Litigation PR is the management of public communication around a lawsuit or investigation, with the court record and the client's reputation both in view. Lawyers' own statements are limited by Rule 3.6 of the ABA Model Rules, adopted with little or no change in most U.S. jurisdictions, which bars extrajudicial statements with a substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing a proceeding. A litigation PR plan starts from that limit.
What is litigation PR and who sets the limits?
Litigation PR is communication strategy built around a legal dispute, and the ethics rules for lawyers set its outer limits. The ABA Section of Litigation analysis notes that paragraph (a) of Rule 3.6 has been adopted, with little or no change, in most U.S. jurisdictions, and that paragraph (c) gives lawyers a limited right to respond to adverse publicity.
The Daily Journal's ethics summary explains that California's version is based on the ABA rule, and that the right of reply applies only when the lawyer did not start the publicity. It also notes that public commentary can matter more in a criminal trial than in a civil one.
Rules differ by state, so litigation counsel decides what a statement can include. A PR team that treats counsel's approval as the first step avoids most problems.
Which other rules apply beyond trial publicity?
Lawyers face rules beyond Rule 3.6 when they speak about a case, including the duty of truthfulness and the duty of confidentiality. The Gibson Dunn webcast slides on litigating in the press list Rule 4.1 on truthfulness in statements to others and the confidentiality rules alongside Rule 3.6.
For a company, the practical point is that a single statement can raise several questions at once: whether it is accurate, whether it reveals privileged information, and whether it could prejudice the proceeding. Counsel should review all three before the statement goes out.
What did the Fox and Dominion settlement show?
The 2023 Fox and Dominion settlement showed that one sentence can carry a company's entire legal and reputational position. Dominion Voting Systems had sued for $1.6 billion over false on-air claims that its machines helped rig the 2020 election, and Fox agreed to pay $787.5 million, according to the report in the Indianapolis Business Journal.
Before the settlement, Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis ruled on March 31 that Dominion had proven all 20 statements in its lawsuit were false, according to Lawyer Monthly. On April 18, 2023, Fox issued a statement that said it acknowledged the court's rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false. Fox media reporter Howard Kurtz read the statement on air, per the same IBJ report.
The Daily Record reported that no apology was offered. The wording acknowledged rulings without adding an apology, which is a legal choice that reporters and opposing lawyers read closely.
A second lesson sits in the court filings. Reuters reported that Dominion's February filings cited internal communications in which Fox chairman Rupert Murdoch and other Fox figures privately acknowledged the vote-rigging claims were false, in a syndicated account of the case. Private messages can become public evidence, so internal email and chat deserve the same care as a press statement.
What should a litigation PR plan include?
A litigation PR plan should include one approval path, prepared statements for each legal milestone, a log of coverage, and rules for internal messages. Five steps put that into practice.
- Name one spokesperson and one approval path that includes litigation counsel, so no statement reaches a reporter from a side channel.
- Draft statements for each decision point before it arrives, using the table below.
- Keep a log of what is published about the case and who started it. The Daily Journal notes that the right of reply depends on the publicity being recent and not initiated by the lawyer or the client.
- Treat internal email and chat as possible evidence, as the Dominion filings showed.
- Review every prepared statement after each ruling, because a statement written before a decision may not fit the facts after it.
| Legal milestone | What to prepare in advance |
|---|---|
| Filing or service | A short holding statement that states the company has been served and will respond in court |
| Hearing or motion | A neutral note on the date and the issue, approved by counsel |
| Ruling | Two versions, one for a win and one for a loss, with the same tone |
| Settlement | A statement that matches the settlement terms and avoids new factual claims |
| Verdict | Two versions, plus a plan for the first hour of reporter calls |
The crisis statement template shows the structure of a holding statement, and the corporate apology guide covers when an apology belongs in a response. The crisis communications hub collects the wider case library.
Where can companies find litigation PR help?
Companies facing a dispute should hire litigation PR support that works alongside outside counsel and not in place of it. 5W runs a litigation PR and legal tech practice, and its guide to litigation PR during legal cases describes the work as protecting reputation while a case is active, alongside counsel. Disclosure: Ronn Torossian founded 5W.
Frequently asked questions
What is litigation PR?
Litigation PR is the management of public communication during an active or pending legal dispute. It works alongside outside counsel to protect a client's reputation while the case moves through the courts.
Can lawyers talk to the press about a pending case?
Lawyers can talk to the press about a pending case within limits. Rule 3.6 bars statements with a substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing the proceeding, and it allows a limited reply to recent publicity the lawyer or client did not start.
Does a PR firm replace the lawyers?
A PR firm does not replace the lawyers. 5W's guidance describes litigation PR as working alongside outside counsel, and counsel keeps the final say on any statement about the case.
When should a company bring in litigation PR?
A company should bring in litigation PR as soon as a dispute becomes public. 5W's guidance recommends doing so before the first news cycle sets the frame.
The common thread is that a legal dispute is also a public record, and every statement a company makes becomes part of it. Preparing each statement before the milestone arrives is the cheapest protection available.
This guide is general communications information, not legal advice. Litigation counsel should approve every statement about a pending case.