Business Notes

In Florida those pushy lawyers who hawk themselves on TV will have to amend their ways. As of Jan. 1, a new set of rules put a virtual gag on attorneys pushing their services on the tube. They are forbidden to use dramatic scenes, slogans, endorsements from clients, plugs from celebrities, moving pictures -- in short, just about anything of greater interest than a test pattern. To top it off, such commercials have to include a disclaimer warning potential customers that they shouldn't be picking attorneys through TV ads in the first place. The Florida Bar Association, which developed the rules, says the dial- a-lawyer ads mislead consumers and influence juries by creating the impression that personal-injury cases are motivated by greed.