Social-Media Advertising Tips for Young Lawyers

The ABA defines social media as “[a]ny tool or service that uses the Internet to facilitate conversations.” Hope A. Comisky and William M. Taylor, “Don’t Be a Twit: Avoiding the Ethical Pitfalls Facing Lawyers Utilizing Social Media in Three Important Areas,” 20 Temp. Pol. & Civ. Rts. L. Rev. 297, 298 (Spring 2011) (quoting Catherine Sanders Reach, ABA Legal Tech. Res. Ctr., “A Guided Tour of Social Media” at 2 (2010). This broad definition captures the essence of what young lawyers (and ordinary people) understand social media to be, namely a tool to keep in touch with family, friends, and colleagues through rapid sharing of information and digital media, by, for example, uploading photos on Flickr and videos on YouTube. And while most young lawyers have used social media for years, many new attorneys are not familiar with how social media can benefit their practice and how ethical policies and rules should govern their use.