60), esp. 7.03; SCR 3.130(4.5) (solicitation); AAC Regulations |
| Rhode Island | Ads | Before or within 48 hours after first use | None named | None named | 3 years | R.I. Sup. Ct. Rules, Art. V, Rules of Professional Conduct 7.2(b), 7.3(c)-(d) |
| South Dakota | Targeted letters only | At least 30 days before first use | None named | None named | 2 years | SDCL ch. 16-18 App., S.D. Rules of Professional Conduct 7.2(c), 7.3(c)-(d) |
| Wisconsin | Targeted letters only | Within 5 days after first use | None named | None named | Unknown | Wis. SCR 20:7.2, 20:7.3(c) and Wisconsin Committee Comment |
What does every state require?
All 50 states and DC in our study, A to Z. Each row links to that state’s full rules page, such as California.
“Unknown” means we could not read the state’s official rule text. “No rule” means the current rule sets no period for keeping copies. “None named” means the rule requires filing but names no fee, which is not the same as free.
What did we correct in our own library?
This study checked our own state rules library against the official texts. It found mistakes, and we fixed them on October 25, 2026. Rhode Island is the big one: we had it as a state with no filing.
- Rhode Island. We said: No filing found (from a secondary source). The rule says: Ads are filed with Supreme Court Disciplinary Counsel, before or within 48 hours of first use, and kept 3 years.
- Nevada. We said: Copies kept 4 years. The rule says: The current rule sets no period for keeping copies.
- Kansas. We said: No period for keeping copies listed. The rule says: Copies kept 2 years.
- Kentucky. We said: No period for keeping copies listed. The rule says: Copies kept 2 years.
- Tennessee. We said: No period for keeping copies listed. The rule says: Copies kept 2 years.
- Colorado. We said: No period for keeping copies listed. The rule says: Copies kept 5 years (targeted letters only).
- Louisiana. We said: No period for keeping copies listed. The rule says: Copies kept 5 years.
- Mississippi. We said: No period for keeping copies listed. The rule says: Copies kept 3 years.
- Connecticut. We said: No period for keeping copies listed. The rule says: Copies kept 3 years.
The study also moved our library’s filing rule onto primary sources in every jurisdiction but Vermont and Virginia. The library now has 141 of its 459 cells on a primary source, up from 85.
How did we build it?
We read each jurisdiction’s own rules, court orders and bar fee pages on October 25, 2026. Every fact in the data has the source link, an exact quote and the date we read it. A script matched all 265 quotes against the pages they came from. A few official sites block scripts, so we read 16 quotes in a normal browser instead, and the data marks each one.
- Primary sources only. Legal-marketing papers and rule copies on other sites were leads, never sources.
- Two gaps. Vermont and Virginia stay unknown: we could not read their official rule text.
- A snapshot. Fees and rules change. Several states rewrote their ad rules in 2026.
- “No fee named” is not “free”. It means the rule states no amount.
- Not legal advice. This is a dataset about published rules. Check with your state bar before you run an ad.
How to cite this study
You can reuse, adapt and republish this data, including commercially, under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license (CC BY 4.0). The only condition is that you credit Probative and link to the source.
- Version
- 1.1.0, released October 25, 2026
- Every version
- 10.5281/zenodo.23656745 (always points to the newest)
- License
- CC BY 4.0
Download the data
- CSV: data.csv 91 KB · one row per state and DC
- JSON: data.json 220 KB · the same rows, with every source quote
Free, no email or login. The files are hosted on this site and Zenodo, a public research archive.
Suggested citation
Probative. (2026). What US state bars charge, and require, to file or review lawyer advertising (Version 1.0.0) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23656746
Credit line for a chart, table or article
Source: Probative, What US state bars charge, and require, to file or review lawyer advertising, version 1.0.0, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23656746, licensed CC BY 4.0.
The data summarizes published rules; it is not legal advice. Check with your state bar before you rely on any row.
Where can I read each state’s full rules?
Each state page covers the rest of its ad rules too, such as disclaimers, waiting periods and testimonials.
- States that file ads: Florida, Louisiana, Nevada, Texas, Mississippi, Connecticut, Rhode Island.
- States that file targeted letters only: Indiana, South Dakota, Wisconsin.
- Review on request: Kentucky.
- Every state and DC, every rule: our state rules library and the plain-English guide.
Questions about this study
How many states make lawyers file their ads, and which ones?
Seven, as of October 25, 2026: Florida, Louisiana, Nevada, Texas, Mississippi, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Indiana, South Dakota and Wisconsin file only targeted letters and emails. Kentucky reviews ads only on request. We found no filing duty in the other 38 jurisdictions we could check. Vermont and Virginia are unknown.
What does it cost to file one lawyer ad?
Florida $250, Louisiana $175, Nevada $100, Texas $100, Indiana $50, Mississippi $25, Connecticut charges nothing. Rhode Island, South Dakota and Wisconsin require filing, but their rules name no fee.
Can a firm pay for a faster bar review?
No state we read offers one. Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Nevada publish their full fee lists with no rush option. The others don’t say. What seven states offer is an advance opinion on an ad before it runs.
How long must a firm keep copies of its ads?
In 20 states there is a set period, from 1 to 6 years. The longest is 6 years, in Alabama and Indiana. 28 jurisdictions have no such rule today, and we could not tell for Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin.
Can I reuse this filing-fee data?
Yes. It is free under CC BY 4.0. Use it, chart it or republish it, and credit Probative with a link to this page.
Where do I start?
Want your own ads checked?
We look at your ads, Google profile and website against your state’s rules, and show you where you stand in Google and AI answers. It’s free.
Or get a free review: Probative Growth records a 90-second video of what clients see when they look you up, and emails it within 2 business days.