What a law firm website needs to win clients

What must be clear in five seconds

The first screen should answer three questions before visitors scroll: what you do, who you do it for and what the next step is. If they have to read the firm’s history to find out, many will leave.

“Welcome to our firm” says nothing. “Employment lawyers for employees and businesses. We’ll tell you within 48 hours what you can do” says it all.

That sentence is more useful than any picture of scales or a gavel. It names your speciality, makes clear who you help and promises something concrete that depends on you: a fast, clear answer, not winning the case.

Practice areas explained from the client’s problem

Most law firm websites list areas: “Employment law”, “Civil law”, “Corporate law”. But clients don’t search for “civil law”: they search for what to do about an inheritance where the siblings can’t agree.

Give each important area its own page and write it around your clients’ real situations:

• Typical cases, in the words a client would use: “I’ve been dismissed”, “a customer won’t pay an invoice”, “I want a divorce and we have children”.
• How you work on that kind of matter: first consultation, case review, approximate timescales.
• What to prepare before talking to you.
• Frequently asked questions for that area.

This helps twice: visitors recognise themselves in what they read, and Google better understands which searches each page answers.

Trust signals

Hiring a lawyer requires trust. Your website should give concrete reasons for it:

• Real people. Photos of the team, not stock images, with their speciality, experience and languages.
• Professional details. Your bar association and membership number. In Spain the law requires regulated professions to show them on their website, and they also signal seriousness.
• Verifiable reviews. Google reviews or testimonials published with the client’s permission.
• Transparent fees. You don’t need fixed prices, but explain how fees are calculated and whether the first consultation is charged.
• Professional presence. Articles, publications or media appearances, if you have them.

Easy, low-pressure contact

Many people hesitate before contacting a lawyer: they don’t know what it will cost or whether their case is “serious enough”. Lower that barrier:

• A contact button visible on every page, including on mobile.
• A short form: name, how to reach them and a brief summary of the matter.
• Explain what happens next: “We reply within one working day and tell you whether we can help”.
• If the first consultation is free or has a price, say so clearly.

One important detail: don’t ask people to describe their case in full in the form. An outline is enough. Sensitive information is better handled later, through an appropriate channel and with the confidentiality your profession requires.

Copy without jargon

What you do is complex, but your website shouldn’t feel that way. Write as you would speak to a client in a first meeting: short sentences, terms explained and the focus on what the person needs, not on the firm.

That is the core of the StoryBrand framework: your client is the hero and you are the guide who helps them solve their problem. Your experience still matters, but as proof that you can help, not as an introduction.

In my book La página web perfecta (in Spanish) I explain this method applied to small businesses and adapted to web design: how to bring StoryBrand into the sections of your website, with a clear message and calls to action.

Guide: the four pillars of copywriting ↗

What a law firm website must not say

Lawyers may advertise, but within limits set by their professional rules. In Spain, article 20 of the General Statute of the Spanish Legal Profession (Royal Decree 135/2021) states that a lawyer’s advertising must not:

• reveal facts covered by professional secrecy;
• encourage litigation or conflict, generally or specifically;
• offer services to victims of accidents or disasters, or their heirs, within 45 days of the event;
• promise results that do not depend solely on the lawyer’s work;
• refer to clients without their permission;
• use bar emblems or symbols, or others that could be confused with them.

Other countries have similar rules. In practice: no “we win 98% of our cases”, no client logos without permission and no recognisable cases. You can explain how you work and the kind of matters you handle, without identifying anyone. If in doubt, check with your bar association: this guide is not advice on your professional rules.

I go into more detail in law firm advertising online: what you can and cannot say.

Don’t neglect the technical side

• Built for mobile. Many enquiries come from a phone, often at a worrying moment.
• Fast and secure. A law firm handles sensitive information. A hacked website or security warnings destroy the trust you have built.
• Google Business Profile complete and consistent with the website, if you serve clients in a specific area.
• Several languages if you have international clients. Translating is not enough: each version should explain the concepts that client doesn’t know about the local legal system.

Guide: WordPress pros and cons ↗
Guide: common mistakes on law firm websites ↗

Frequently asked questions about law firm websites