What AI recommends when buyers ask about law firms
20 brand-free buyer questions, each asked to 5 AI assistants with Chicago, Illinois as the sample city. 183 providers were named across 98 answers. Every number below traces back to an original answer.
The law firms AI assistants name most often
Counted per answer: a provider named twice in one answer counts once. "Recommended" means the answer explicitly told the buyer to pick it.
| # | Provider | Answers | Share | Recommended | ChatGPT | Perplexity | Gemini | Claude | Grok |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Regas & Dallas P.C | 7 | 7% | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2 | Gurney Law Group | 5 | 5% | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 3 | Rentervention (Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing) | 5 | 5% | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | Peck Ritchey, LLC | 5 | 5% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | The Toney Law Firm | 5 | 5% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 6 | Cook County Legal Aid for Housing and Debt (CCLAHD) | 4 | 4% | 4 | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | Eviction Help Illinois | 4 | 4% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 8 | Trust & Will | 4 | 4% | 1 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 9 | Legal Aid Chicago | 4 | 4% | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 10 | Loftus & Eisenberg, Ltd | 4 | 4% | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 11 | The Clinton Law Firm | 4 | 4% | 0 | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | Aronberg Goldgehn | 3 | 3% | 2 | — | 2 | — | — | 1 |
Each assistant answers differently
| Model | Answers | Name ≥1 provider | Providers / answer | With citations | Citations / answer | Points to directories |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT openai/gpt-5-mini | 20 / 20 | 45% | 3.45 | 100% | 10.25 | 25% |
| Perplexity sonar | 20 / 20 | 35% | 2.9 | 100% | 19.05 | 5% |
| Gemini google/gemini-3.5-flash | 18 / 20 | 61% | 3.06 | 100% | 5.56 | 11% |
| Claude anthropic/claude-haiku-4-5 | 20 / 20 | 55% | 2.35 | 90% | 6.05 | 30% |
| Grok xai/grok-4.20-non-reasoning | 20 / 20 | 50% | 2.7 | 100% | 9.9 | 35% |
What buyers ask AI about law firms
Generated without any brand name so the assistants had to name providers on their own. "Providers" is the number of distinct names across all models for that question.
Purchase
| Question | Providers | Named by most models |
|---|---|---|
| Can you recommend the best family law attorneys in Chicago for a custody battle? | 15 | Hurst, Kay, Allen & Stambler, LLC (3) · Chicago Family Attorneys, LLC (2) · Denise P. Erlich (2) |
| I need help with a real estate transaction closing in two weeks near downtown Chicago—who would you recommend? | 19 | Gurney Law Group (5) · Bradford Miller Law, P.C (3) · Meridian Title (2) |
| Which criminal defense lawyers in Chicago would be best for a first-time DUI charge? | 26 | The Toney Law Firm (5) · Combs Waterkotte (3) · Ktenas Law (3) |
| I'm looking for someone to handle my estate planning—can you suggest top options in Chicago? | 25 | Peck Ritchey, LLC (4) · Neal Gerber Eisenberg (3) · Aronberg Goldgehn (2) |
| I have a startup and need intellectual property protection—who would you recommend in the Chicago area? | 22 | Liberum Law (3) · Babino Law Group (2) · CHIP LAW GROUP (2) |
| My landlord is threatening eviction—I need legal help fast in Chicago, who's the best option? | 15 | Rentervention (Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing) (5) · Cook County Legal Aid for Housing and Debt (CCLAHD) (4) · Eviction Help Illinois (4) |
| Can you recommend litigation specialists in Chicago who handle commercial disputes? | 31 | Loftus & Eisenberg, Ltd (4) · Regas & Dallas P.C (3) · Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C (3) |
Comparison
| Question | Providers | Named by most models |
|---|---|---|
| What's the difference between hiring a solo practitioner versus a large firm for divorce proceedings in Chicago? | 5 | Beermann LLP (1) · Berger Schatz (1) · Katz & Stefani, LLC (1) |
| How do I choose between a retainer agreement and paying hourly when hiring a lawyer? | 1 | LawPay (1) |
| How important is it that my lawyer has experience specifically with cases like mine versus general knowledge? | 0 | none named |
Research
| Question | Providers | Named by most models |
|---|---|---|
| What should I look for when choosing a lawyer in Chicago for my small business incorporation? | 11 | Regas & Dallas P.C (4) · Barney & Karamanis, LLP (3) · G & G Law, LLC (2) |
| What questions should I ask during a consultation to evaluate if a lawyer is right for me? | 0 | none named |
| What's a typical hourly rate for contract review services in Chicago, and should I negotiate? | 6 | Contracts Esquire (1) · Grant Park Legal Advisors LLC (1) · Karlin Legal LLC (1) |
| What should I expect during the first meeting with a lawyer, and what should I bring? | 0 | none named |
Evaluation
| Question | Providers | Named by most models |
|---|---|---|
| Is it worth hiring a specialized employment lawyer or can a general practice handle my workplace discrimination claim? | 6 | Beal Sutherland Berlin & Brown LLC (1) · Kingsley Szamet Employment Lawyers (1) · Maduff & Maduff, LLC (1) |
| Are online legal services better than traditional lawyers for simple documents like wills? | 5 | Trust & Will (4) · FreeWill (3) · Nolo's Quicken WillMaker (1) |
Trust
| Question | Providers | Named by most models |
|---|---|---|
| How do I know if a lawyer is actually qualified to handle my personal injury case? | 1 | Super Lawyers (1) |
| What are red flags I should watch out for when meeting with a potential lawyer? | 0 | none named |
| How do I verify a lawyer's credentials and check for disciplinary history? | 1 | CheckMyAttorney.com (1) |
| What should I know about lawyer licensing and bar admission before working with someone? | 0 | none named |
Sources AI cites for law firms questions
1005 citations from 457 domains. Only sources marked inside the answer text are counted; the retrieval pool is not.
- Other sites70%
- Named providers' own sites19%
- Research, government & universities5%
- Directories & review sites4%
- Communities (Reddit, Quora…)2%
- Encyclopedias1%
| Domain | Type | Citations | Questions | ChatGPT | Perplexity | Gemini | Claude | Grok |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| avvo.com | Directories & review sites | 21 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| americanbar.org | Other sites | 20 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| attorneys.superlawyers.com | Named providers' own sites | 19 | 6 | 4 | 11 | — | — | 4 |
| reddit.com | Communities (Reddit, Quora…) | 17 | 5 | — | 13 | — | 1 | 3 |
| lawfirmsquare.com | Named providers' own sites | 16 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| legalclarity.org | Other sites | 14 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| bestlawyers.com | Other sites | 12 | 6 | — | 8 | 2 | — | 2 |
| checkmyattorney.com | Other sites | 12 | 3 | 6 | 1 | — | 3 | 2 |
| chicago.gov | Research, government & universities | 12 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| justia.com | Directories & review sites | 11 | 7 | 1 | 9 | — | — | 1 |
| findlaw.com | Directories & review sites | 10 | 5 | 4 | 4 | — | 1 | 1 |
| gurneylawgroup.com | Named providers' own sites | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
GEO takeaways for law firms
- 49% of 98 answers named at least one specific provider; 183 distinct names came up across 20 questions.
- No single provider dominates: the most-named one, Regas & Dallas P.C, appears in only 7% of answers (named by 5 of 5 models). The category is still open — consistent evidence on the sources below can move a brand into these answers.
- 21% of answers sent the buyer to a directory or review site instead of, or alongside, naming providers. For law firms, being listed and well-reviewed there is a precondition for being named at all.
- Of 1005 citations, 19% pointed to named providers' own sites, 5% pointed to research, government & universities, 4% pointed to directories & review sites. Those source types are what the models actually read before answering, so that is where the evidence has to live.
- ChatGPT names the most providers per answer (3.45), Claude the fewest (2.35). Share of voice is engine-specific; one number across models hides this.
- Local questions only produced named providers when a place was given, so the recommendation questions here use Chicago, Illinois as the sample city. Results for another city will differ.
Questions teams ask before they start
Which law firms does ChatGPT recommend?
In 20 answers collected on 2026-09-07, ChatGPT named Regas & Dallas P.C (2), Gurney Law Group (1), Rentervention (Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing) (1), Peck Ritchey, LLC (1), The Toney Law Firm (1) most often for Chicago, Illinois. Names change between runs; this is a dated snapshot, not a ranking.
Which law firms does Perplexity recommend?
In 20 answers collected on 2026-09-07, Perplexity named Aronberg Goldgehn (2), Regas & Dallas P.C (1), Gurney Law Group (1), Rentervention (Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing) (1), Peck Ritchey, LLC (1) most often for Chicago, Illinois. Names change between runs; this is a dated snapshot, not a ranking.
Which law firms does Gemini recommend?
In 18 answers collected on 2026-09-07, Gemini named Regas & Dallas P.C (1), Gurney Law Group (1), Rentervention (Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing) (1), Peck Ritchey, LLC (1), The Toney Law Firm (1) most often for Chicago, Illinois. Names change between runs; this is a dated snapshot, not a ranking.
Which sources do AI assistants cite when answering law firms questions?
Across 1005 citations from 457 domains: Other sites 70%, Named providers' own sites 19%, Research, government & universities 5%. The most-cited domains were avvo.com, americanbar.org, attorneys.superlawyers.com, reddit.com, lawfirmsquare.com. Only sources marked inside the answer text are counted, never the retrieval pool.
How were these numbers produced?
20 brand-free buyer questions were generated for the Law firms category in the United States market, then each was asked to ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, Grok on 2026-09-07 (98 of 100 answers completed). A separate parser extracted every provider each answer named; directories and review sites are recorded separately and never counted as providers. Failed answers are excluded from every percentage rather than treated as zero.
How can a law firm business get recommended by AI?
Start from the questions above: for each one your business should be an answer to, check whether the sources the models cite (directories, review sites, communities, media) describe you with the facts the question needs. Then measure the same questions for your own brand — InsightWonder runs this exact loop per site, with citations traced to URLs, and turns missed questions into content and placements.
How this page was built
- Market: United States; sample city for local questions: Chicago, Illinois.
- Collected 2026-09-07. Models: ChatGPT (openai/gpt-5-mini), Perplexity (sonar), Gemini (google/gemini-3.5-flash), Claude (anthropic/claude-haiku-4-5), Grok (xai/grok-4.20-non-reasoning).
- 98 of 100 question × model answers completed; 2 failed and are excluded from every percentage, not counted as zero.
- Providers are extracted by a separate parser from the full answer text; directories, marketplaces and review sites are recorded as "points to directories" and never counted as providers. AI answers change between runs, so this is a dated snapshot.
- Same method as the product's visibility engine, run for the whole category instead of one brand. Log in to run it for yours: https://app.insightwonder.com
Other industries: Dentists · Electric bikes · Furniture brands · Gyms & fitness studios · Hotels · HVAC & plumbing services · Pet supplies · Project management software · Real estate agents · Restaurants · Skincare brands
Turn AI visibility into a repeatable growth system.
Create a project, confirm your market and start measuring the questions that matter.