Legal search is intent-heavy: 'business lawyer for contract dispute', 'best family law attorney', 'immigration lawyer for work visa'. AI answers compress dozens of options into three or four names. Most firms aren't on the list — not because they're bad lawyers, but because the public web doesn't describe them clearly enough for models to cite.
Why law firm sites fail AI
- Every practice area listed with equal weight — models can't tell what you want
- Attorney bios as PDFs or image blocks
- No FAQ content matching how people phrase AI queries
- Aggregators (Avvo, FindLaw) cited instead because they're everywhere
What works instead
- Dedicated pages per practice area with plain-language outcomes
- LegalService schema and attorney Person schema where appropriate
- Ethical, factual FAQs on process, fees, and fit
- Seeding on directories and publications models already trust