As ChatGPT continues rolling out its advertising platform, many law firms and legal marketing departments are asking the same question:
Can lawyers advertise on ChatGPT?
Quick Answer
✅ Yes. Legal services advertising is now permitted in the United States.
⚠️ The advertiser must be licensed to practice law in every jurisdiction where the advertisement is shown.
OpenAI Changes Its Legal Advertising Policy
On September 10, 2026, OpenAI updated its advertising policy to permit legal services advertising within the United States under certain conditions.
According to OpenAI’s published advertising policy:
“Ads for legal advice, representation, or legal services offered to individuals or businesses are permitted in the US only when the advertiser is licensed to practice law in the jurisdiction where the ad is shown. This includes services related to immigration, personal injury, legal claims, or document preparation.”
This is a significant change from OpenAI’s previous policy, which broadly prohibited advertisements for legal advice, representation, and legal services.
Law firms may now be eligible to advertise on ChatGPT in the United States, provided they are properly licensed in the locations where their advertisements appear.
What Types of Legal Advertising Are Now Permitted?
OpenAI’s revised policy specifically permits advertising for legal advice, representation, and legal services in the United States.
This could include advertising for:
- Personal injury law firms
- Workers’ compensation attorneys
- Criminal defense lawyers
- Immigration attorneys
- Estate planning lawyers
- Business and corporate law firms
- Family law attorneys
- Social Security Disability lawyers
However, eligibility depends on the advertiser being licensed to practice law in the jurisdiction where the advertisement is shown.
Law Firms Must Be Licensed Where Their Ads Are Shown
The most important requirement is that the advertiser must be licensed to practice law in the jurisdiction where the advertisement appears.
For example, a law firm with attorneys licensed to practice in North Carolina may be eligible to advertise to users in North Carolina. The firm should not assume it can advertise in Virginia, South Carolina, or another state unless it has attorneys authorized to practice there.
This makes geographic targeting especially important for legal advertisers.
Law firms operating in multiple states may need to verify that they have attorneys licensed in each state included in their campaign targeting. Firms should be prepared to provide information about their attorneys, licenses, office locations, practice areas, and targeted jurisdictions.
OpenAI has not yet provided extensive public guidance explaining how attorney licensing will be verified or how campaigns will be handled when a firm has attorneys licensed in different states.
Legal Services Advertising Outside the United States
The policy change currently applies only within the United States.
OpenAI states:
“Ads for legal services outside of the US are currently prohibited.”
Under the current policy, law firms cannot run legal-services advertisements that are shown outside the United States.
What Should Law Firms Do Right Now?
Law firms interested in ChatGPT advertising should begin preparing for the platform’s expanded legal advertising opportunities.
Firms should consider:
- Creating or confirming their OpenAI Ads account
- Identifying every jurisdiction where their attorneys are licensed
- Reviewing state bar advertising requirements
- Preparing licensing information for advertiser verification
- Building campaigns around specific states or jurisdictions
- Matching geographic targeting to attorney licensure
- Reviewing ad copy and landing pages for compliance
- Avoiding misleading, unsupported, or overly broad claims
Law firms can also sign up for OpenAI’s advertising platform and determine whether their accounts currently have access to campaign creation.
Getting Your Law Firm Verified for ChatGPT Advertising
Law firms do not necessarily need to hire a marketing agency simply to create and verify an OpenAI Ads account.
For most established firms, the initial verification process is straightforward. You will generally need basic business information, including:
- Your law firm’s EIN
- The firm’s registered business address
- The firm’s website URL
If that information is readily available and matches the firm’s official records, completing the verification form may take only a few minutes.
Law firms should be cautious of agencies portraying account creation or business verification as a complicated process requiring specialized expertise. There is no secret method or technical workaround involved. Any reasonably proficient advertiser should be able to guide a firm through the basic setup, and many firms will be able to complete it themselves with no help from a third party.
The more difficult work begins after verification. Building compliant campaigns, targeting only jurisdictions where the firm is licensed, developing effective advertisements, selecting appropriate landing pages, tracking performance, and improving results will require considerably more thought and expertise.
An agency may provide value in those areas. However, lawyers and firms should not be led to believe that opening and verifying the account itself represents a major technical hurdle.
We’ll Keep This Page Updated
OpenAI’s September 10, 2026 policy update represents a major change for legal advertisers.
Legal services advertisements are now permitted in the United States, provided the advertiser is licensed to practice law in the jurisdiction where the advertisement is shown. Legal services advertising outside the United States remains prohibited.
We will continue monitoring OpenAI’s advertising policies, advertiser approvals, campaign requirements, and testing opportunities.
Have questions about ChatGPT advertising or legal marketing? Contact our team to discuss your firm’s digital marketing strategy.
