Which legal directories does AI cite?

What are the key facts about legal directories and AI?

Which directories did AI cite most for lawyers?

Justia, Super Lawyers and Avvo, in that order, for personal injury lawyers. In October 2026 we asked 12 AI assistants three fixed questions in 600 local markets, including four kinds of lawyer in 30 metros across Florida, California, New York and Texas, and recorded every site they cited. AI Syndicate

Three things stand out:

• The legal directories carry across the whole study. Avvo (1.3%) and Justia (1.2%) were among the ten most-cited sites of all 37,355 citations, alongside general sites such as Yelp and the Better Business Bureau.
• The leader is small. Even the top site took under 6% of injury lawyer citations. The rest spread over many directories, review sites, local news and firm pages, so no single profile decides the answer.
• Each kind of law has its own leader. Peer-selected lists such as Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers led for business litigation; Avvo led for speeding tickets. A firm should check which sites the engines cite for its own practice area and city.

For the rest of the injury firm playbook, see how personal injury lawyers get recommended by AI.

Which legal directory profiles are free?

Justia, Avvo and FindLaw's basic listing cost nothing. Each sells paid upgrades on top.

Justia. "Any attorney licensed in the United States can have a free profile in the Justia Lawyer Directory," and "There is no fee to be listed and have a complete profile." A profile is claimed from its own page, verified by email, phone or photo. Justia Justia also sells "premium marketing solutions, including websites, premium directory placements." Justia

Avvo. Avvo creates "profiles for licensed attorneys that we can locate" at no cost, whether or not they sign up. The Avvo Rating is "a 1–10 score" made by "an automated algorithm" from experience, education, "Peer endorsements from other attorneys," and "Disciplinary history and ethical sanctions." Avvo says "Lawyers cannot pay for a better rating," and "We don't provide a numerical rating for an attorney until they have claimed their profile." Avvo Claiming is done by searching your name and verifying through LinkedIn, Facebook, email or phone. Avvo

FindLaw. "With a basic (free) listing, you can update information such as your name, address, phone" and practice area; fuller profiles are sold. FindLaw

Who owns what. Avvo "joined Internet Brands as part of the Martindale‑Avvo network" in 2018, and FindLaw was acquired by Internet Brands in 2024, joining Martindale-Hubbell and Avvo. Avvo, FindLaw Justia is an independent company in Mountain View, California. Justia So one company runs several of the profiles an engine may read; keep them consistent with each other.

Can a lawyer pay to get on Super Lawyers or Best Lawyers?

No. Both are peer-reviewed lists, and both say inclusion can't be bought.

Super Lawyers. "Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with independent research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators." "Lawyers cannot nominate themselves." "Five percent of the total lawyers in the state are selected," and "the top 2.5 percent are named to the Rising Stars list." Super Lawyers

Best Lawyers. "Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review," and "Lawyers can be nominated by anyone, including themselves." Best Lawyers Best Lawyers says lawyers are "neither required nor permitted to pay for inclusion." Best Lawyers

Martindale-Hubbell. The AV Preeminent rating comes from "a secure online peer review survey" in which a lawyer's ethical standards and legal ability are "assessed by their peers." Martindale-Hubbell

Expertise.com works differently. It screens firms using "public databases and customer referrals," licensing checks, review data and mystery-shopper calls, and "Once a provider has passed our review & selection process, they may choose to advertise on the page." Expertise.com Its city pages for injury lawyers say featured lawyers pay an advertising cost. Expertise.com

Do legal directories let AI crawlers in?

They let the AI search crawlers in. Several block OpenAI's training crawler. We read each site's robots.txt on October 7, 2026.

Why the difference matters. GPTBot is OpenAI's training crawler. The crawler behind ChatGPT search is OAI-SearchBot, and "Sites that are opted out of OAI-SearchBot will not be shown in ChatGPT search answers." OpenAI Anthropic lists ClaudeBot for training and Claude-SearchBot for search results. Anthropic None of these directories blocks the search crawlers, which fits how often the engines cite them.

One limit on this table: robots.txt is only the published rule. Some of these sites challenged our ordinary page fetches at the network level, and we did not test how they treat each AI company's own crawler.

What do the bar rules say about directory listings and awards?

Paying for a listing is advertising, which is allowed. Paying someone to recommend you is not. ABA Model Rule 7.2(b) says a lawyer "shall not compensate, give or promise anything of value to a person for recommending the lawyer's services," with exceptions that include "the reasonable costs of advertisements." Its comments count "on-line directory listings" as advertising, and say a lawyer "must not pay a lead generator that states, implies, or creates a reasonable impression that it is recommending the lawyer." ABA, ABA comments

"Specialist" is a regulated word. Rule 7.2(c): a lawyer "shall not state or imply that a lawyer is certified as a specialist in a particular field of law" unless the certifying body is approved or ABA-accredited and is named. ABA

Advertising an award has rules too. New Jersey is a clear example. Its RPC 7.1(a)(3), amended in 2009, treats a comparison as misleading unless the comparing organization is named, the basis can be substantiated, and the ad carries the disclaimer "No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey." NJ Courts A 2021 notice naming Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers and AV Preeminent says a lawyer may say they were included on a list, but "must not describe the lawyer as being a Super Lawyer." NJ Courts

The Model Rules are a template; your state's version is the one that binds you. For chatbots and AI-written ads, see the bar rules for AI marketing at injury firms.

How should an injury firm set up its directory profiles for AI?

This is our advice, built on the sourced facts above.

1. See which directories AI cites for you. Ask four or five engines for "best personal injury lawyer in [city]" and list every directory they link to.
2. Claim the free profiles first. Justia, Avvo and FindLaw's basic listing cost nothing; claiming Avvo also turns on its rating.
3. Copy one set of facts everywhere. The same firm name, address, phone, practice areas and bar admissions as your website and Business Profile.
4. Fill in the practice details. Injury types you handle, cities you serve, languages, years in practice. A blank profile gives an engine nothing to quote.
5. Link the profiles from your site. Add them to sameAs in your LegalService and Person markup.
6. Earn the peer lists. Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers can't be bought; they come from other lawyers' views of your work.
7. Advertise awards within your state's rules. Name the organization, keep the basis on file, and add any disclaimer your state requires.
8. Re-check every quarter. Update the profiles when a lawyer joins or leaves, or the firm moves.

What is the legal directory checklist for AI?

How do I see which directories AI uses for my firm?

Ask the questions a client asks, in your city, and read the links: "Best personal injury lawyer in [city]", "Car accident lawyer near [neighborhood]" and "Is [your firm name] a good law firm?" Write down every directory cited and whether your firm appears on it.

Our Prompt Simulator asks one question across 12 AI engines at once and lists the sources each one cites. The current AI ranking for injury lawyers in each city we track is in AI Local.

Sources

1. AI Changed Its #1 Local Pick in 52% of Markets (AI Local Report, October 2026) — AI Syndicate. Read Oct 7, 2026.
2. Justia Lawyer Directory FAQ — Justia. Read Oct 7, 2026.
3. About Justia — Justia. Read Oct 7, 2026.
4. Understanding the Avvo Rating — Avvo. Read Oct 7, 2026.
5. How do I claim my profile? — Avvo. Read Oct 7, 2026.
6. About Avvo — Avvo. Read Oct 7, 2026.
7. Selection Process — Super Lawyers. Read Oct 7, 2026.
8. Frequently Asked Questions — FindLaw. Read Oct 7, 2026.
9. FindLaw corporate information and company background — FindLaw. Read Oct 7, 2026.
10. Ratings and Reviews — Martindale-Hubbell. Read Oct 7, 2026.
11. Methodology — Best Lawyers. Read Oct 7, 2026.
12. The Integrity of the Best Lawyers Voting Process — Best Lawyers. Read Oct 7, 2026.
13. Our Selection Process — Expertise.com. Read Oct 7, 2026.
14. Best Personal Injury Lawyers in Los Angeles — Expertise.com. Read Oct 7, 2026.
15. robots.txt — Avvo. Read Oct 7, 2026.
16. robots.txt — Martindale-Hubbell. Read Oct 7, 2026.
17. robots.txt — Expertise.com. Read Oct 7, 2026.
18. Overview of OpenAI Crawlers — OpenAI. Read Oct 7, 2026.
19. Does Anthropic crawl data from the web, and how can site owners block the crawler? — Anthropic Help Center. Read Oct 7, 2026.
20. Model Rule 7.2: Communications Concerning a Lawyer's Services: Specific Rules — American Bar Association. Read Oct 7, 2026.
21. Comment on Rule 7.2 — American Bar Association. Read Oct 7, 2026.
22. Notice to the Bar: Amendments to RPC 7.1(a)(3) (November 2, 2009) — New Jersey Courts. Read Oct 7, 2026.
23. Committee on Attorney Advertising, Notice to the Bar (May 5, 2021) — New Jersey Courts. Read Oct 7, 2026.