R. Regulating Fla. Bar 4-3.6 · 4-3. ADVOCATE
TRIAL PUBLICITY
Text — October 1, 2026 edition
(a) Prejudicial Extrajudicial Statements Prohibited. A lawyer shall not make an extrajudicial statement that a reasonable person would expect to be disseminated by means of public communication if the lawyer knows or reasonably should know that it will have a substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing an adjudicative proceeding due to its creation of an imminent and substantial detrimental effect on that proceeding.
(b) Statements of Third Parties. A lawyer shall not counsel or assist another person to make such a statement. Counsel shall exercise reasonable care to prevent investigators, employees, or other persons assisting in or associated with a case from making extrajudicial statements that are prohibited under this rule.
Notes and commentary — not rule text
Comment
It is difficult to strike a balance between protecting the right to a fair trial and safeguarding the right of free expression. Preserving the right to a fair trial necessarily entails some curtailment of the information that may be disseminated about a party prior to trial, particularly where trial by jury is involved. If there were no such limits, the result would be the practical nullification of the protective effect of the rules of forensic decorum and the exclusionary rules of evidence. On the other hand, there are vital social interests served by the free dissemination of information about events having legal consequences and about legal proceedings themselves. The public has a right to know about threats to its safety and measures aimed at assuring its security. It also has a legitimate interest in the conduct of judicial proceedings, particularly in matters of general public concern. Furthermore, the subject matter of legal proceedings is often of direct significance in debate and deliberation over questions of public policy.
History
Amended July 23, 1992, effective January 1, 1993 (605 So.2d 252); amended Oct. 20, 1994 (644 So.2d 282).
Source of truth
- Edition
- October 1, 2026 edition
- Official file
- https://www-media.floridabar.org/uploads/2026/10/2027_04-OCT-RRTFB-10-1-2026.pdf (PDF pages 332–333)
- Text hash
- sha256 6d283c11cf3725470c8d4ed3249eb2542f9f80bb0169883a66f8b64a66c1a325
- Composed by
- compose_bar.py 2026-10-04: the edition's printed headings as the inventory (reconciled to its bookmarks both ways), pypdfium2 primary, PyMuPDF check, every word of each span accounted for
- composed from the PDF edition; both extractors agree
BenchPath cards that rely on this text
- 11th Cir. AO 08-11 — ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCEDURES FOR SPECIAL INTEREST/HIGH VISIBILITY RPOCEEDINGS AT DADE COUNTY COURTHOUSE
- 11th Cir. AO 08-11 — 1-08-11-Procedures Re High Profile Casesat Dade County Courthouse
- S.D. Fla. Local Rule 77.2 — Release of Information in Criminal and Civil Proceedings
- 11th Cir. AO 07-02 — PROCEDURES FOR SPECIAL INTEREST/HIGH VISIBILITY PROCEEDINGS AT RICHARD E. GERSTEIN JUSTICE BUILDING
- N.D. Fla. Loc. R. 77.4 — Release of Information in Criminal and Civil Cases
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.