Cite as: 507 U. S. 761 (1993)
Opinion of the Court
and nonmisleading expression will be snared along with fraudulent or deceptive commercial speech, the State must satisfy the remainder of the Central Hudson test by demonstrating that its restriction serves a substantial state interest and is designed in a reasonable way to accomplish that end. See In re R. M. J., supra, at 203. For purposes of that test, there is no question that Florida's interest in ensuring the accuracy of commercial information in the marketplace is substantial. See, e. g., Virginia State Bd. of Pharmacy, supra, at 771-772; San Francisco Arts & Athletics, Inc. v. United States Olympic Comm., 483 U. S. 522, 539 (1987); Friedman v. Rogers, supra, at 13.
Likewise, the protection of potential clients' privacy is a substantial state interest. Even solicitation that is neither fraudulent nor deceptive may be pressed with such frequency or vehemence as to intimidate, vex, or harass the recipient. In Ohralik, we made explicit that "protection of the public from these aspects of solicitation is a legitimate and important state interest." 436 U. S., at 462.
The Board's second justification for its ban—the need to maintain the fact and appearance of CPA independence and to guard against conflicts of interest—is related to the audit and attest functions of a CPA. In the course of rendering these professional services, a CPA reviews financial statements and attests that they have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and present a fair and accurate picture of the firm's financial condition. See generally R. Gormley, Law of Accountants and Auditors ¶ 1.07[4] (1981); 1 American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Professional Standards AU § 110.01 (1991) (hereinafter AICPA Professional Standards). In the Board's view, solicitation compromises the independence necessary to perform the audit and attest functions, because a CPA who needs business enough to solicit clients will be prone to ethical lapses. The Board claims that even if actual misconduct does not occur, the public perception of CPA in-
769
Page: Index Previous 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007