The legal SERP (Search Engine Results Page) is the Google results page displayed in response to a law-related query, such as "divorce lawyer Paris" or "wrongful dismissal compensation". This page is made up of several elements competing for the user's attention: Google Ads (paid listings at the top of the page), the Local Pack (top 3 Google Maps listings), featured snippets (a boxed direct answer), People Also Ask (related questions), the organic results and the AI Overviews (answers generated by Google's AI).
The Local Pack is especially critical for law firms because 46% of Google searches carry local intent. Ranking in this Maps top 3 requires an optimized Google Business Profile, positive client reviews and consistent contact information across the web. The first organic result captures on average 39.6% of clicks, which makes position 1 fiercely competitive.
Since 2024, AI Overviews (formerly SGE) have been reshaping the legal SERP by displaying AI-generated answers right at the top of the page, pushing organic results further down and reducing click-through rates. This shift reinforces the importance of legal SEO combined with AEO and GEO to maintain firms' visibility in a rapidly changing search landscape.