Lawyers no longer have to be certified by The Florida Bar to say they are experts or specialists in their advertisements, but the Bar will not advise them on what level of training, education, and experience is “objectively” necessary to say they have expertise or specialize in a certain area of law.

The Standing Committee on Advertising upheld a recommendation from Bar staff not to issue an opinion to a Bar member who inquired whether the lawyer could objectively verify a claim of specialization or expertise based on the lawyer’s background.

It was one of several actions by the committee on April 7 on issues ranging from firm website addresses to claims made in ads to law firm slogans.