Answers for Legal

15 answers about how AI search engines treat Legal brands.

• AI search vs Google Ads - which matters more for law firms?

  Google Ads still drives PI cases at $200-500 per click. AI search is cheaper, growing, harder to attribute. The honest answer: stop choosing, run both with intent.

• AI visibility for law firms - what works?

  What actually moves a law firm into ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini answers: directory depth on Avvo and Justia, schema, real case results, not blog volume.

• Are legal directories still worth it in the AI search era?

  Avvo and Justia still get cited by Perplexity and ChatGPT. Martindale-Hubbell barely does. Here's how to spend a $10k legal directory budget in 2026.

• Are there bar ethics rules around AI visibility for lawyers?

  Yes. ABA Model Rules 7.1-7.3 on lawyer advertising apply to AI-search content the same way they apply to a website. The specific traps and how to stay clear.

• Does AI search treat BigLaw differently than boutique firms?

  BigLaw firms get a head start in ChatGPT and Perplexity thanks to Wikipedia and decades of press. Boutiques can still win on niche depth - here's how.

• Does Martindale-Hubbell still matter in the AI era?

  Martindale-Hubbell lost ground to Avvo and Super Lawyers, but the AV Preeminent rating still moves citation share in M&A and antitrust queries. The honest scorecard.

• Does my Avvo profile affect AI visibility?

  Avvo affects AI visibility unevenly. Perplexity cites it in 7 of 10 lawyer queries; ChatGPT rarely does. Here is what each engine pulls from your profile.

• GEO playbook for solo practitioners

  Solo attorneys have no marketing team and no time. Here is the realistic 12-month GEO playbook: directory hygiene, schema, one good bio page. The 80/20 of AI visibility.

• GEO vs SEO for law firms - which deserves the budget?

  SEO still wins "hire a lawyer near me" queries. GEO wins the upstream research questions clients now ask ChatGPT. The 60/30/10 split most firms should run.

• How are potential clients using AI to find lawyers?

  Real prompts clients run in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini to find lawyers - and how the engines answer differently across PI, family, and criminal cases.

• How do local law firms appear in AI search?

  Local law firms surface in AI search through Google Business Profile, NAP consistency on Avvo and Justia, schema, and reviews. Here is what actually moves the needle.

• How does AI search differ by practice area (PI, family, criminal)?

  AI engines treat personal injury, family, and criminal defense queries very differently. Here is how ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini behave across each practice area.

• How to track AI mentions of your law firm

  Run your top 20 client prompts across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and DeepSeek on a schedule. Log named/not-named, sentiment, position. The 5-step method.

• What kind of law firm content gets cited by AI engines?

  Generic 'what is a will' posts get ignored. ChatGPT and Perplexity cite depth: case-law analysis, fee transparency, court-specific procedure. Examples inside.

• Why isn't ChatGPT recommending my law firm?

  Firms missing from ChatGPT usually share five gaps: thin directories, weak schema, no case results, generic content, and inconsistent NAP. Here is the diagnosis.