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Editor’s note: This is the third installment in a series examining sex trafficking litigation.

It’s not hard to find advertisements for law firm practices targeting sex trafficking. Web pages about this area of the law are often found between links about auto accident or mass tort cases. The web pages themselves frequently read like what you’d expect for a slip-and-fall case —”If you or someone you know has been a victim of sex trafficking, you may be entitled to compensation”—and urge victims to contact the firm.

The ads are partly the product of changing laws and public attitudes around sex abuse and human trafficking, and their emergence and growth tracks a recent rise in trafficking litigation.

While longtime practitioners focusing on sex abuse litigation see the response to online outreach as evidence of mounting support in the fight against sex trafficking, others say “aggressive” web-based advertising could add to the dangers, both physical and psychological, that may arise when sex trafficking victims pursue litigation.

“I’m not saying people can’t bring civil actions … but you have to know about human trafficking. You can’t just be any personal injury firm putting out an ad when human trafficking is so complex,” Anita Teekah, senior director on anti-trafficking programs at Safe Horizon in Manhattan, said.

Ever since the U.S. Congress enacted laws allowing for civil recoveries from sex trafficking cases, attorneys have been practicing in this area. But, as the laws have expanded over the years and the nation has become more understanding of sex abuse, the number of lawsuits have been steadily growing, to the point where longtime practitioners are beginning to see a new push by the more traditional personal injury firms to enter the fray.

However, those who have long focused on this work say sex trafficking litigation is unlike any other area of practice. In many cases, the plaintiffs are children, the survivors are always highly traumatized, and often they are still living in dangerous situations, where their phone calls and internet activities could be monitored. And seeing firms increasingly seeking out clients have left some worried that attorneys looking to take on cases could inadvertently end up retraumatizing victims.

Shea Rhodes of the Villanova Law Institute to Address Commercial Sexual Exploitation said she is concerned about law firms nationally advertising in this area, and that she had even heard of some victims, whose names may have appeared in court records or media reports about prostitution rings, being cold called from law firms.

“Survivors have reached out to me. ‘Do I have to talk to these lawyers? I don’t want to talk to these people. I don’t know them,’” Rhodes said. “I tell them you have the ability to talk to whomever you choose in your life.”

Online Ethics

Online attorney advertising is increasingly blurring the line between what might seem like obvious advertising and educational sites, and advertisements for sex trafficking litigation is not immune.

Although most ads are focused solely on a firm’s specific sex trafficking practice and are clearly aimed at bringing a case, some appear aimed more at education, and simply outline legal definitions of trafficking, give tips on how to spot trafficking victims, and what broader organizations—like trucking companies or hotels—could be held liable.

While some law firms may say these sites are purely educational, Micah Buchdahl of HTMLawyers in Moorestown, New Jersey, who focuses on legal marketing and ethics, said that argument is a stretch.

“Law firms will sit there and say, ‘This is an education resource. We spend a lot of time and money. We’re educating people. This isn’t advertising. This is education.’ That doesn’t really fly with me, really,” Buchdahl said. “You’re doing it for a reason.”

Buchdahl said that with any online advertising, the key is to be clear about the connection to the law firm, and to make sure the ads are not misleading.

While there is a dividing line between seemingly educational ads aimed at attorneys as opposed to the general public, lawyers might want to be extra cautious when advertising to an especially vulnerable population, Buchdahl said.

“That’s really what the rules were put in place initially to combat. They didn’t want to create a situation where a law firm is able to basically, I don’t want to say take advantage of, but use scare tactics to gain a new client,” he said.

‘Living in Fear’

Some attorneys warned that aggressive online advertising can give hope to some who have spent a lifetime being abused by people who touted themselves as being trustworthy, and so, without frequent contact and a realistic notion about the prospects for recovery, the chances the survivor will feel re-victimized are high.

But, even more pressing, according to attorneys, is the fact that many victims might still be in physical danger when they reach out.

“These kids are living in fear of their captors, and so we are highly concerned,” said attorney Howard Talenfeld, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, who focuses on representing abused, injured and disabled children.

Michael Dolce, who is of counsel at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, focuses on abuse litigation and does not advertise in this area. He said there is no need for attorneys to advertise nationally on this topic since awareness of trafficking has reached every corner of the country.

“We have an epidemic of sexual violence in our society. I welcome the arrival of more lawyers. We need as many hands on deck as we can get,” he said. “That said, I do want and I do hope that those who join the fight recognize the uniqueness.”

 

Read More:

Sex Trafficking Awareness Is Increasing and So Are Civil Claims

Sex Trafficking Litigation Can Be Risky, for Both Attorneys and Accusers