Participating with SwitchMyAttorney
A Florida lawyer may not participate with a qualifying provider that does not meet Rule 4-7.22, and the lawyer — not the provider — can be held responsible for the provider’s non-compliance in two defined circumstances. So this page is written as the document a managing partner and an ethics-conscious associate would want before signing anything: what the arrangement is, how each of the twelve conditions is met, what the firm has to file itself, and what is still open.
The arrangement in five lines:
- A flat participation fee, set in advance, owed regardless of outcome. No division of fees, no percentage, no payment calculated on any recovery — Rule 4-7.22(d)(2), Rule 4-5.4(a).
- Consumer-initiated contact only. Every request comes from a person who asked to be contacted. No firm is ever asked to send a communication to someone who is already represented — Rule 4-7.18(b)(1)(B).
- One program. A matching service under Rule 4-7.22(b)(1). No directory, no pooled advertising, nothing else to be responsible for.
- Compliance documentation before participation begins, as Rule 4-7.22(d)(6) requires, with a termination-on-non-compliance clause in the agreement.
- Two filings are yours, not ours: your report to The Florida Bar within 15 days of agreeing to participate, and again within 15 days of ceasing — Rule 4-7.22(e)(1).
Where this stands today, before anything else
Three things a firm is entitled to know before reading further, because finding them out later would be a waste of everyone’s time.
- The panel is not yet at four firms. Rule 4-7.22(d)(12) requires a qualifying provider to have “lawyers from at least 4 different law firms participating in the panel or group of lawyers to whom clients are referred.” Matching does not operate before that threshold is met and is suspended if the panel falls below it. The content on this site is published and no request has been routed to any firm.
- The flat-fee structure is under ethics review. A Florida ethics attorney is reviewing it before the first agreement is signed, with one question put in writing: whether a flat fee charged per retained client, as opposed to a flat monthly fee or a flat fee per qualified request, risks characterization as a fee “based on the success or perceived value of the case” under the Comment to Rule 4-7.22. The conservative structures avoid the question and are the default until counsel answers.
- The entity and the name. Rule 4-7.22(d)(9) requires use of the actual legal name or a registered fictitious name in all communications with the public. Second Option Connect LLC is the name used in the footer of every page. The Comment to the rule tells a participating lawyer to ask for exactly this documentation, and it will be in the pack rather than asserted on a web page.
The twelve conditions, and how each is met
Rule 4-7.22(d) sets the conditions under which a lawyer may participate. Each one, and the undertaking that satisfies it:
| Condition | How it is met |
|---|---|
| (d)(1) No communication with the public or direct contact with prospective clients that would violate the Rules of Professional Conduct if made by the lawyer | All public content is written to Rules 4-7.11 through 4-7.17: no “best,” “top,” “#1,” “expert” or “specialist” claims, no prediction or guarantee of results, no settlement or verdict figures anywhere, no disparagement of any named firm or lawyer, no outcome testimonials. Case illustrations are labeled scenarios. There is no direct contact with prospective clients at all: every contact is consumer-initiated. |
| (d)(2) No fee or charge that is a division or sharing of fees | Flat fee, set in advance, payable regardless of outcome. No percentage of any fee, nothing calculated on a recovery, nothing contingent on an outcome, nothing based on the success or perceived value of a case. No exception under chapter 8 is claimed, because none applies. Set out in full at how we are paid. |
| (d)(3) Connects prospective clients only to persons lawfully permitted to practice law in Florida | Florida Bar member status and good standing verified on the Bar’s member search before a lawyer is added, and re-verified before each annual report. Florida matters only. Bar numbers and verification dates are kept in the panel register. |
| (d)(4) Does not require, or economically pressure, the lawyer to refer clients elsewhere | No participation term, price, allocation or placement depends on a firm referring or using any other person, entity or vendor. This service holds no interest in, and takes no consideration from, any medical provider, imaging or surgical center, funding company, record service, expert service or lien resolution firm. |
| (d)(5) Provides The Florida Bar, at least annually, with the names and Florida bar membership numbers of all participating lawyers | Filed on the Bar’s qualifying provider annual reporting form, due July 1 each year, listing every participating lawyer by name and bar number, whether or not the panel changed. The first filing falls due once the panel exists. |
| (d)(6) Provides the participating lawyer with documentation of compliance with the rule | A completed compliance pack goes to each firm before participation begins, is reissued whenever a material term changes and in any event annually, and each issuance is logged with date and recipient. It is the documentation this condition requires, and it is also the first thing bar counsel would read. |
| (d)(7) Responds in writing within 15 days to any official inquiry by bar counsel | A named contact and a named backup, with the response process documented, so a single absence cannot consume the 15 days. |
| (d)(8) Neither represents nor implies endorsement or approval by The Florida Bar | No Bar seal, logo or device, and no statement or implication of endorsement, approval, certification or licensure anywhere. Rules are cited as the source of law; every page that cites one also says that citing a rule is not approval by the Bar. |
| (d)(9) Uses its actual legal name or a registered fictitious name in all communications with the public | Both the legal entity name and the registered fictitious name appear in the site footer on every page, in both languages. Until the registration is effective, the footer shows the gap rather than hiding it. Filing documentation goes in the pack. |
| (d)(10) Affirmatively discloses, at the time of the match, the location of a bona fide office by city, town or county of the lawyer being matched | Built into the handoff itself rather than left to copy: the person is shown, and separately sent, the firm’s name and the city, town or county of the bona fide office that will handle the matter. Where a firm has more than one office, the office actually handling the matter is the one disclosed, which is why the panel register carries an office column per lawyer. |
| (d)(11) Does not use a name or communicate in any way that could lead prospective clients to reasonably conclude it is a law firm or directly provides legal services | No “law,” “legal services” or firm-style construction in the entity or fictitious name. No “our attorneys,” “our legal team,” “we will review your case” or “we fight for you” in any copy. The editorial byline is “the editorial team at SwitchMyAttorney,” never a legal team. A persistent notice appears on every page in both languages, and there is a page devoted to the point — not a law firm. Matching language names which participating attorneys handle the kind of case; it never recommends or ranks. |
| (d)(12) Has lawyers from at least 4 different law firms participating in the panel | Matching does not operate below four different law firms and is suspended if the panel falls below that. The current count is carried in the panel register and stated to every firm. It is not met yet. |
What the firm has to do, which we cannot do for you
Rule 4-7.22(e) puts three obligations on the participating lawyer. They are reproduced here because (e)(2) is where a firm actually gets exposed, and both routes to exposure are avoidable.
- Report to the Bar within 15 days, twice. A lawyer who participates “must report to The Florida Bar within 15 days of agreeing to participate or ceasing participation with a qualifying provider” — Rule 4-7.22(e)(1). That is the firm’s filing on the Bar’s participation form, not ours. A reminder goes out at signing and at termination, with a link to the form, but the duty is the lawyer’s and cannot be delegated.
- Do the diligence before participation, and keep the record. Under Rule 4-7.22(e)(2)(A) the lawyer is responsible for the provider’s compliance if the lawyer “does not engage in due diligence in determining the qualifying provider’s compliance with this rule before beginning participation.” The Comment says what that diligence looks like, and it is worth doing in the Bar’s own words rather than ours: the lawyer should ask The Florida Bar “whether the qualifying provider has filed any annual reports of participating lawyers, whether the qualifying provider has filed any advertisements for evaluation, and whether The Florida Bar has ever made inquiry of the qualifying provider to which the qualifying provider has failed to respond.” The compliance pack includes a blank diligence record built on that list, for the firm to complete and keep. Keeping it is the point; a signed copy sits in our file, the completed record stays in yours.
- Insist on the termination clause. The same Comment advises that the lawyer “should also have a written agreement with the qualifying provider that includes a clause allowing immediate termination of the agreement if the qualifying provider does not comply with this rule.” That clause is in the participation agreement as drafted. If it were not, the right response from a firm would be to decline.
The second exposure route is Rule 4-7.22(e)(2)(B): if the Bar notifies the lawyer that the provider is not in compliance and the lawyer does not cease participation and document that to the Bar within 30 days, the lawyer becomes responsible for the non-compliance. Our undertaking against that is specific: every participating firm is notified in writing within one business day of any communication from The Florida Bar questioning this provider’s compliance, so that no firm’s 30-day window is spent waiting on us.
One narrowing point in the firm’s favor. The Comment provides that where a provider runs more than one program, the lawyer is responsible for the provider’s compliance “solely for the program or programs that the lawyer agrees to participate in.” This provider runs one program. If a second is ever added, each firm will be told in writing which program it participates in, before the fact.
What a qualified request means here
A defined term, written down before the first agreement, so it never becomes an argument afterward. A request reaches a firm only when all of it is true:
- A Florida matter, and an injury matter of a type the firm has said it handles.
- The person asked to be contacted. Every request is consumer-initiated; there is no outbound list.
- Reachable contact information the person provided for that purpose, with the consent language recorded.
- Stage of the case and what has been signed, as the person described it — including whether a release has already been signed, which is normally the end of the matter and is screened out before it reaches a firm.
- No request is screened on the apparent value of the case, in either direction. A flat fee removes the reason to.
The full qualification standard — what is rejected, and the credit or replacement terms when a request does not meet it — is Exhibit D of the compliance pack, agreed before a firm signs.
What you will never be asked to do
- Refer a client anywhere. Not to a medical provider, a funding company, a vendor, or to us. Rule 4-7.22(d)(4) prohibits a provider from requiring it or putting economic pressure behind it, and the Comment to Rule 4-7.22 and Rule 4-7.17(b) are clear about where that ends up.
- Accept any limit on your professional judgment. No limits on the representation, no required or prohibited tasks, no required forms, no required third-party providers. The Comment names each of those as a marker of an improper division of fees.
- Pass the cost on to a client. You could not in any event: the Comment states that a participating lawyer “may not pass on to the client the lawyer’s costs of doing business with the qualifying provider.” The fee is a cost of the firm’s business, like any other advertising cost.
- Contact anyone who did not ask to be contacted. The architecture exists to keep Rule 4-7.18(b)(1)(B) from ever being an issue, since nearly every person using this service is currently represented.
- Take a case you do not want. Declining a request carries no penalty, no change in terms and no effect on what the firm receives next.
Panel criteria
- Florida Bar member in good standing, verified on the Bar’s member search before participation and before each annual filing.
- A bona fide office in Florida, by city, town or county, identified per lawyer — because that is what gets disclosed to the person at the moment of the match under Rule 4-7.22(d)(10).
- Injury practice, with the matter types the firm will accept stated in writing.
- Willingness to take over a case already in progress, which is the whole premise. A firm that only wants cases from day one is not a fit, and it is better to say so now.
- Capacity to respond. A person who asks to be contacted and hears nothing is worse off than before they asked.
- Intake in the language of the request. Requests arrive in English and in Spanish, and a Spanish-language request is matched to a firm that can actually take the call in Spanish. The Comment to Rule 4-7.22 states the Bar’s policy of encouraging a referral method that considers “the client’s financial circumstances, spoken language, geographical convenience, and the type and complexity of the client’s legal problem” — a fair description of how matching should work.
- No disciplinary history that would make participation inappropriate.
Ask for the compliance pack and the participation agreement.
Tell us about your case
Common questions
Is the fee a division of fees under Rule 4-7.22(d)(2)?
No. It is a flat amount, set in advance and owed regardless of outcome, which is what Rule 4-7.17(b) describes as the usual charges of a qualifying provider. It is not a percentage of any fee, not calculated on any recovery, not contingent on any outcome, and not varied by the success or perceived value of a case — the three things the Comment to Rule 4-7.22 identifies as an improper division. The structure is being confirmed in writing by a Florida ethics attorney before the first agreement, and that confirmation goes in the pack.
What do I have to file with The Florida Bar?
Your own participation report, within 15 days of agreeing to participate and again within 15 days of ceasing — Rule 4-7.22(e)(1), filed on the Bar’s form. Separately, this provider files the names and Florida bar membership numbers of all participating lawyers at least annually under Rule 4-7.22(d)(5). Those are two different filings and yours is not satisfied by ours.
Am I responsible if the provider is out of compliance?
In two circumstances, both defined in Rule 4-7.22(e)(2). First, if you did not engage in due diligence on the provider’s compliance before beginning participation. Second, if the Bar notifies you of non-compliance and you do not cease participation and document that to the Bar within 30 days. The pack is built to close the first, and the one-business-day notice undertaking is there to protect the second.
Will I be competing with other firms for the same person?
A request goes to a single participating firm, so you are not bidding against other firms for the same caller. There is no ranking, no score and no paid placement, because Rule 4-7.22(d)(11) does not permit a provider to present itself as making that judgment. The panel still carries lawyers from at least 4 different law firms, which Rule 4-7.22(d)(12) requires.
Can I pay more for priority or exclusivity?
No. Every participating firm is on the same flat terms, and a fee that bought position would reintroduce precisely the interest the flat structure exists to remove. Exclusivity by matter type or geography is a different question from paying for position, and whether any exclusivity of either kind is offered has not been decided.
Where the answer comes from
- The twelve conditions: Rule Regulating The Florida Bar 4-7.22(d)(1)–(d)(12).
- What a qualifying provider is: R. 4-7.22(b), and (b)(1) for a matching service.
- The lawyer’s own duties: R. 4-7.22(e)(1), (e)(2)(A) and (e)(2)(B).
- What due diligence looks like, and the termination clause: Comment to R. 4-7.22.
- Improper division of fees, and interference with professional judgment: Comment to R. 4-7.22, with R. 4-5.4 and R. 4-1.7(a)(2).
- What a lawyer may lawfully pay a qualifying provider: R. 4-7.17(b); and the prohibition on agreeing to refer clients in exchange for leads, R. 4-7.17(b) with the Comment to R. 4-7.22.
- No cost passed to the client: Comment to R. 4-7.22, citing R. 4-1.5(a) and R. 4-1.7(a)(2).
- Solicitation limits that shape the architecture: R. 4-7.18(a) and (b)(1)(B).
- Division of fees between lawyers in different firms, which is a separate question: R. 4-1.5(g) and R. 4-1.5(f)(4)(D), as the Comment to R. 4-7.22 notes.
- Rule text quoted from Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, chapter 4, RRTFB October 22, 2026 edition. Rule 4-7.22 was adopted January 31, 2013, effective May 1, 2013 (108 So. 3d 609), amended March 8, 2018, effective April 30, 2018 (238 So. 3d 164), and amended June 22, 2023, effective August 21, 2023 (SC22-1294).
Ask for the compliance pack, the participation agreement and the current panel count. Nothing is routed to any firm until the panel reaches four different law firms — Rule 4-7.22(d)(12).
Tell us about your case or call 1-866-568-4913SwitchMyAttorney is a lawyer matching service, not a law firm. We do not provide legal advice and we do not guarantee any outcome. Information here is general and may not apply to your situation.