Acquiring Foreign-Born Clients: Marketing Legal Services to a Growing Niche
Copyright © 2004 by Nina Ivanichvili, CEO, All Language Alliance, Inc.
Use Public Service Announcements
Another education-based message is the public service announcement ("PSA") that addresses topics of interest to the target audience in the languages of the target audience. For example, consider alerting non-English-speaking victims of domestic violence, irrespective of their country of origin and cultural background, to the fact that battering is a criminal offense in the United States, and there are services available to help them. Foreign-born women who have been victimized in this way often fear they will be deported or will lose their children through divorce due to the often-false information instilled in them by the batterer. Law firms may inform them of their immigration status options and U.S. laws, such as the Violence Against Women Act.21
Similarly, alerting Spanish speakers to the very limited role that notaries play in the United States is both a public service and a boost for an individual law firm. The "notario publico" in Latin American countries (known as an "escribano publico" in Argentina) is a well-respected attorney who has taken an additional certification exam and actually draws up documents, known as "public notarial instruments" or "public deeds." Also, although it is wise for a U.S. attorney to seek a Mexican attorney who is also a notario to represent his or her client in a land transaction or probate action in Mexico,22 a U.S. notary not only does not perform the same role, but "is forbidden from preparing legal documents or giving advice on immigration or other matters, unless he or she is also an attorney."23
To protect consumers, some states have passed legislation prohibiting the use of the term "notario publico" in advertising aimed at the Spanish-speaking public. Specifically, in Colorado, 1(V) of Senate Bill 04-127 prohibits using "the phrase 'notario' or 'notario publico' to advertise the services of a notary public, whether by sign, pamphlet, stationery, or other written communication, or by radio, television, or other nonwritten communication."24 A law firm that provides information of this nature might gain a lot of credibility in the Spanish-speaking community.
