Also known as: safe harbor agreement · safe-harbor agreement · safe-harbor agreements · safe harbour agreements · safe harbor · EU-US Safe Harbor
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A clause in a trial-publicity rule that permits an attorney to make specified statements to the press without elaboration and thereby avoids discipline for prejudicial speech.
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Defense counsel Dominic Gentile held a press conference after his client's indictment. He described the evidence in general terms without elaboration. The state bar later charged him with violating the trial-publicity rule, but the Court held that the vague safe-harbor language failed to give fair notice and could not support discipline.
A criminal-defense lawyer made limited public statements that stayed inside the rule's 'without elaboration' safe harbor. The bar nevertheless disciplined him. The Supreme Court reversed, ruling that the safe-harbor phrasing was unconstitutionally vague and risked discriminatory enforcement.
The safe-harbor language in the rule permits attorneys to make certain limited statements to the press without fear of discipline, but only if the statements remain within the narrow bounds stated in the rule.
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