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How solicitors get recommended by AI assistants

Updated · 9 min read · By the SearchCrow team

AI assistants recommend law firms when they can find clear answers to what people ask: what a matter will cost, how long it takes, who will handle it, whether the firm is regulated and what past clients say. In England and Wales, the SRA Transparency Rules already require much of this for common services, so a compliant, well-written price page doubles as your best AI content. Add a current Google Business Profile, accurate register entries and genuine reviews, and you have covered the basics.

Key takeaways

  • People ask AI about their problem and their budget: "how much does probate cost if there's no will dispute?" Price and process pages answer those questions.
  • The SRA Transparency Rules require published cost information for seven service areas, plus complaints information and the SRA digital badge.
  • The SRA Solicitors Register and the Law Society's Find a Solicitor are the public checks for whether you're regulated. Keep your details current through mySRA.
  • SRA rules say publicity must be accurate and not misleading, including about charges. Anything an assistant repeats from your site has to stand up.
  • Reviews matter, but replies must never reveal confidential client information.

What do people ask AI when they're looking for a solicitor?

They describe the problem, the stakes and the cost they fear. The prompts below are illustrative examples of the kinds of questions people ask, not measured search volumes.

IntentExample prompts (illustrative)
Urgent"I've been arrested, how do I get a duty solicitor?", "solicitor who can see me this week about an injunction in Nottingham"
Comparison"Online conveyancer or local solicitor for my first house purchase?", "fixed fee or hourly rate for an uncontested divorce?"
Local"Employment solicitor in Bristol for unfair dismissal", "immigration solicitor near Croydon for a spouse visa"
Price"How much is conveyancing for a £300,000 freehold in Leeds?", "cost of probate for a simple estate in Cardiff"
Trust"Is [firm name] regulated by the SRA?", "reviews of [firm name] for family law"

Where does AI get its answers about solicitors?

From public pages anyone can check: your website, the regulator's register, the Law Society's directory, review platforms and legal directories. Google says its AI Overviews and AI Mode use pages that are indexed and eligible to show a snippet, with no extra requirements (Google Search Central, 2025).

SourceWhat it isWhy it matters for law firms
Your websitePractice areas, prices, team, complaintsRequired SRA information lives here, and so does the detail that answers prompts.
Google Business ProfileListing on Search and MapsGoogle says complete, accurate information and more reviews help local ranking (Google Business Profile Help, n.d.).
SRA Solicitors RegisterThe regulator's public database of firms and peopleConfirms whether someone is a solicitor, where they work and whether a firm is regulated. Firms update their own details via mySRA (SRA, n.d.).
Law Society Find a SolicitorFree directory of SRA-regulated firms and people in England and WalesSearchable by legal issue and location.
ReviewSolicitorsUK review platform for law firmsSays it holds listings for all law firms in England and Wales based on SRA data, and that firm employees may not review their own firm (ReviewSolicitors, n.d.).
TrustpilotGeneral review platformBans selective invitations and incentives (Trustpilot, 2026).
Legal directoriesFor example The Legal 500Describes itself as a clients' guide to law firms and lawyers (Legal 500, n.d.). More relevant to commercial practices than high-street firms.
US equivalentsState bar directories, AvvoAvvo publishes lawyer profiles, ratings and client reviews.

  1. Make your price pages complete and readable. Under the SRA Transparency Rules, firms that publicise residential conveyancing, uncontested probate, immigration (excluding asylum), summary-only motoring offences, unfair or wrongful dismissal claims (for employees or employers), debt recovery up to £100,000 or business premises licensing must publish the total or average cost or the basis of charges, what's included and excluded, disbursements, VAT, key stages and timescales, and the experience and qualifications of who does the work and supervises it. It must be "clear and accessible and in a prominent place on your website" (SRA, 2025). Write these pages in plain English with worked examples. They are exactly what price prompts ask.

  2. Show the SRA badge, number and complaints procedure. Authorised firms must prominently display their SRA number and digital badge, and publish their complaints procedure, including how and when clients can complain to the Legal Ombudsman and the SRA (SRA, 2025). This is also how anyone confirms you're regulated.

  3. Keep your register entry current. The Solicitors Register is, in the SRA's words, the definitive impartial source on the firms and people it regulates, and you update it through mySRA (SRA, n.d.). Check your firm name, offices and website address match your site and Google profile. The Law Society's Find a Solicitor draws most of its information from the SRA.

  4. Write one page per problem, not per department. "Contesting a will", "buying a leasehold flat", "settlement agreements", "spouse visa refusals". Explain the steps, typical timescales and costs, and who handles it. Every claim must comply with the SRA Code: "You ensure that any publicity in relation to your practice is accurate and not misleading", including about charges (SRA, n.d.).

  5. Publish team profiles that match the register. Name, role, admission or qualification, practice areas, accreditations you actually hold. These answer "who will handle my case" and let anyone cross-check the register.

  6. Complete your Google Business Profile. Use your real firm name with no keywords or towns, the fewest specific categories, and accurate hours for each office (Google Business Profile Help, n.d.). Google allows individual lawyers who serve the public directly to have their own profile, but not separate profiles per specialism. A solo practitioner at a branded firm should share one profile named "[firm]: [practitioner name]".

  7. Add LegalService structured data. Google recommends the most specific LocalBusiness subtype with name, address, telephone, url and opening hours (Google Search Central, n.d.). Schema.org's LegalService describes law firms, with Attorney and Notary as subtypes (Schema.org, n.d.). Google says AI features need no special markup, and markup must match the visible page.

  8. Ask every client for a review at matter close, the same way, with no incentive. Google prohibits incentives (Google Business Profile Help, n.d.) and selectively asking happy clients (Google, n.d.). UK law has banned fake reviews and reviews that conceal an incentive since April 2025 (CMA, 2025). Reply to reviews without confirming any detail of the matter. Note that the SRA Code bars unsolicited approaches to members of the public who aren't current or former clients, so review requests should go only to your own clients.

Also have your web team confirm that robots.txt and any firewall allow OAI-SearchBot for ChatGPT search (OpenAI, n.d.), PerplexityBot (Perplexity, n.d.) and Claude-SearchBot (Anthropic, n.d.).

Mistakes that keep law firms out of AI answers

  • Price information in a PDF or behind a form. The SRA requires it to be clear, accessible and prominent, and a form gives nothing to quote.
  • "Prices from £X" with no explanation. The rules require the basis of charges and what's excluded. Clients and assistants need it too.
  • Practice area lists with no detail. Thirty one-paragraph pages say less than five thorough ones.
  • Register details that don't match your website. An old office address on the SRA register undermines your other facts.
  • Over-claiming. "Leading", "best" or "guaranteed outcome" claims risk breaching the SRA Code's accuracy requirement.
  • Review replies that confirm a matter. Confidentiality applies to public replies.
  • Separate Google profiles for each department. Google's guidelines don't allow them.

How do you check whether AI recommends your firm?

Ask the assistants what your clients ask, and log the answers monthly.

  1. Choose 10 prompts from the table, using your town and your main practice areas.
  2. Run each in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google (AI Overviews and AI Mode), Gemini, Claude and Copilot, in a logged-out or private window where possible.
  3. Note whether you're named, which firms or comparison sites appear instead, and which sources are cited.
  4. Check facts about you, especially prices and regulatory status, and fix the source if anything is wrong.
  5. In Google Search Console, AI feature traffic is included in the Performance report under the "Web" search type (Google Search Central, 2025).

SearchCrow runs these checks for you. It asks the major AI assistants the questions clients ask about solicitors in your area and practice areas, shows whether your firm is mentioned and which sources they rely on, and suggests what to fix first. It's built for high-street and regional firms rather than large in-house marketing teams.

FAQ

Why doesn't ChatGPT recommend my law firm? Usually because the specific things people ask about aren't stated clearly anywhere it can read. People ask "how much is conveyancing for a £300,000 freehold in Leeds?" or "employment solicitor for unfair dismissal who offers a free call". If your price pages are vague, your practice areas are a long generic list and your reviews are thin, a firm that answers those questions directly is easier to recommend.

Do I have to publish prices on my website? For some services, yes. The SRA Transparency Rules require firms that publicise certain services, including residential conveyancing, uncontested probate, most immigration work, summary-only motoring offences, unfair or wrongful dismissal claims, debt recovery up to £100,000 and business premises licensing, to publish cost information. That includes what's included and excluded, VAT, disbursements, key stages and timescales, and who does the work.

Can a law firm ask clients for reviews? Yes, on Google, Trustpilot and ReviewSolicitors, as long as you ask clients in the same way, don't offer incentives and don't ask only those you expect to be happy. Since April 2025 UK law also bans fake reviews and reviews that conceal an incentive. Make sure your replies never confirm or reveal confidential details about the client's matter.

Does the SRA digital badge help with AI visibility? No platform has said it is a ranking factor. It is a regulatory requirement: authorised firms must display their SRA number and the SRA's digital badge prominently on their website. It also gives anyone checking you, including an assistant searching the web, a direct way to confirm you are regulated, which supports the facts you publish elsewhere.

What structured data should a law firm use? Use LocalBusiness markup with the LegalService type from schema.org, which describes law firms. Attorney and Notary are more specific subtypes. Include your name, address, phone, website and opening hours, and keep every value identical to the visible page. Google says its AI features need no special markup, so schema states your facts tidily rather than boosting you.

Sources

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