Trial Lawyer Advertising

Trial lawyers and aggregators increasingly spend large sums of money on television, digital, and print advertising to recruit new clients for class action lawsuits.

Much of this advertising is conducted by aggregators: businesses that recruit potential plaintiffs and then sell their information to law firms.

The Problem

Consumers see doomsday ads about the lethal effects of medications or even general medical injury, and consequently stop using their medicine. This is often done without consulting a doctor, causing health problems for the patients and increasing litigation risk for the product manufacturers.

These over-the-top advertisements from personal injury attorneys with catchy jingles and toll-free numbers pose a serious danger. These ads undermine the simple notion that physicians and health care providers, not personal injury lawyers or the “aggregators” who run the ads for the lawyers, should dispense medical advice.

The reason why trial lawyers pump significant money into these ad buys is because, armed with more clients, they can boost settlements and payouts when they go after large corporations. This leads to larger contingency fees for themselves.

What Can Be Done

Legislation is needed that places reasonable regulations regarding deceptive or misleading lawsuits or legal services advertisements.

Reports & Resources on Trial Lawyer Advertising

Search through all of ATRA’s resources around legal services advertising:
California – 2019-2023
Georgia – 2019-2023
Nevada – 2019-2023
New Jersey – 2019-2023
New York – 2019-2023
Pennsylvania – 2019-2023
Florida – 2022
Nevada – 2022
California – Quarters 1-2, 2022
2017-2021: Nationwide Report Of Legal Services Advertising Across The U.S.
California, Florida, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania – 2016-2021

News on Trial Lawyer Advertising

Legal Newsline: New Reports Finds Morgan & Morgan Spent $7.3 Million on Legal Ads in 2023, Contributing to New York's Excessive Lawsuits
August 16, 2022
A recent study conducted by the American Tort Reform Association (ATRA) scrutinized the advertising expenditure of New York-based law firms, […]
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Group’s Report Takes Aim at Political Contributions by Personal Injury Law Firms
February 29, 2024
A group of personal injury law firms have given over $4.5 million to campaigns and political committees in Nevada since 2017, a report shows. […]
New York Post: Law Firms Pumped Millions Into NY Campaigns as Lawmakers Made It Easier to Sue: Report
February 25, 2024
Trial lawyers pumped millions of dollars into the campaign coffers of New York politicians in a push to expand laws that made it easier to file […]
New Florida Bill to Regulate Misleading Legal Services Ads on Pharmaceutical Drugs and Medical Devices
April 12, 2023
ATRA’s Latest Data Reveals $271.8 Million Spent on Legal Services Advertising in Florida in 2022; Florida Accounted for Nearly 20% of Radio[…]
Bloomberg Law Op-Ed: When Plaintiffs’ Attorneys Mislead the Public
September 28, 2022
Massive television ad buys and public relations campaigns that peddle misinformation taint public’s preconceptions […]
Study: Trial Lawyers Spent $1.4 Billion on Advertising in 2021
February 22, 2022
Trial lawyer groups flooded airways with more than 15 million local TV ads last year […]
The American Tort Reform Association is the nation’s first organization dedicated exclusively to reforming the civil justice system through education and legislative enactment.

To receive occasional updates from ATRA, enter your email address:
By subscribing, you agree to our Privacy Policy and consent to receive updates.
© 2025 ATRA. All rights reserved.