The Third Circuit is considering a constitutional challenge to New Jersey's ban on lawyers putting complimentary quotes from judges' opinions into ads, the New Jersey Law Journal. Only the full text of the opinion with the comments can be presented, the Journal notes.
On one hand, proponents of the ban argue it ensures that the judiciary does not appear to be biased in favor of one side and won't be pulled into impermisible judicial endorsements. On the other hand, one of the appellate judges said during oral argument that judges' opinions "'can be quoted all over the place,' in law reviews, symposia and in court," so why can't a judge's comment about an attorney in an opinion be used in attorney advertising, the Journal further reports.
Lawyer and Legal Journalist
