The State Bar of Nevada's new advertising rules went into effect Sept. 1, and under the new rules, lawyers are allowed to say - and do - just about anything they want, except lie.

The new rules for lawyer advertising make several changes, including a requirement that all ads be approved by a review committee.

Law firms wishing to run advertisements in Nevada must submit any ads now running by Sept. 17.

The rules change comes after the Bar was forced to alter existing restrictions on ads following Supreme Court rulings on the subject last year.

Under new rules, lawyers are allowed to use more varied strategies (including those previously ruled "distasteful") as long as the advertisements don't contain misleading information.

Among the most significant changes are:

• Law firms are now allowed to include testimonials, endorsements and jury verdicts in advertisements.

• Law firms are prohibited from making claims that create an unjustified expectation about the outcome of a case (such as guaranteeing multimillion-dollar settlements for all cases).

• In ads promoting a fee arrangement, law firms must advertise the entire fee arrangement.

• Lawyers are required to maintain resumes that can be given to prospective clients on request.

• Law firms must submit their ads to the State Bar for review within 15 days after publication or broadcast. If an ad is deemed to be inaccurate or misleading, it must be pulled. (Attorneys have the option of paying a fee and submitting ads to the State Bar before publication for an advisory determination of their compliance with the rules.)

Previously approved ads, Web sites, and derivatives of ads filed after Sept. 1 will be exempt from the review requirement.

The State Bar has guaranteed that a lawyer sitting on the review committee will not be able to pull a competitor's ad, and all committee decisions will be appealable.

Most significant for some sectors of the legal community, the Bar will no longer regulate whether an ad is in bad taste.

"Taste is something we cannot govern without infringing on First Amendment rights," said Justice James Hardesty in a decision approving the rules changes earlier this year. "So restrictions on taste will be eliminated, but the new rules will make sure the content is not false or misleading."

The centerpiece of the new rules is the review requirement, however, that cannot be fulfilled if there is no one to review the ads.

The State Bar is currently recruiting lawyer and nonlawyer volunteers (especially those with advertising experience) to sit on review committees in Northern and Southern Nevada.

The committees will meet at least once a month, and will be charged with reviewing lawyer advertisements to ensure they are not misleading.

The committee will also be charged with giving initial evaluations of advertisements for those lawyers who request them.Members must be computer literate and familiar with e-mail and the Internet.

Anyone interested in joining the committee should call 317-1433.

For more information on the rules changes, log on to www.nvbar.org or call the State Bar at 382-2200.

In other news:

• Dominic Gentile, one of the state's top First Amendment attorneys, has announced he is leaving private practice to join the law firm of Gordon & Silver later this month.

Gentile has a wide range of experience in civil and criminal law, SEC/FTC securities investigations and litigation in speech, press and ethics issues.

He has also represented In Business Las Vegas' sister paper the Las Vegas Sun in First Amendment disputes.

"The addition of Mr. Gentile greatly expands the qualit and scope of our legal services," Gordon & Silver Managing Partner Brigid M. Higgins said in a statement. "This ensures our individual and corporate clients receive complete representation for all their legal services. We are proud to offer our current and future clients more full-integrated legal services and thorough representation."

Associate Paola Armeni, who has worked closely with Gentile on many high-profile cases and Mark Dzarnoski, an expert in Securities Law, are also joining the firm.

Gordon & Silver, founded in 1967, is among the largest and oldest law firms in Nevada. The firm specializes in complex insolvency and reorganization, gaming and administrative law, corporate and real estate, litigation and estate planning, and probate and guardianships.

It is located at 3960 Howard Hughes Parkway.

• Several Beckley Singleton lawyers were recently appointed to committees and councils for the State Bar of Nevada.

Burce T. Beesley was elected president-elect of the Nevada State Bar; Bridget Robb Peck was elected to the Board of Governors; David C. McElhinnney was elected to the Board of Governors for the Nevada Law Foundation; and Sean M. McGuinness was re-appointed to the Executive Committee of the Gaming Law Section.

Also, Beckley Singleton associate Heidi Parry Stern was appointed to the editorial board of Nevada Lawyer, the official publication of the State Bar of Nevada.