Morgan & Morgan sues to overturn Florida Bar celebrity ad ban

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(Legal Newsline) – Morgan & Morgan has sued The Florida Bar to invalidate a rule that prohibits lawyers from using celebrities’ voices or images in advertising, arguing the restriction violates the First Amendment and is too vague to enforce fairly.

The federal lawsuit filed August 14 challenges Florida Rule of Professional Conduct 4-7.15(c). The rule generally bars lawyer advertisements containing “the voice or image of a celebrity,” with narrow exceptions for certain local broadcast personalities and testimonials by current or former clients.

Touting itself as America’s largest injury law firm, Orlando-based Morgan & Morgan and founder John Morgan are known nationwide. The firm, which was founded in 1988, has offices in all 50 states and boasts about its 1,100 attorneys and $35 billion recovered. Morgan’s face is seen on countless billboards and television ads across the country.

In the 38-page complaint, the firm and CEO attorney Alexander M. Clem say Florida is alone in imposing a categorical ban extending beyond celebrity endorsements to virtually any appearance by a recognizable person.

“Florida stands alone among the states in imposing the most ‘restrictive measures to control attorney advertising,’” the complaint states, quoting a prior federal appeals court decision.

The firm named The Florida Bar, Executive Director Joshua E. Doyle, Chief Ethics Counsel Jonathan Grabb and Orlando branch discipline counsel Laura N. Gryb as defendants.

Morgan & Morgan says it runs celebrity-focused campaigns in other states and would air them in Florida but for the rule and the possibility of professional discipline. The complaint says the Bar has previously rejected proposed ads featuring former NBA player Shaquille O’Neal, actor and racecar driver Frankie Muniz, NASCAR driver Kyle Busch and golfer John Daly.

It also alleges the Bar objected to a billboard promoting a free youth football camp because it featured University of Miami player Malachi Toney. According to the filing, the Bar told the firm it could use the billboard only if it removed the firm’s logo and other identifying content that could be treated as advertising.

The suit argues the rule reaches advertising that is neither deceptive nor an endorsement.

“Florida’s celebrity rule lacks evidentiary support,” the complaint states. It alleges that Bar surveys have found consumers view celebrity endorsements as “by far the least important consideration” in selecting a lawyer and generally recognize celebrities as paid performers.

The filing argues Florida’s ban is especially broad because it covers print, broadcast and online advertising, including websites and social media. It says Pennsylvania is the only other state that specifically regulates celebrities in lawyer advertising, but that state’s rule is limited to celebrity or public-figure endorsements.

Morgan & Morgan argues Florida could address any concern about misleading ads through its separate rules banning false or deceptive advertising, or through disclosures identifying a celebrity’s relationship with a firm, rather than an across-the-board ban.

The complaint also challenges the rule as unconstitutionally vague. Under the rule’s comment, a celebrity includes a person known to the target audience whose voice or image is recognizable at the national, regional or local level.

The plaintiffs say the rule does not specify how recognizable a person must be, leaving lawyers to guess whether local business leaders, athletes, public officials, podcasters or others could trigger discipline.

“The rule’s applicability in each case thus comes down to the opinion of Bar authorities about an individual celebrity’s recognizability,” the complaint states.

The filing cites instances in which the Bar concluded that former NBA player Chandler Parsons and former Major League Baseball player Jody Reed were not recognizable enough to violate the rule. Morgan & Morgan argues those determinations, made without surveys or similar evidence, underscore the rule’s unpredictability.

The lawsuit seeks a declaration that the celebrity provision is unconstitutional on its face and as applied to the firm, a permanent injunction blocking enforcement. It also seeks attorney fees and court costs.

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida case number 4:26-cv-00405