Google Business Profile for Lawyers: Use Within Professional Rules

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Someone looking for a law firm first wants its address, opening hours and phone number, and these appear on the profile in Google Search and Maps. A lawyer's Google Business Profile is therefore an information record that makes your firm easier to reach. But because the legal profession has an advertising ban, what you write in this record matters far more than for other businesses.

This article explains how to use the profile without conflicting with professional rules. It is general information; wherever you're unsure, follow the current regulations and opinions of your bar association and the Union of Turkish Bar Associations.

Promotion limits in the legal profession

Turkey's Attorneys' Act and the profession's rules prohibit lawyers from efforts that could count as advertising to attract work. The Union of Turkish Bar Associations' regulation on the advertising ban also sets the limits lawyers must stay within when presenting themselves and their firms.

Within this framework, the practical test is:

• Giving factual information, such as the firm's name, address, contact details, opening hours and practice areas, is measured use.
• Praising, comparing and promising, such as claims of success, superiority or outcomes, can take on the character of advertising.

A Google Business Profile works like a map and directory entry, but what you write in the description, services, posts, photos and review replies can become promotional. Check every field by asking: "Is this information, or praise or a promise?"

Google also handles lawyers separately: it treats professionals who serve clients one-on-one, such as doctors and lawyers, as "individual practitioners" and sets extra rules for them. These rules are on Google's guidelines for representing your business on Google page.

Information you can include on the profile

A law firm's Google Business listing should first get the profile structure right. Under Google's rules for individual practitioners:

• A lawyer who meets clients one-on-one and can be reached at the verified address during stated hours may create their own profile; no separate profiles are created for administrative or support staff.
• If several lawyers receive clients at the same address, the firm gets its own separate profile; a lawyer's profile name includes only their own name.
• If you're the only lawyer receiving clients at the firm and it runs under a brand name, a single shared profile can be used; the name is written as "[firm name]: [lawyer name]".
• Titles such as "Attorney" may appear on the profile.
• No separate profile is created for each practice area; each lawyer has one profile.

The profile name is written as it appears on the firm's sign and official documents. Don't add "divorce lawyer," a neighborhood name or words like "best" to it. Google treats adding a service description or location to the name as a violation of its guidelines; such additions can also be a problem under professional rules.

Other fields on the profile:

• Category: The category on Google's list that best matches your profession.
• Address and map location: Only the office address where you actually receive clients and are present during opening hours. A virtual office or an address used only for correspondence doesn't go on the profile. Add the floor and unit number so your law firm appears at the right spot on the building in Google Maps.
• Opening hours and phone: Hours and a number at which the firm can actually be reached; special hours for public holidays.
• Website: The firm's own site. The site must also respect the same promotion limits.
• Photos: The building's exterior and entrance, the waiting area, the meeting room and portraits of the lawyers taken with their permission. No files, documents, screens or clients in the frame.
• Accessibility: Details that make visits easier, such as an elevator or wheelchair access.

Describing practice areas correctly

Someone looking for a firm often first asks, "Does this firm handle my kind of issue?" The measured answer is to list your practice areas with neutral names:

• In the services section, add areas you actually work in, such as family law, employment law, criminal law, real estate law and commercial law.
• In service descriptions, explain each area's scope in general terms, for example "Advice and litigation in employee and employer disputes."
• In the description, state factually where the firm is, its areas of work, that meetings are by appointment and in which languages.

"Practice areas" is more measured than labels like "expert," "leader in the field" or "experienced team." Be careful with fee-related wording too: phrases such as "free initial consultation," "affordable fees" or discounts can conflict with professional rules. For the same reason, don't use campaign tools such as offer posts.

The best fit for posts is firm announcements: a change of address, opening hours, and working arrangements during public holidays and the judicial recess. If you plan to share a change in legislation as general information, make sure the text contains no call aimed at attracting work.

Replying to client reviews and confidentiality

Google reviews of lawyers need special care because of the duty of confidentiality. Review replies are public, and even confirming that someone is your client can mean disclosing confidential information. So the basic principle is: the reply shouldn't confirm that you have an attorney-client relationship with the reviewer.

What shouldn't appear in a reply:

• The person's name, case file, court or how the case went
• Phrases that confirm a client relationship, such as "In your case…" or "Your file…"
• Statements about the outcome of a case
• Explanations based on file information in response to claims in the review

Sample replies that don't confirm the person or the relationship:

• To a positive review: "Thank you for the thoughts you shared."
• To a negative review: "Thank you for sharing your view. Because of our duty of professional confidentiality, we can't give information about any person or matter here. If you wish, you can reach our office by phone."

Don't turn a reply to a review you find unfair into an argument; a short, calm reply looks more trustworthy to every reader. You can report reviews you believe break Google's rules; removal is Google's decision. For general advice on reviews, see Google's manage customer reviews page.

If you're considering asking clients for reviews, first check that this fits your professional rules; on Google's side, the request must also be made without incentives and without picking. Reviews on the profile by firm staff or your relatives break Google's rules.

To keep replies consistent, you can use BadePlus's review replies feature; drafts can come to you for approval before publishing, and in a field bound by confidentiality we recommend reading every draft before it goes live. We explain our approach for law firms on the Google management for lawyers and law firms page.

Phrases to avoid

Don't use phrases like these in any field of the profile (name, description, services, posts, photo captions and review replies):

• Superiority and comparison: "best lawyer," "most successful firm in the area," "leader," "top-ranked"
• Claims of success and outcome: number of cases won, success rate, "we'll win your case," "certain outcome"
• Fees and campaigns: "free consultation," "affordable fees," discounts, installments
• Urgency and pressure: phrases that may read as a call to attract work, such as "call now," "emergency lawyer" or "24/7 lawyer"
• References and client information: client names and logos, examples from concluded cases
• Labels that look like titles: "expert lawyer," "authority in the field"

These phrases are risky under professional rules and for readers' trust. A measured, factual profile already gives people looking for a firm what they need.

Frequently asked questions

Does opening a Google Business Profile violate the advertising ban?

That assessment is for your bar association. Because Google can create business listings itself from information on the web, your firm may already have a profile. Claiming it and keeping it to factual information prevents wrong or exaggerated information from appearing.

What should I do if a review includes case details?

Don't repeat or confirm those details in your reply. If the review contains personal information or you believe it breaks Google's rules, you can report it; the decision is Google's.

Can every lawyer at the firm have a separate profile?

Under Google's rules for individual practitioners, lawyers who receive clients and can be reached at the office during stated hours may create their own profiles; the firm also has its own profile. No profiles are created for support staff.

Summary

• The legal profession has an advertising ban; use the profile as an information record, without praise or promises.
• The profile name should be the real name on your sign; practice areas or neighborhoods aren't added to it.
• Describe practice areas with neutral names in the services and description sections.
• Review replies shouldn't even confirm that the person is your client.
• Wherever you're unsure, follow the current opinion of your bar association.