Advertising Standards Authority branded the statement “misleading”
The University of Law (ULaw) has been told to remove adverts claiming that junior lawyers can expect to earn an average of “£54,000 a year” in the first five years of practice.
In a ruling published today, the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) found that ULaw’s advertisement regarding lawyer earnings was “misleading”. With the law school unable to provide “adequate evidence” to support its £54,000 claim, the ASA ruled that “the ad must not appear again” in its current form.
The watchdog ruling reveals that it was reacting to complaints made by a “university law lecturer” and a “retired university law professor”.
In addition to the pay claim, the ASA also took issue with ULaw suggesting — again in an advertisement — that it was “the UK’s leading law school”.
According to the ruling, ULaw attempted to rely on stats that showed it had enrolled more students on its “full-time postgraduate courses” than its competitors. Unconvinced, the watchdog said that the statement was “misleading” and unless it could provide “adequate substantiation” it should not make the claim again.
A spokesperson from ULaw told Legal Cheek:
While we are disappointed by the ruling, we have taken on board the comments from the ASA and are working closely with them currently to agree the best way forward.