Social Media Policy for Lawyers
Guidelines for creating a strong and professional image across all social media outlets
- Create a clear, professional profile that mirrors the profile on the firm website. All professional profiles on social media sites should be an extension of the firm page. However, it is ok to add a slightly more familiar tone to pages on social media that stray from the firm’s formal biography. For tips on how to create a profile on LinkedIn click here.
- Remember that anything with your name and firm name on it is an extension of professional life. Do not post anything that would be against firm policy and exercise great caution when posting to online forums on social media and websites. All posts can be traced back to you, and ultimately the firm.
- Allow your social media profiles to promote the firm and the firm’s marketing activities. All articles, newsletters, and firm updates that the firm shares on the firm social media pages should be shared on individual profiles.
- Respect confidentiality: do not list clients or cases on social media without written permission from the client.
- Do not offer legal opinions, guidance, or advice on social media.
- Do not post boastful statements about the quality of your work or the firm’s work.
- Always provide direct links to posts that you reference on your social media pages to add an element of credibility.
- Do not engage in argumentative banter on social media groups or forums.
- Participate, engage and promote the firm and yourself. Social media opens a world of possibilities for networking and business development and with the proper attention, it can produce incredible results for propelling a lawyer’s professional growth.
- Lastly, social media is not for all lawyers. A poorly maintained social media profile on LinkedIn or Twitter is more detrimental than not having one at all. Be true to your professional self, and if you know that you will not pay proper attention to your social media profiles, focus your marketing attention elsewhere.