Public notices are noted as one of the few regular and official communication channels that exist between levels of government and citizens. Public notice laws additionally regulate the way in which government communicates with citizens.
The cost to put a legal notice in the newspaper tends to vary greatly from place to place and depending on the size and frequency of the notice. Note that the two major factors that influence the cost of a legal notice in a newspaper are the size of the notice and the circulation of the newspaper.
Have it in mind that if you contact the biggest newspaper in town, you can expect to pay a lot more than you need to for your legal notice.
There are many different types of legal notice advertising, but they all have one thing in common. Every legal notice published in a newspaper comes with a certified affidavit as proof of publishing.
Also remember that these legal notice ads have different rates. Some have a flat fee, and some will depend on the number of words and space the ad occupies in the newspaper.
For instance, a simple sidewalk café or name change notice may not be as expensive as an LLC formation notice. The latter could run upwards of a thousand dollars, while the former won’t cost more than a couple hundred dollars.
Nonetheless, the most important thing about legal notices is ensuring the newspaper where you run the notice meets the legal requirement as mandated by the court. The second factor is to not pay more than you need too. You might be surprised at how expensive newspaper advertising can be.
States in the country have varying general public notice statute that states which newspapers are eligible to publish notices and satisfy public notice requirements. In many cases, a state’s public notice law may also establish advertising rates, type size, requirements for proof of publication, and other details.
To get the appropriate rate of posting legal notices in your state, city or county, it is pertinent you consult your state Secretary’s office for rate laws as this tend to differ across board. Sometimes, newspapers also set their own rates, which make it difficult to pronounce a uniform cost of posting legal notices in the United States.
To give a little insight on what it costs to post a legal notice in a newspaper in the United States, here is the price description in New York. However, do not forget that this is a general reference, each area may vary and prices could change at any time.
- State Liquor Authority Liquor License Notices (Once a week for 2 weeks): Estimated cost: $86.00
- State Liquor Authority Liquor License Change of Status (Once a week for 2 weeks): Estimated cost: $96.00
- Sidewalk Café Notice (NYC DCA) one time only: Estimated cost: $85.00
- Name Change Notice (One time only): Estimated cost: $75.00
- LLC Formation Notice (Once a week for 6 successive weeks): Estimated cost: $360.00
How to Post a Legal Notice in the Newspaper
If you need to place a legal notice in the newspaper and you are not certain the steps you are required to take, it is necessary to remember that the goal of a legal notice ad is to get people to act and participate and not to get people to buy a product.
Owing to this, legal notice ads can be somewhat longer and therefore more expensive than a small 4 line classified ad. In many cases, it can be helpful to recruit an advertising agency that specializes in these types of advertisements to properly guide and help in the writing and placement of these ads.
Nonetheless, here are the necessary steps to posting a legal notice in the United States, although they can vary from one jurisdiction to another.
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Obtain a List of Approved Newspapers
If you are not sure what your state or local jurisdiction’s publication requirements entail, check with your local business authority.
Finding the right newspaper that meets the legal requirements at the lowest cost could take you some time. Try not to settle for the first newspaper that comes to mind. You could end up saving hundreds of dollars if you find a smaller paper that can satisfy the requirements.
Remember to make sure it meets the legal requirements. There’s nothing worse than spending your time, energy and money on a legal notice that gets rejected by the court.
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Understand Publication Timeframes and Requirements
You also need to know whether it is sufficient to publish a single notice or whether you must publish a notice for several consecutive days or weeks.
This requirement is different in different jurisdictions. Contact your newspaper representative and clarify what kind of legal notice you need. Let them know how many times the ad must appear, and in which county the ad must run, etc.
You’ll need to confirm if the ad needs to run in a daily, weekly newspaper, or both. For insurance bank-related notice ads need to run in a paid daily newspaper.
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Submit Required Information for Your Ad and Pay Applicable Fees
After identifying an approved newspaper, determine what information the publisher needs to create your ad. Necessary information can vary but typically includes the legal name of your business, the business address, and your name and address.
In most cases, approved newspapers are conversant with legal notice related publication requirements, so you can simply give the publisher a copy of the notice. Some newspaper publishers provide online submission tools.
Once you’ve provided these details to your newspaper classified ad rep, they should be able to tell you the cost. Note that sometimes you will even have to provide the content of the ad to get an exact quote, because your rep needs to know how much space the ad will take up.
Different types of legal notice ads have different rates. Some legal notice ads are a flat fee, and some will depend on the number of words and space the ad occupies in the newspaper.
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Be Brief
If you decide to write your legal notice yourself, then it is advisable you keep it brief but also make sure that it gives enough information to get people informed.
Legal notices are placed on a variety of topics, including things like building permits, government contracts, and many other changes that take place in communities all across the country. Informing the public of what changes or actions are about to take place is the first goal of every notice.
Also when writing a legal notice ad, you will want to make sure to include more than just the facts. Legal notices are known to explain to the public why their community participation is important as well as any necessary information about upcoming meetings. Letting people know that their involvement makes a difference is a huge part of writing an effective notice.
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File the Affidavit of Publication with the State or Other Business Authority
If the state or local jurisdiction requires legal notice for any reason, the state or local agency that regulates businesses may need proof of publication documenting that your ad ran in an approved newspaper for the required number of days or weeks.
Therefore, after making all the necessary arrangements for publication of the notice as required, the publisher provides a document called an Affidavit of Publication. Note that if the publisher sends the original affidavit directly to you, you must forward it to your state or local business authority. In some cases, publishers send proof of publication directly to the business authority.
Conclusion
It can be very hard to ascertain the exact cost of posting legal notices in a newspaper in the United States. These costs and requirements tend to differ according to states, cities and locations.
However, it is also important that you understand that a public notice that is not run on time can have serious repercussions that involve a lot of people on various levels, so it is critical they are run as scheduled and free of mistakes and must also follow specific requirements.
For instance, all public notices are placed in paid daily papers and cannot be run in free papers. They are also typically not accepted on flyers inserts or layout ads.