Press release distribution for solicitors UK: getting legal news noticed

What to take away

Solicitors sell judgement, so an announcement earns space when it names the decision, the client type or the risk rather than the firm.
Two audiences matterthe legal trade press, which follows rulings and regulation, and business desks, which follow the client.
Editorial coverage and paid promotion sit under different rulebooks, and a single legal campaign often touches both.
Media lists hold personal data, so the UK GDPR applies from the first row you compile.
This is general guidance, not advice on a specific matter.

What counts as news at a law firm

Most firms announce the same things: a new partner, an office move, a directory ranking. On its own, none of that travels far.

A ruling that changes what clients must do is different. So is a regulatory decision that alters a filing step, or a settlement that puts a figure on a type of claim.

Ask the fee earners what clients keep ringing up about. That question is usually the story, because it is live for a whole sector.

The rules that sit over a legal release

Solicitors are regulated, so conduct rules govern what a firm publishes and how it describes an outcome. Those rules sit above any marketing plan.

Which rulebook governs?

Is the firm buying space or boosting the message?

Yes

Advertising Codes apply as well

SRA code governs the release

The SRA regulates solicitors in England and Wales. In Scotland, the regulator is the Law Society of Scotland; in Northern Ireland, it is the Law Society of Northern Ireland.

Paid promotion is judged separately. If the firm buys space or boosts the same message, the advertising codes published by the Committee of Advertising Practice apply to that advertisement as well.

Naming a client or a counterparty needs consent, plus a check of the register. Companies House is the first place to confirm a company's name and number before it appears in a release.

Before distribution, use these six checks:

Decide whether the release is for editorial coverage, paid promotion or internal publication.
Identify which jurisdiction's regulator and conduct rules apply.
Obtain client consent and check confidentiality and any reporting restrictions.
Verify names and company details, including against the Companies House register where relevant.
Check whether advertising codes apply to any bought or boosted promotion.
Check how the media list's personal data is collected, used, retained and reviewed.

Getting the firm to sign it off

A release that names a client needs three approvals: the fee earner who holds the file, the client, and whoever owns risk at the firm. Build the timetable around those three names.

Quotes should come from the person who did the work, in their own words. A drafted quote that sounds like a brochure will be cut by the desk, or dropped entirely.

Keep a single version of the release, with tracked changes, so nobody is working from an old draft. Two versions circulating is how errors reach publication.

Building a legal media list

A list built from old coverage is a list of people who have moved on. Treat it as a living record with a review date.

Choose the audience firstlitigation, corporate, family, or a business desk that covers the client's sector.
Read each outlet for a month and log the bylines of reporters who cover that area.
Record the public contact route and the last piece that reporter filed.
Write down the lawful basis for holding a named journalist's details before the list enters a CRM.
Delete anything you cannot source, and set a date to review the rest.

Journalists' names, emails and notes are personal data. The ICO's UK GDPR guidance sets out what you must tell people and how long you may keep it.

For each contact, record the outlet, relevant beat, public contact route, recent relevant byline, source of the details, lawful basis for holding them and a review date.

Where the trade press and business desks differ

The two audiences want the same facts arranged differently. Send one version of the release and you will satisfy neither.

Trade press vs business desks

Legal trade press

What runs: Rulings, procedure, regulation, firm moves
What to send: The legal point in plain terms, with the citation
Timing: Soon after the decision becomes public
Follow-up: Offer the fee earner for a technical briefing

Business and national desks

What runs: What it means for clients, costs or contracts
What to send: A client example and a figure with a named source
Timing: Early in the day, before the diary fills
Follow-up: Offer the client for a plain-English quote

Embargoes are a courtesy, not a legal right. Give a time and date, put it at the top of the release, and accept that a desk may ignore it.

Where to send a legal press release

For legal trade coverage, consider The Law Society Gazette, Legal Futures, The Lawyer and Solicitors Journal. For a story with a wider business angle, identify relevant journalists or contact routes at the Financial Times business desk or the BBC News business team. Check recent coverage first and tailor the pitch; publication is not guaranteed.

For wider distribution, PA Media Newswire and PR Newswire are press-release distribution services. Check which audiences and outlets a service reaches, and what its current terms include, before choosing a route. A wire can make a release available to media, but it does not equal editorial coverage or guarantee that an outlet will publish it.

Use Cision or Vuelio to research media contacts and build a targeted list. ResponseSource can help identify journalist requests relevant to the firm's expertise. Verify each contact against recent bylines and use the outlet's public contact route where possible.

Decide whether to pitch directly, use a wire, or do both. Direct pitching lets the firm tailor the story to a reporter; a wire provides broader distribution. If sending under embargo, agree it with each recipient in advance, state the date and time clearly, and do not assume a recipient has accepted it. Match timing to the announcement and confirm any service's distribution schedule before relying on it.

Common questions

Do solicitors need approval before issuing a press release?

There is no pre-clearance step, but the conduct rules that govern a solicitor's practice apply to what the firm publishes. Check the current rules and take advice on a specific matter.

Will a general business desk run a legal story?

Only if it lands on the client. Lead with the commercial effect, the cost or the deadline, and keep the procedure in the lower half of the release.

How do you protect client confidentiality?

Get written consent, describe the matter in terms the client has approved, and check whether a reporting restriction or court order limits publication.

What should a firm measure after distribution?

Record each placement with its outlet, keep delivery separate from editorial coverage, and note whether the piece carried the firm's own words or a summary.