THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

OF -XAS 

AUSTIN 1% TEXAS 

WVILI. WILSON 

ATFORNEY GENERAL 

July 25, 1960 

Mr. Carl C. Hardin, Jr. 

Executive Secretary 

Texas State Board of Dental 

?Zxaminers 

Austin, Texas 

Opinion No. w-893 

Re: Does the Texas State Board 

of Dental Examiners have 

the authority to prohibit 

Dentists from advertising 

In telephone directories by 

ads similar to the following : "False Teeth & Repairs 

Dear Mr. Hardin: - One Day Service." 

Your request for an opinion reads in part as 

follows: 

"We have had several requests to 

stop the directory advertising of several dentists in metropolitan areas. 

These ads are similar to the attached. 

"!Ihls department will appreciate 

your advising whether the attached is 

in violation and can be stopped by 

Board action." 

The advertisement referred to in your request 

consists of a listing in the "yellow" section of a telephone directory in which the dentist has among other 

things put his name in boldface type in a border along 

with other Information, as follows: 

"False Teeth & Repairs - One Day Service" 

Article 752b of Vernon's Penal Code reads in part 

as follows: 

"Article 752b. Unprofessional conduct 
-_ 

Mr. Carl C. Hardin, Jr., Page 2 (w-893) 

"It shall be unlawful for any 

person, firm, or corporation to 

engage in or be guilty of any unprofessional conduct in the practice of dentistry, directly or 

indirectly. Any 'unprofessional 

conduct,' as used herein, means 

and includes any one or more of 

the following acts, to wit: 

14 

. . . 

"(0) Advertising by means of a 

display advertisement, display signs 

or glaring light signs, electric or 

neon signs, or such signs containing 

as a part thereof the representation 

of a tooth, teeth, bridgework, plates 

of teeth or any portion of the human 

head, or using specimens of such in 

display, directing the attention of 

the public to any such person or persons engaged in the practice of 

dentistry; (Emphasis added) 

Article 752~ of Vernon's Penal Code provides for 

the enforcement of Article 752b and reads in part as 

follows: 

"Article 752~. Licenses, Refusing, 

Revoking, Cancelling, and Suspending of 

"Section 4. The State Board of Bental Examiners shall, and It shall be 

their duty, and they are hereby authorized 

to revoke, cancel or suspend any license 

or licenses that may have been issued by 

such Board, if in the opinion of a majority of such Board, any person or persons 

to whom a license has been issued by said 

Board to practice dentistry in this State, 

shall have, after the issuance of such 

license, violated any of the provisions 

of the Statutes of the State of Texas relating to the practice of dentistry in 
Mr. Carl C: Hardin, Jr., Page 3 (~-893) 

this State,~ or any of the provisions 

of Chapter 7, Title 12 of the Penal 

Code of the,State of Texas, or any 

amendments that may hereafter be made 

thereto. All revocations, cancellations or suspensions of licenses by 

the Texas State Board 

aminers shall be made 

provided. 

P,rior to 1947 Section (o), of Article 752b did 

of Dental Exas hereinafter 

not Include the first phrase (i.e., advertising by 

means of a display advertisement). This phrase was 

added to Section (0) by an amendment in 1947 following the case of State Board of Dental Examiners v. 

Blckham, 203 S.W. 2d 363 (no writ history), In which 

the Court held that newspaper ads were not included 

in the term "large display signs." On this point the 

Court. said: 

"Courts cannot extend subdivision 

(o), which forbids advertising by means 

of 'large display signs,' to newspaper 

advertisements, The statute limiting 

'large display' to 'signs,' excludes 

'display ads.' 'Signs ' are not 'ads.' 

,It is unfortunate that the Texas Leglslature limited such acts of advertising 

to 'signs,' instead of providing, as is 

the law of Missouri, Oregon, Wisconsin, 

and other States to include unlawful advertising by means of ‘large display,' 

either by 'signs,' or 'ads,' without 

limitation as to where such advertisement 

shall be placed." 

"Display Advertising" as defined by Webster's 

New International Dictionary is advertising intended 

to attract by its combination of copy, border, white 

space, illustration, etc. Webster further defines 

display in reference to printing as making conspicuous 

by large or prominent type or by varying the length of 

lines. 

In view of the foregoing, It is our opinion that 

the advertisment referred to in your request is a violation of Subdivision (0) of Article 752b, Vernon's 
--- . 

Mr. Carl C. Hardin, Jr., Page 4 @W-893) 

Penal Code. You are further advised that by virtue of 

Article 752c, Vernon's Penal Code, the State Board of 

Dental Examiners Is authorized to revoke, cancel or suspend the license of any dentist found guilty of violating 

Article 752b, Vernon's Penal Code. 

SUMMARY 

Advertising in the "yellow" pages 

of a telephone directory by means 

of a display advertisement is a 

violation of Article 752b, Vernon's 

Penal Code. The State Board of Dental Examiners is authorized by Artlcle 752~ to revoke, cancel or suspend 

the license of any dentist found guilty of violating Article 752b, Vernon's 

Penal Code, 

Yours very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

Robert A. Rowland 

Assistant 

RAR:mm 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Houghton Brownlee, Jr. 

Robert T. Lewis 

Thomas Burrus 

Bob Eric Shannon 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: Leonard Passmore