Ohio Board Advisory Opinion Op 10-001

The Supreme Court of Ohio
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ON GRIEVANCES AND DISCIPLINE
65 SOUTH FRONT STREET, 5TH FLOOR, COLUMBUS, OH 43215-3431
(614) 387-9370 (888) 664-8345 FAX: (614) 387-9379
www.supremecourt.ohio.gov
OFFICE OF SECRETARY
OPINION 2010-1
Issued February 5, 2010
SYLLABUS: It is improper for a lawyer to name a law firm the lawyer’s surname
followed by the words Intellectual Property or the initials IP. The use of an area of
practice or specialization in a law firm name constitutes a trade name. Prof. Cond. Rule
7.5(a), Gov.Bar. R. III(2), and Prof. Cond. Rule 7.4 do not authorize the inclusion of an
area of practice or specialization in a law firm name and Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5 specifically
does not allow a trade name. An additional consideration when naming a law firm is that
Gov.Bar R. III(2) requires that the name of a law firm formed under a corporate structure,
must, in addition to compliance with Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5, include the proper descriptive
designation required by law, such as LLC or LLP, and that the name of a legal
professional association must end with the legend “Co., LPA” or have below it the words
“A Legal Professional Association.”
OPINION: This opinion addresses a question regarding inclusion of an area of practice
or specialization in a law firm name.
Is it proper for a lawyer to name a law firm the lawyer’s surname followed
by the words Intellectual Property or the initials IP as an abbreviation for
intellectual property?
A lawyer who has practiced in the area of intellectual property for many years would like
to include the area of practice in the law firm name. The law firm is formed as a limited
liability company. The lawyer proposes the use of the lawyer’s surname followed by IP
as an abbreviation for intellectual property.
Law firm names are addressed in Rule 7.5 of the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct and
in Rule III of the Supreme Court Rules for the Government of the Bar of Ohio.
Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5(a) prohibits a lawyer from practicing law under a trade name or a
name misleading as to the identity of the lawyer or lawyers practicing in the firm. Rule
7.5(a) requires that a law firm name comply with the requirement of Prof. Cond. Rule 7.1
that “[a] lawyer shall not make or use a false, misleading, or nonverifiable
communication about the lawyer or the lawyer’s services.”
Withdrawn October 1, 2021

Op. 2010-1 2
Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5(a)
A lawyer shall not use a firm name, letterhead or other professional
designation that violates Rule 7.1. A lawyer in private practice shall not
practice under a trade name, a name that is misleading as to the identity of
the lawyer or lawyers practicing under the name, or a firm name
containing names other than those of one of more of the lawyers in the
firm, except that the name of a professional corporation or association,
legal clinic, limited liability company, or registered partnership shall
contain symbols indicating the nature of the organization as required by
Gov. Bar R. III. If otherwise lawful, a firm may use as, or continue to
include in, its name the name or names of one or more deceased or retired
members of the firm or of a predecessor firm in a continuing line of
succession.
Gov.Bar R. III(2) requires that the name of a law firm formed under a corporate structure,
must, in addition to compliance with Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5, include the descriptive
designation required by law, such as LLC or LLP, and that the name of a legal
professional association must end with the legend “Co., LPA” or have below it the words
“A Legal Professional Association.”
Gov.Bar R. III(2)
The name of a legal professional association, corporation, legal clinic,
limited liability company, or registered partnership shall comply with
Rule 7.5 of the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct. The name of a legal
professional association or legal clinic shall end with the legend, “Co.,
LPA” or shall immediately below it, in legible form, the words “A Legal
Professional Association.” The name of a corporation, limited liability
company, or registered partnership shall include a descriptive designation
as required under sections 1701.05(A), 1705.05(A), or 1775.62,
respectively, of the Revised Code.
Neither Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5(a) nor Gov.Bar R. III(2) provides authority for a lawyer to
include an area of practice, such as intellectual property, patent law, personal injury law,
criminal defense law, real estate law, or any other area of practice, in a law firm name.
Further, Prof. Cond. Rule 7.4, which is a rule devoted to communication of fields of
practice and specialization, does not provide authority to communicate a field of practice
or a specialization in the name of a law firm.
In applying these rules, it is the Board’s view that the inclusion of an area of practice or
specialization in a law firm name constitutes a trade name and is not authorized by the
rules. This advice is consistent with past disciplinary case law. A lawyer’s
advertisements placed in yellow page directories containing the heading “Body Injury

Op. 2010-1 3
Legal Centers” were found to be a trade name violating DR 2-102(B) of the Ohio Code of
Professional Responsibility [the predecessor rule to Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5]. Medina Cty.
Bar Assn. v. Grieselhuber (1997), 78 Ohio St.3d 373, 374-75.
Thus, the Board advises that it is improper for a lawyer to name a law firm the lawyer’s
surname followed by the words Intellectual Property or the initials IP. The use of an area
of practice or specialization in a law firm name constitutes a trade name. Prof. Cond.
Rule 7.5(a), Gov.Bar. R. III(2), and Prof. Cond. Rule 7.4 do not authorize the inclusion of
an area of practice or specialization in a law firm name and Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5
specifically does not allow a trade name. An additional consideration when naming a law
firm is that Gov.Bar R. III(2) requires that the name of a law firm formed under a
corporate structure, must, in addition to compliance with Prof. Cond. Rule 7.5, include
the proper descriptive designation required by law, such as LLC or LLP, and that the
name of a legal professional association must end with the legend “Co., LPA” or have
below it the words “A Legal Professional Association.”
Advisory Opinions of the Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline are
informal, nonbinding opinions in response to prospective or hypothetical questions
regarding the application of the Supreme Court Rules for the Government of the
Bar of Ohio, the Supreme Court Rules for the Government of the Judiciary, the
Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct, the Ohio Code of Judicial Conduct, and the
Attorney’s Oath of Office.