What does SEO for a law firm include?
Law firm SEO covers the pages and profiles a potential client sees before calling: one page per practice area and city you serve, a Google Business Profile for each office, attorney bios that prove experience, review management, and answers to the legal questions people type or ask AI tools. The goal is booked consultations, not traffic.
It is the same local method I explain on the SEO consultant home page, adapted to a profession where trust and accuracy decide who gets the call. I have not built a portfolio of law firm clients; what I bring is the local and technical method I use every month on hundreds of multi-location businesses.
How do people choose a lawyer online?
Most start with a problem, not a firm name: a car accident, a divorce, an estate, a work visa. They search the practice area plus a city, scan the map results, read reviews, and open two or three websites. The firm that explains the process clearly, shows who will handle the case and makes contact easy usually gets the call.
That is why a single "Practice Areas" page listing ten services rarely ranks. Each practice area needs its own page, and each office city needs a page with real local detail: which courthouse, what the process looks like in that county, how the first consultation works. Google asks for helpful, people-first content, and on legal topics that means content a practicing attorney has reviewed and signed.
What I work on for law firms
Practice-area pages
One page per service and intent, from personal injury to estate planning, written for the client, not for other lawyers.
City and office pages
Pages for each office and the cities you actually serve, with local court and process details.
Google Business Profile
Profiles per office and per public-facing attorney where Google allows it, with the right categories.
Reviews done right
A steady, honest request flow and professional replies that never reveal client details.
AI answer visibility
Clear answers to common legal questions, with attorney authorship, so AI tools can cite your firm.
Consultation tracking
Calls, forms and chats from search, reported by practice area and office.
Profiles follow Google's guidelines for representing your business: lawyers count as individual practitioners and can have their own profile if they are public-facing, but one attorney should not have several profiles for different specialties. The details are in local SEO and Google Business Profile.
What does ABA Model Rule 7.1 mean for your website?
Model Rule 7.1 says a lawyer must not make a false or misleading communication about the lawyer or the lawyer's services. For SEO, that covers titles, page copy, case results and review replies. Every claim has to be true and must not leave out facts that make it misleading. Your state bar's version applies, so check with ethics counsel.
The text of ABA Model Rule 7.1 is short, and it reaches everything a search engine shows about your firm. In practice, I write and review pages with these limits in mind:
- No “best lawyer in town” or “#1 firm” claims you cannot objectively support.
- No promised outcomes, and past case results shown with context, not as a forecast.
- Specialist or certification language only when your state allows it.
- No fake, bought or employee reviews without disclosure, in line with the FTC's final rule on fake reviews.
- Final wording approved by a licensed attorney at the firm before it goes live.
The FTC rule banning fake reviews and testimonials applies to law firms as much as to any business, and it also prohibits suppressing negative reviews through threats or intimidation.
Will AI answers take calls away from law firms?
AI tools now answer many first questions, like how long probate takes or what to do after an accident. People still need a lawyer for their specific case. Firms that publish clear, accurate, attorney-reviewed answers are the ones AI tools can cite, and that visibility turns into branded searches and calls. Ignoring it hands the answer to competitors.
Google says its AI features rely on the same SEO best practices as regular search: crawlable pages, clear text and helpful content. I cover the rest in AI search optimization. If your firm also advises businesses on tax matters, the page on SEO for accounting firms covers the related Circular 230 rules.
How much does SEO for a law firm cost?
Law firms use the same monthly plans as any business: $1,000, $1,750 or $2,500 a month, depending on the number of practice areas, offices and how competitive your city is. Single practice-area pages cost $90 each if you want to start small. Every engagement begins with a free 30-minute diagnosis and runs month to month.
See the pricing page or book a free diagnosis for your firm.
Frequently asked questions
Have you worked with many law firms?
No, and I will not pretend otherwise. I apply the local and technical SEO method I use on hundreds of multi-location businesses, adapted to legal advertising rules.
Can you guarantee first place for “lawyer near me”?
No. Nobody can guarantee rankings, and a promise like that would be a red flag. I can show you the plan and report progress every month.
Who approves the content?
An attorney at your firm. I draft and optimize, and a licensed lawyer approves every page before it is published.
Do you write in Spanish for Hispanic clients?
Yes. I am a native Spanish speaker and can build Spanish practice-area pages that read naturally, not like a translation.
Do you handle paid ads?
My focus is organic search and Maps. If you run ads, I coordinate the landing pages so both channels support each other.
Sources
- American Bar Association, Model Rule 7.1: Communications Concerning a Lawyer's Services
- Business Profile Help, Guidelines for representing your business on Google
- Federal Trade Commission, Final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials (August 14, 2024)
- Google Search Central, AI features and your website
- Google Search Central, Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content