Rosenbaum & Associates, a Philadelphia personal injury law firm, recently filed a complaint against Morgan & Morgan, a Florida-based personal injury law firm, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The complaint alleges that Morgan & Morgan falsely advertises that it represents clients in the Philadelphia area.
Among other things, Rosenbaum & Associates alleges that Morgan & Morgan’s ubiquitous advertisements in Philadelphia, which contain statements such as “[w]e’re all here for you,” lead consumers to believe that the firm actively litigates personal injury claims in Pennsylvania. However, the firm employs only one attorney in Philadelphia with “little or no experience in handling personal injury matters,” a fact which likely place the advertisements in violation of Pennsylvania Ethics Rule 7.2.
Rosenbaum & Associates’ false advertising claim is also buttressed by the allegation that Morgan & Morgan’s advertisements explicitly state that the firm is “not a referral service.” Yet, the firm allegedly refers nearly all of its cases to another law firm, and fails to inform consumers that their cases will be referred out—a clear violation of Rule 7.2(k), which prohibits advertising that is “a pretext to refer cases obtained from advertising to other lawyers.”
In addition to its false advertising claim, Rosenbaum & Associates also brings a claim against Morgan & Morgan for unfair competition under Pennsylvania common law. The complaint alleges that Morgan & Morgan outspends every Philadelphia personal injury firm in terms of advertising, and the purpose of its “significant advertising budget is to undermine the competition by overwhelming the consumers in the Philadelphia market with false and misleading information.” Rosenbaum & Associates attributes its declining influx of new clients to Morgan & Morgan’s misleading advertisements.
Read Rosenbaum & Associates’ complaint here.
