Section 1 - Requirements for Lawyer Referral and Information Services(A) A lawyer referral and information service operating in Ohio shall comply with all of the following: (1) Operate in the public interest for the purpose of referring prospective clients to lawyers, pro bono and public service programs, and government, consumer, or other agencies who can provide the assistance the clients need in light of their financial circumstance, spoken language, any disability, geographical convenience, and the nature and complexity of their problem;(2) Call itself a lawyer referral service or a lawyer referral and information service;(3) Be open to all lawyers who are licensed and admitted to the practice of law in Ohio, who maintain an office in the geographical area to be served by the service, and who meet reasonable, objectively determined experience requirements established by the service, pay the reasonable registration and membership fees established by the service, and maintain in force a policy of errors and omissions insurance in an amount established by the service;(4) Establish rules that prohibit lawyer members of the service from charging prospective clients to whom a client is referred, fees and or costs that exceed charges the client would have incurred had no lawyer referral service been involved;(5) Establish procedures to survey periodically clients referred to determine client satisfaction with its operations and to investigate and take appropriate action with respect to client complaints against lawyer members of the service, and the service and its employees;(6) Establish procedures for admitting, suspending, or removing lawyers from its roll of panelists and promulgate rules that prohibit the making of a fee generating referral to any lawyer who has an ownership interest in, or who operates or is employed by the lawyer referral service, or who is associated with a law firm that has an ownership interest in, or operates or is employed by the lawyer referral service;(7) Establish subject-matter panels, eligibility for which shall be determined on the basis of experience and other substantial, objectively determinable criteria;(8) As a condition of participation in the referral service, not place limits on the lawyer's selection of co-counsel to other lawyers listed with the referral service;(9) Not make a fee-generating referral to any lawyer who has an ownership interest in or who operates or is employed by the lawyer referral service or who is associated with a law firm that has an ownership interest in or operates or is employed by a lawyer referral service;(B) Ninety days before a new service begins operations, it shall register with the Supreme Court Office of Attorney Services by completing and filing a registration form prescribed by the Office. On or before the first day of March each year, the service shall file an annual report with the Supreme Court Office of Attorney Services. The report shall contain information regarding the activity of the service for the preceding calendar year and shall be filed on a form prescribed by the Office.(C) A lawyer referral and information service operating in Ohio may require lawyers participating in the service to do one or more of the following: (1) Pay a fee calculated as a percentage of legal fees earned by any lawyer panelist to whom the lawyer referral service has referred a matter, in addition to payment of a membership or registration fee as provided in division (A)(3) of this section. The income from the percentage fee shall be used only to pay the reasonable operating expenses of the service and to fund public service activities of the service or its sponsoring organization, including the delivery of pro bono public services;(2) Submit any fee disputes with a referred client to mandatory fee arbitration;(3) Participate in moderate and no-fee panels and other special panels established by the service that respond to the referral needs of the consumer public, eligibility for which shall be determined on the basis of experience and other substantial objectively determinable criteria.