Before 1990, it was against the law for personal injury attorneys, in Indiana, to advertise their services. This rule has been eliminated because it was considered to be a violation of the first amendment right of freedom of speech as applied to attorneys. With that rule gone, many attorneys have taken up the practice of sending out solicitations via direct mail to the families of accident victims asking that they be allowed to represent Indiana citizens in a lawsuit against the party allegedly causing the injury.

Most personal injury attorneys agreed that this type contact with the families of injured parties was not only distasteful but that it could also potentially damage the integrity of the legal profession. It was thought that the practice was nothing short of "ambulance chasing" and often tries to create a claim where one does not exist.

As it turned out, many individuals who had received these unsolicited advertisements ended up on juries. Their frustration at being inundated with these ads ended up creating a prejudice against people who were actually injured by another and had legitimate cases.

In order to stop the exploitation that these Direct Attorney Solicitation of Personal Injury Cases cause, the Indian Supreme Court has changed the rules regarding conduct of attorneys having to do with direct solicitations. An amendment to Rule 7.03 of the Rules of Professional Conduct has been made. It puts restrictions on using direct solicitation for 30 days after the initial date of the injury.

This new rule can be found on the website of the Indiana Supreme Court and it states that an attorney cannot solicit employment from a prospective client by any means, including in person, written, recorded, video, or electronic communication if the solicitation is in regards to a claim for personal injury or wrongful death. A solicitation that even relates to an accident or personal disaster cannot be made "unless the accident or disaster occurred more than thirty days prior to the initiation of the solicitation." This amended rule will take effect January 1, 2011.

The Supreme Court agrees that any direct contact with the inured victim at a time where he or she is most vulnerable is not consistent with the type of professionalism any Court should maintain.