Can a Louisiana Law Firm Ask Clients for Google Reviews?
Last updated: November 12, 2026 · By Kayce Sadler, Founder & CEO, Abode Marketing
Yes. Nothing I’ve found in Louisiana’s Rules of Professional Conduct prohibits asking a current or former client for an honest review, and Google’s own help pages suggest sending customers a review link or QR code. The limits come from Google’s policy and the advertising rules: don’t offer anything in exchange, don’t ask only the clients you expect to be happy, don’t have staff post reviews, and add a disclaimer when you republish a review that mentions results. For anything specific to your firm, check with LSBA Ethics Counsel.
Key takeaways
- Google bans incentives such as “payment, discounts, free goods and/or services” in exchange for reviews, and bans incentives to change or remove a review.
- Google also bans businesses that “selectively solicit positive reviews” or discourage negative ones, so pre-screening surveys that send only happy clients to Google are out.
- Louisiana Rule 7.2(c)(1)(D) requires a disclaimer such as “Results May Vary” when you publish a testimonial about past results. Rule 7.2(c)(1)(H) requires disclosing payment for any paid testimonial.
- Replying is where confidentiality comes in: ABA Formal Opinion 496 (2021) says a negative review alone doesn’t permit revealing client information.
- The FTC’s reviews rule (effective Oct. 21, 2024) allows generalized requests to all customers but prohibits incentives tied to a particular sentiment.
What do Louisiana’s rules actually say about reviews and testimonials?
The Louisiana Rules of Professional Conduct don’t use the words “online review.” They regulate testimonials inside the general ban on false, misleading or deceptive communications in Rule 7.2(c)(1). Three subparagraphs matter for reviews:
- (D) prohibits a “reference or testimonial to past successes or results obtained” without a disclaimer such as “Results May Vary.”
- (H) prohibits a “paid testimonial or endorsement, unless the fact of payment is disclosed.”
- (I) requires a disclaimer when a non-client portrays a client. The LSBA’s example is a “Non-Client Paid Actor” label.
The LSBA’s Handbook on Solicitation and Lawyer Advertising (Second Edition, November 2022) covers testimonials directly but doesn’t mention review sites. Here’s the practical line I draw. When a client posts a review on Google, that’s their own statement. Once your firm quotes it on your website, in an ad or in a social post, it’s your communication, and the rules apply. Websites are exempt from filing under Rule 7.8(g), but they still have to comply with the rules.
What does Google prohibit when you ask for reviews?
Google’s prohibited and restricted content policy for Maps lists the fake-engagement problems. Businesses may not offer incentives (“payment, discounts, free goods and/or services”), may not “discourage or prohibit negative reviews or selectively solicit positive reviews,” and may not set targets for staff to collect a certain number of reviews. Content written from a conflict of interest, including current or former employment, isn’t allowed either.
The positive side is in Google’s tips for getting reviews. Google suggests asking customers to visit a Google link or scan a QR code. It also says incentives offered to get a review, or to get one changed or removed, are “strictly prohibited.”
Is a “Were you happy with us?” survey before the Google link allowed?
Not under Google’s policy. A survey that sends satisfied clients to Google and everyone else to a private form is selectively soliciting positive reviews. The FTC’s Q&A on its Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule says the rule “does not contain a specific prohibition” against this kind of screening. It adds that the practice could still violate the FTC Act. Since Google already prohibits it, I’d leave it out of a law firm’s process completely.
Collecting private feedback is still a good idea. Just send the Google link to everyone, whether or not they fill out your survey.
When and how should a firm ask?
Ask once the matter is finished, after the settlement is disbursed or the case is closed, not while the client is still waiting on you. Send the same short message to every client, with a direct link. You can tell them it’s fine to keep it general and that they don’t need to share case details.
Two Louisiana points. A request sent only to existing or former clients is the kind of communication Rule 7.8(d) exempts from filing. And Rule 7.2(c)(13) bars giving “anything of value to a person for recommending the lawyer’s services,” which is one more reason a gift card or raffle entry tied to a review is a bad idea.
| What the firm does | Allowed? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Email every client at closing with the same review link | Yes | Google suggests links and QR codes; the FTC allows requests sent to all customers |
| Offer a gift card, discount or drawing entry for a review | No | Google bans incentives; also raises Rule 7.2(c)(1)(H) and 7.2(c)(13) issues |
| Send only clients with good outcomes to Google | No | Google bans selectively soliciting positive reviews |
| Have staff, family or vendors post reviews | No | Conflict of interest under Google policy; the FTC requires disclosure of insider reviews |
| Give staff a monthly review quota | No | Google lists staff review targets as prohibited |
| Quote a client review mentioning a settlement on your site | Yes, with a disclaimer | Rule 7.2(c)(1)(D) requires a disclaimer such as “Results May Vary” |
| Reply to a bad review with details about the case | No | Rule 1.6 confidentiality; ABA Formal Opinion 496 |
How do we reply to reviews without breaking confidentiality?
Rule 1.6 doesn’t stop applying because the client spoke first. ABA Formal Opinion 496 (January 2021) concluded that a negative online review alone doesn’t give a lawyer permission to reveal confidential information. It also said a public reply that discloses client information isn’t reasonably necessary. The opinion’s acceptable options include not responding, asking the site to remove the post, inviting the person to talk offline, saying your professional obligations prevent you from commenting, or saying the person was never a client if that’s true. ABA opinions aren’t binding in Louisiana, so check your reply approach with ethics counsel. Our post on how Louisiana firms can respond to negative reviews goes further.
Positive reviews need care too. “Thanks, it was a pleasure getting your settlement wrapped up” confirms that the reviewer was a client and what the matter was about. Keep replies to thanks without details.
What we’d check first
- Your review request template. Does it go to every client? Does it route anyone based on a rating? Is anything of value attached?
- Your existing replies. We’d read your past responses for anything that confirms a representation or mentions case details.
- Your reviews compared with the map pack. We’d compare your count, rating and how recent your reviews are with the three firms showing for your main practice area in your parish.
- Where reviews get republished. We’d look at your website, ads and social posts for review quotes about results that are missing a disclaimer.
- How AI tools summarize your reputation. We’d ask ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews about your firm and see which reviews they draw on.
Related reading: how Louisiana businesses get more Google reviews and whether reviews affect your ranking.
If you’d like a second set of eyes, our free visibility audit compares your review count, rating and how recent your reviews are with the map pack in your area, and checks your Google Business Profile. You’ll have something concrete to take to your ethics counsel when you set up a process.
More owner questions we’ve answered: Competitor Running Google Ads on Your Law Firm’s Name? What You Can Do · Why Was My Law Firm’s Google Business Profile Suspended? · Should Each Attorney or Doctor Have Their Own Google Business Profile?
Frequently asked questions
Can we ask a client for a review while their case is still open?
There’s no specific Louisiana rule against it, but I’d wait. A request in the middle of a case can feel like pressure from the person handling the client’s matter, and the client can’t fairly judge the work yet. A request after closing is cleaner for everyone.
Can we give clients a review link printed on a card or QR code at the office?
Yes. Google’s own help suggests a Google link or QR code. Hand it to every client the same way, so it isn’t only going to the clients who seem happy.
What if a client asks us to write the review for them?
Don’t. A review drafted by the firm isn’t the client’s own experience, and it creates the misleading-communication problems Rule 7.2(c)(1) is meant to prevent. Tell them a sentence or two in their own words is enough.
Do we need to file our review request emails with the LSBA?
A communication sent only to existing or former clients is listed among the exemptions in Rule 7.8(d). Exempt doesn’t mean unregulated, though. The content still has to comply with the rules. If you add case results or promotional language, ask Ethics Counsel.
Can we ask Google to remove a fake review about our firm?
Yes. Google’s help pages let business owners flag reviews they believe break its content policies. If the reviewer was never a client, ABA Formal Opinion 496 notes a lawyer may say so in a reply without revealing anything confidential.
Sources
- Google Maps Help: Prohibited and restricted content — Bans incentives, selective solicitation, discouraging negative reviews, staff review targets, conflict-of-interest content
- Google Business Profile Help: Tips to get more reviews — Ask via Google link or QR code; incentives strictly prohibited; reply guidance; flagging
- FTC: Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule Q&A — Effective Oct. 21, 2024; generalized solicitations OK; no specific gating ban but FTC Act risk; insider disclosure; sentiment-conditioned incentives prohibited
- Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board: Louisiana Rules of Professional Conduct — Rule 7.2(c)(1)(D), (H), (I); 7.2(c)(13); 7.8(d), 7.8(g); 1.6
- LSBA: Handbook on Solicitation and Lawyer Advertising in Louisiana (2nd ed., Nov. 2022) — Testimonial disclaimer, paid testimonial disclosure, Non-Client Paid Actor example; no review-site guidance
- Summary of ABA Formal Opinion 496 (Jan. 2021): Responding to online criticism — Negative review doesn’t trigger Rule 1.6 self-defense exception; permissible response options
