Your profiles already exist. Claiming them is free. What you do after that is where the money question starts.
Verified August 2026.
If you are a licensed attorney in the United States, you almost certainly already have profiles on Avvo and Justia — whether or not you have ever visited either site.
Both auto-generate attorney profiles from state bar licensing records. Yours is live right now, possibly with no photo, a firm you left, and an address from three moves ago. It may also carry a rating you never agreed to.
That's the situation this post addresses. It applies to attorneys; other segments should see the complete setup guide.
Why bother, given the links are nofollow?
Worth stating up front, because it changes what you should expect.
These directories pass little to no direct SEO value. Profile links are typically nofollow or sponsored, so they aren't building your site's authority in the way a genuine editorial link would. Anyone selling you a directory profile on link-building grounds is overselling.
The value is elsewhere, and it's real:
They rank for your name. Directory profiles routinely outrank a small firm's own site for the attorney's name. When a referral checks you out, or a prospective client searches you after a consultation, a directory profile is often what they find. You want that page to be complete and current rather than a stub from 2016.
They're heavily cited by AI assistants. When someone asks an AI assistant to recommend an attorney in a practice area and city, structured directory data is a primary source. Complete, consistent profile information is what gets extracted. Incomplete profiles get skipped.
They're where clients compare. Someone who has narrowed to three attorneys will look at all three profiles side by side.
Step 1: Find every profile that exists
Search each attorney's name plus "attorney" on Google. Then search directly on:
- Avvo
- Justia (Justia Lawyer Directory)
- Martindale-Hubbell and Lawyers.com (same company)
- FindLaw (Thomson Reuters)
- Nolo
- Super Lawyers, if applicable
Search per attorney, not per firm. These are individual profiles generated from individual bar records. A firm with four attorneys has at least four sets to check.
Note what each says. You are looking for:
- Wrong or former firm
- Old address or phone
- Missing photo
- Practice areas that don't match what you do now
- Bar admissions or credentials missing
Step 2: Claim them
Claiming is free on Avvo, Justia, Martindale-Hubbell, FindLaw, and Nolo. It takes a few minutes each and usually requires verifying your bar number and identity.
Do all of them. This is unambiguously worth the hour it takes across a small firm.
Step 3: Complete each profile
The fields are broadly similar across platforms:
Professional headshot. The single highest-impact addition. A profile without a photo reads as abandoned. Use the same 1080 × 1080 headshot from your image kit.
Practice areas. Be specific and be accurate. "Estate Planning" and "Probate" outperform "General Practice" because they match what people actually search. Do not list areas you don't practice.
Bar admissions and jurisdictions.
Education.
Biography. Aim for roughly 150–250 words. What you do, who you serve, your approach, and any genuinely distinguishing background. These platforms don't publish consistent character limits — draft to about 1,500 characters and check for truncation. (Unconfirmed.)
Firm information. Name, address, and phone matching your standard NAP exactly. This is the piece most often inconsistent across directories, and inconsistency here undermines the whole point.
Languages, publications, speaking, associations. Fill them. Most profiles don't.
Step 4: About the Avvo rating
Avvo assigns numerical ratings to attorneys using its own methodology, based on factors including experience, professional conduct records, and information in the profile.
Two things worth understanding:
You did not opt into it, and you cannot remove it. The rating exists on unclaimed profiles too.
Completing your profile can affect it, since some inputs come from profile data. This is a legitimate reason to complete the profile beyond the general case.
Your state bar may have rules about how you may reference it. Some jurisdictions restrict advertising that cites third-party ratings, or require specific disclosure of the rating's basis. Check before putting an Avvo rating badge on your website.
Step 5: Decide about the paid tiers
Every one of these platforms sells something: enhanced profiles, premium placement, advertising, or lead generation.
The return is genuinely disputed, and it varies enormously by practice area and market. High-volume consumer practice areas in competitive metros are a different economics problem than an estate planning practice in a small market.
The approach that avoids wasting money:
- Claim and complete every free profile.
- Track where your consultations actually come from for 60–90 days. Ask every caller.
- If directory leads never appear in that data, don't buy.
- If they do, you now know which platform and can buy the specific thing that's working.
Directory sales teams call after you claim. That's expected. You can decline and keep the free profile — it does not go away.
Step 6: Bar advertising compliance
This matters more here than anywhere else in the complete setup guide, because directory profiles are advertising and they contain fields that touch regulated territory directly.
Your state bar's advertising rules govern:
- Claims of expertise or specialization. Many states restrict the words "specialist," "expert," and "specializing in" unless you hold a recognized certification.
- Client testimonials and reviews. Rules vary; some states require disclaimers.
- Third-party ratings. How and whether you may reference them.
- Past results. Frequently require disclaimers about results not being guaranteed.
- Required disclosures. Some jurisdictions require specific language on advertising.
Two additional points specific to directories:
Rules apply to profiles you did not create. An auto-generated profile with content attributed to you may still be treated as your advertising. This is an argument for claiming and controlling them rather than ignoring them.
Some states require submission or retention of advertising materials. Check whether directory profiles fall under that requirement in your jurisdiction.
Nothing here is legal advice. Review your specific state bar's advertising rules, and note that if you're admitted in multiple states you may be subject to more than one set.
Common problems
A profile shows a firm you left. Claim it and correct it. Old firm attributions across live profiles are among the most damaging inconsistencies, because they make it unclear where you actually practice.
Two profiles for the same attorney. Usually a name variant — "Robert" and "Bob," or a maiden name. Claim both and request a merge.
A profile exists for an attorney who left your firm. You cannot control their personal profile, but you can correct your firm's listing.
Constant sales calls. Expected after claiming. Decline; the free profile remains.
Practice areas you don't practice. Auto-generated from imperfect data. Correct them — they affect which searches surface you.
Maintenance
- Annually: review every attorney's profile on every platform
- When anyone joins or leaves: update firm information immediately, on every directory
- When practice areas change: update everywhere at once
- After any bar rule change affecting advertising: re-review your profiles
Next steps
Return to the complete setup guide for Tier 1 listings, which carry more weight than any directory here — particularly Google Business Profile and LinkedIn.
Verified August 2026 against current published sources. These platforms do not publish consistent field specifications; items marked Unconfirmed should be verified against field behavior. Nothing in this post is legal advice — confirm all advertising questions with your state bar.