A look back, written in 2026, after working on websites and marketing for UK legal practices. Law firm websites look alike for a reason, and most of what separates a good one from a weak one is not the design.
The visitor is usually worried
Nobody browses a solicitor's website for fun. They have been injured, dismissed, refused a visa or handed a letter they do not understand. They are often on a phone, often out of hours, and deciding between you and two other tabs.
That sets the job. Show that the firm handles exactly this problem, that it is real and regulated, and that getting in touch is easy and carries no risk. Everything else is secondary.
Trust has to be verifiable
Solicitors in England and Wales regulated by the SRA must display the SRA's digital badge on their website, and it links to the firm's entry on the register. Visitors do click it. The firm's name, SRA number and registered office belong in the footer, and the complaints procedure has to be published.
Beyond the requirements: real names and photographs of the people who will handle the matter, their roles, and reviews from a platform the firm does not control. A stock photo of a gavel builds no trust at all.
If a claim on the page cannot be checked — a success rate, an amount recovered, a ranking — either evidence it or take it out. In a regulated profession an unsupported claim is a liability, not marketing.
The transparency rules are content, not small print
Since the SRA transparency rules came into force, firms offering certain services to the public — including residential conveyancing, probate, employment tribunal claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal, immigration applications other than asylum, and motoring offences — must publish price and service information for them: typical costs, what is included, key stages and timescales, and who does the work.
Most firms tuck this into a PDF. I think that wastes it. A clear page setting out how a matter works, what it usually costs and how long it takes answers the exact questions a worried visitor has. Written properly, it is the most useful page on the site and one of the most searched-for.
One page per problem
Service pages should match the way people describe their situation, not the firm's internal departments. Someone searching after a road accident does not search for a practice area. One well-written page for each problem the firm actually wants — what happens, what it costs, what to do next — beats a long list of thin ones.
Local matters too. Most enquiries come from within reach of the office, so a complete Google Business Profile and consistent name, address and phone number across directories are worth more than most on-page tweaks.
Make getting in touch easy
Phone number tappable on mobile, visible without scrolling. A short form that asks only what is needed to call back, and says when that will happen. WhatsApp, if the firm will genuinely answer it. And someone responsible for responding quickly, because an enquiry answered the next afternoon has often already gone elsewhere.
Track which pages lead to enquiries. It is the only way to know which content is doing the work, and it is the conversation that turns a website from a cost into something the partners care about.
What it does not need
Animation, a video background, or a news section last updated three years ago. A blog is only worth having if someone will write for it regularly and answer real client questions; an abandoned one says the opposite of what the firm intends.
A law firm website is a narrow tool. Done well, it is calm, specific, verifiable and quick to act on — which is also a fair description of what clients want from their solicitor.
