37 CFR § 11.703 — Solicitation of clients. (MPEP Coverage Index) – BlueIron IP
37 CFR § 11.703 Solicitation of clients.
Source: Patent Rule (37 CFR)BlueIron Update:
This page consolidates MPEP guidance interpreting 37 CFR § 11.703, including 0 rules from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only, it is not legal advice.
Official MPEP § 11.703 — Solicitation of clients.
Source: USPTOLast Modified: 10/30/2024 08:50:22
11.703 Solicitation of clients.
- (a) “Solicitation” or “solicit” denotes a communication initiated by or on behalf of a practitioner or law firm that is directed to a specific person the practitioner knows or reasonably should know needs legal services in a particular matter and that offers to provide, or reasonably can be understood as offering to provide, legal services for that matter.
- (b) A practitioner shall not solicit
professional employment by live person-to-person contact when a
significant motive for the practitioner’s doing so is the
practitioner’s or law firm’s pecuniary gain, unless the contact is
with a:
- (1) Practitioner;
- (2) Person who has a family, close personal, or prior business or professional relationship with the practitioner or law firm; or
- (3) Person who routinely uses for business purposes the type of legal services offered by the practitioner.
- (c) A practitioner shall not solicit
professional employment even when not otherwise prohibited by
paragraph (b) of this section, if:
- (1) The target of solicitation has made known to the practitioner a desire not to be solicited by the practitioner, or
- (2) The solicitation involves coercion, duress, or harassment.
- (d) This section does not prohibit communications authorized by law or ordered by a court or other tribunal.
- (e) Notwithstanding the prohibitions in this section, a practitioner may participate with a prepaid or group legal service plan operated by an organization not owned or directed by the practitioner that uses live person-to- person contact to enroll members or sell subscriptions for the plan from persons who are not known to need legal services in a particular matter covered by the plan.
[Added 78 FR 20180, Apr. 3, 2013, effective May 3, 2013; revised, 86 FR 28442, May 26, 2021, effective June 25, 2021]