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Law Firm Letterhead Examples

Traditional and modern legal letterhead designs for law firms and solo attorneys, with notes on what to include and the ethics rules to check.

Updated November 3, 2026

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What to include on law firm letterhead

  • Firm name, exactly as registered with your state bar
  • Office address(es). List every office if the firm has more than one.
  • Phone, fax (if still used), email and website
  • Attorney names. Traditionally partners, and sometimes associates, are listed down the left side or across the top.
  • Jurisdictional limits. If an attorney isn't admitted in every state where the firm has offices, note this beside their name, for example "Admitted in NY and NJ only".
  • Of counsel or retired partners, labeled as such
  • Practice areas (optional), more common for smaller and boutique firms

Letterhead counts as a communication about a lawyer's services, so it's covered by the rules of professional conduct. In the ABA Model Rules, letterhead and firm names fall under Rule 7.1 (communications must not be false or misleading). In 2018 the ABA folded the former Rule 7.5, "Firm Names and Letterheads", into Rule 7.1. Key points to check against your own state's rules:

  • Don't suggest a partnership or an affiliation that doesn't exist (for example "Smith & Associates" when there are no associates, in states that prohibit this).
  • Don't list lawyers who are no longer with the firm, except properly labeled deceased or retired members where permitted.
  • Show jurisdictional limitations for lawyers in multi-state firms.
  • Be careful with claims such as "specialist" or "expert", which many states restrict to certified specialists.

State rules differ. Check your state bar's current rules or ethics opinions before you print. This is general information, not legal advice.

Design tips for attorneys

  • Restraint signals trust. Classic serif type, generous spacing and one dark color are the norm for good reason.
  • The sidebar layout (see Delgado Legal Group above) is the traditional way to list many attorneys without crowding the header.
  • Keep a second-sheet design for multi-page letters and pleadings correspondence, with just the firm name and page number.
  • Plan for staff changes. If you list attorneys, a digital template is much cheaper to update than boxes of pre-printed paper.

Download any example above as a free Word template. For layout and margin guidance, see the letterhead format guide, or browse all letterhead examples.