Whenever we talk about blogs in Advanced Electronic Legal Research class, some bright student asks about the legal issues of lawyers blogging. Because blogs are a relatively new medium, the law is still developing, and it seems that the legal issues of lawyer blogging change every semester.
Blogs as lawyer advertising, subject to regulation by a state bar association, is the current hot legal topic for lawyer bloggers. The Kentucky Attorneys' Advertising Commission is considering whether lawyer blogs are advertising. Like many questions about law, it appears that the answer will be "It depends." See "Is a Lawyer's Blog an Ad?" from the ABA Journal's eReport of June 17, 2005. Thanks to the professor who forwarded this article to me.
Of course there are many other legal issues that apply to bloggers in general. Copyright, defamation, and First Amendment issues are just some of the issues that bloggers should keep in mind. But how can you possibly stay on top of all these issues if the law is always changing? One place to start is the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Legal Guide for Bloggers. It may not answer all your questions, but it will at least help you figure out what your questions should be.
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