A law firm's website is today a shop window, a client acquisition channel and the first stage of case handling. In 2026, a website for a lawyer costs from 790–2,500 PLN net for a template business card site, through 2,500–7,000 PLN net for a custom firm design, to 10,000–30,000 PLN net for a dedicated service with a client portal and integrations. The good news: since 2023 legal advertising is allowed in Poland — advocates may use commercial information (since 26 May 2023), and legal counsels may inform about practising their profession (since 1 January 2023). The bad news: professional ethics set the limits, and the lawyer — not the agency — is responsible for the message.
Najważniejsze: A law firm website in 2026 costs from 790–2,500 PLN net (template) through 2,500–7,000 PLN net (custom design) to 10,000–30,000 PLN net (client portal and integrations); subscriptions with a website and SEO start at around 500 PLN net per month. Legal advertising has been allowed since 2023, but the codes of ethics list prohibited forms of communication (13 bans in the Advocates' Code, similar limits in the Legal Counsels' Code). Publishing rates is allowed, client reviews require consent, and commission-based client referrals are prohibited.
Can a law firm advertise? The legal state in 2026
A few years ago the answer was "no". Until 26 May 2023, §23 of the Polish Advocates' Code of Ethics opened with: "An advocate is bound by a ban on using advertising". That day the Polish Bar Council (NRA) adopted resolution No. 93/2023, granting advocates the right to use commercial information. Legal counsels (radcowie prawni) settled the matter earlier — resolution No. 1/2022 broadened their Code of Ethics, and since 1 January 2023 Art. 31 of the Code treats informing about practising the profession as a right of the legal counsel.
The reform followed the EU Services Directive 2006/123/EC, which obliges member states to remove blanket bans on commercial communication for regulated professions. After the self-governments' resolutions, the European Commission closed its infringement procedure against Poland.
In practice, a law firm may run a website, a legal blog, social media profiles, a Google Business Profile, a podcast, a YouTube channel and Google Ads campaigns. The 2026 guidance from the Warsaw Regional Chamber of Legal Counsels (OIRP) lists these forms explicitly, under the motto: "Inform — don't advertise". The limits have not disappeared — they changed shape. Promotion is a lawyer's right, bounded by the dignity of the profession and specific prohibitions.
How much does a law firm website cost in 2026?
The market for lawyer websites is broad — from templates costing a few hundred zlotys to dedicated systems with a client portal.
| Website model | Approximate cost | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Template business card site (profile, services, contact) | 790–2,500 PLN net | 1–2 weeks |
| Custom law firm design (blog, practice area pages) | 2,500–7,000 PLN net | 3–6 weeks |
| Dedicated service with a client portal and integrations | 10,000–30,000 PLN net | 2–4 months |
| Subscription (website + care + SEO) | from 500 PLN net per month | a few days |
- Add running costs: hosting (around 350 PLN per year), a domain (around 150 PLN per year) and technical care (from 150 PLN per month). Budget separately for content — practice-area copy, photos, blog materials. Content decides whether the site will win clients for years.
What drives the cost of a law firm website?
- Number of practice areas and pages — a firm covering family, criminal and commercial law needs separate, well-written sections for each area.
- Legal blog — expert content is the most effective client acquisition channel in law, but it requires regular writing and optimisation.
- Client portal — logins, case status, documents, online payments. That is an application project, not a website.
- Integrations — connecting to the firm's case management system, consultation calendar, e-signature and payments.
- Online payments — deposits and consultation fees via Przelewy24, PayU or Stripe.
- Content and photography — a professional portrait session for the lawyers and office interior photos build trust.
- SEO and ethics compliance — optimising content for local keywords plus an audit of the message against the codes of ethics.
If the client portal is meant to work like a full application — with document handling, case statuses and settlements — the budget approaches that of a custom web application, where projects start in the tens of thousands of zlotys.
What should a law firm website include?
A law firm website is not an ordinary service site — it combines information with trust-building, and in law trust is the most valuable currency.
- Lawyer profiles — name, professional title, practice areas, experience, education, publications. Factual content, no evaluative labels.
- Practice areas — separate pages for each specialisation, written in language the client understands, not legal jargon.
- How the firm works — what a first consultation looks like, how the firm communicates with clients, how billing works. This builds trust before the first contact.
- Pricing or fee rules — publishing rates is allowed (§23b of the Advocates' Code), and amounts must clearly state whether they include taxes, expenses and other charges.
- A legal blog — expert content answering real client questions. The Warsaw OIRP guidance lists blogs and SEO explicitly as allowed forms of informing.
- Contact with a safe form — with a clear note that the form must not be used to send information covered by professional secrecy or case details.
- Firm registration data — name, address, tax ID, the legal form of practice (sole practice, partnership).
- Client reviews — only with the client's consent; for legal counsels, reviews from criminal, fiscal, petty offence, family and guardianship cases are absolutely prohibited.
- Google Business Profile — hours, phone, photos, directions. The most common first contact with a firm in search.
- Legal layer — a privacy policy, data processing information, WCAG accessibility.
The foundations common to every industry — structure, speed, SEO, GDPR — are covered in our business websites guide.
Ethics in website copy — the bans in practice
This is the biggest difference between a law firm website and an ordinary company site. §23(3) of the Advocates' Code of Ethics lists thirteen prohibited forms of commercial information — including messages that offend dignity, breach professional secrecy, are comparative, untrue, invoke connections or influence, contain evaluative content, appeal to emotions, or create a probability of unjustified expectations about outcomes. Legal counsels face equivalent limits under Art. 32 of their Code.
An audit of sample headlines looks like this
- "Divorce lawyer Warsaw — book a consultation" — passes. Factual information about the service and contact.
- "Hourly rate from 300 PLN, billing agreed before engagement" — passes. Rates may be published if the information is unambiguous.
- "We win 95% of cases" — fails. Even the probability of creating outcome expectations breaches the code.
- "Outstanding specialists recommended by judges" — fails twice: evaluative content and invoking influence.
- "More effective than other firms" — fails. Comparative information is banned in both codes.
- "Protect your rights before the other side does" — fails. Appealing to emotions and pressure, standard marketing copywriting, is unacceptable for lawyers.
Three further rules worth remembering. First, labelling — commercial information must be clearly marked as coming from the advocate or legal counsel (Art. 31(4) of the Counsels' Code even presumes it — if a recipient can read a message as the firm's promotion, the rules treat it as informing). Second, responsibility — an advocate is also responsible for publications by an agency acting on their behalf, so working with an agency requires an approval procedure for every creative and a record of those approvals. Third, no commissions — accepting or passing benefits for referring a client is prohibited. This applies especially to "find a lawyer" services billed per acquired case.
Professional secrecy and GDPR on a law firm website
Professional secrecy is the foundation of the profession — and a hard prohibition in both codes. A firm's website must be designed so that a client does not accidentally disclose protected information before even becoming a client.
- Contact form with a warning — it must not encourage describing a case. The standard is a short question field plus a clear note not to send confidential information.
- Data minimisation — collect only what is needed for contact. Case details belong in a consultation, not a form.
- Privacy policy and consents — information about the data controller, purposes, retention periods and data subject rights.
- Technical security — an SSL certificate, encrypted connections, an updated system and backups. The rules are covered in our Laravel application security — OWASP Top 10 guide.
- Processing agreements — with hosting, mail and the systems that process the firm's client data.
- Accessibility (EAA) — if the site allows sending an enquiry or starting the process of concluding a contract, it is an e-commerce service covered since 28 June 2025 by the accessibility duty (WCAG 2.1 AA).
Client portal and online case handling
Modern firms move part of their service online — and this is where a website turns into an application. What is worth considering:
- Online consultation booking — a calendar with lawyer availability, in-person and video consultations.
- Client portal — logins, case status, documents, contact history. Clients stop calling to ask "what's happening with my case", and the firm cuts administrative work.
- Secure document exchange — sending and signing letters, e-signature integration.
- Online payments — deposits, consultation fees, invoices.
- Case management integration — synchronising cases, deadlines and settlements with the software the firm works on.
An example of such a system — a CRM application with a client portal, history and settlements — is described in our CRM application and client portal case study. We build dedicated portals in Laravel, designed for performance, and enquiry-handling automations in our AI automation service.
Law firm SEO — visibility in Google and AI search
SEO for a law firm website is allowed in both regimes — the Warsaw OIRP guidance lists it explicitly. In practice, firm visibility is built through two channels.
- Local and specialisation keywords — "divorce lawyer [city]", "employment lawyer [city]", "claims lawyer", "CHF mortgage firm". These are high-intent queries: the person searching needs a lawyer now.
- A legal blog — content answering client questions builds visibility for dozens of long-tail queries and positions the firm as an expert.
- Google Business Profile — reviews, photos and current hours. Map campaigns can promote the profile above free local results.
- Google Ads — cost-per-click rates in law are high ("lawyer Warsaw" around 4–5 PLN, "divorce lawyer Warsaw" around 6 PLN, "CHF mortgage firm" up to 16 PLN), so a campaign without a converting website burns budget. Website first, ads second.
- AI search — more and more people check a lawyer in ChatGPT or Perplexity before ever seeing an ad. What AI search "knows" about a firm is decided by the content layer: the website, consistent data and publications — not the ad budget.
How long does it take to build a law firm website?
| Model | Timeline |
|---|---|
| Template business card site | 1–2 weeks |
| Custom design with a blog | 3–6 weeks |
| Dedicated service with a client portal | 2–4 months |
The biggest timeline risk is content availability: practice-area descriptions, biographies, pricing and blog copy. Firms that prepare materials in parallel with design cut delivery time by up to half.
Most common mistakes when ordering a law firm website
- Copywriting with promises of outcomes — "high success rate", "guaranteed wins" lead straight to disciplinary liability.
- Evaluative and comparative content — "the best firm", "better than the competition" labels are banned in both codes.
- A form encouraging case descriptions — risking a breach of professional secrecy before a client relationship even exists.
- No approval procedure for agency content — the lawyer is responsible for agency publications, and in disciplinary proceedings they will have to explain them.
- Working with commission-based portals — commission for referring a client is prohibited.
- No pricing "because it's not allowed" — a myth: publishing rates is allowed and builds trust.
- No Google Business Profile or content — a client who cannot find the firm in search will find another one.
- A site that does not work on phones — most enquiries come from mobile devices, often in the evening.
Choosing the right vendor matters — check whether they understand the ethical limits of the legal profession and can write copy that informs rather than advertises. Read more on the about page and in the hire a Laravel developer service.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a law firm website cost in 2026?
From 790–2,500 PLN net for a template business card site, 2,500–7,000 PLN net for a custom design with a blog and practice-area pages, up to 10,000–30,000 PLN net for a dedicated service with a client portal and integrations. Subscriptions with a website and SEO start at around 500 PLN net per month.
Can a law firm advertise online in Poland?
Yes — since 2023. Advocates may use commercial information (Polish Bar Council resolution No. 93/2023 of 26 May 2023), and legal counsels may inform about practising their profession (since 1 January 2023). The limits are set by the prohibited-forms catalogues: §23 of the Advocates' Code of Ethics (13 banned forms of communication) and Art. 32 of the Legal Counsels' Code.
Can a lawyer publish a price list on their website?
Yes. §23b of the Advocates' Code of Ethics explicitly allows presenting fee rates and methods of calculation — with a requirement that the information clearly states whether the amount includes taxes, expenses and other charges. Legal counsels are bound by fairness and the ban on misleading information. A price list builds trust and filters mismatched clients.
Can client reviews be published on a law firm website?
For an advocate — yes, but only with the client's consent, after informing them about the form, content and context of the publication. For a legal counsel — with consent, and with an absolute ban on publishing reviews from criminal, fiscal, petty offence, family and guardianship cases, even if the client agrees.
What are the consequences of breaching ethics rules in law firm promotion?
Disciplinary liability before the professional self-government bodies. Liability cannot be shifted to a marketing agency — an advocate is responsible for commercial information published on their behalf, and a legal counsel must ensure the compliance of communication run on their behalf by other entities.
Can a law firm website have a contact form?
Yes, but designed carefully: without encouraging case descriptions, with a note that confidential information must not be sent, and with a minimal data scope. Case details belong in a consultation — this protects professional secrecy and the client's personal data.
What does a law firm client portal look like?
It is a logged-in area where the client checks case status, downloads and uploads documents, sees contact history and settlements. The portal reduces phone calls to the firm, gives clients a sense of control, and can integrate with the firm's case management system and e-signature.
How long does it take to build a law firm website?
A template business card site takes 1–2 weeks, a custom design with a blog 3–6 weeks, and a dedicated service with a client portal 2–4 months. The timeline depends mainly on how quickly content is delivered: practice-area descriptions, biographies and blog copy.
Sources and legal basis
- Polish Bar Council (NRA) resolution No. 93/2023 — changes to the Advocates' Code of Ethics on advertising
- Legal Counsels' Code of Ethics in force since 1 January 2023 (KIRP)
- Warsaw Regional Chamber of Legal Counsels (OIRP) — guidance on promoting a law firm
- EU Services Directive 2006/123/EC (EUR-Lex)
- GDPR — Regulation (EU) 2016/679 on data protection
- Directive (EU) 2019/882 — European Accessibility Act
- schema.org — LegalService structured data
- web.dev — Core Web Vitals
👉 Running a law firm? See how custom Laravel websites and client portals work in my offer — from UX/UI design and ethics-compliant copy, through the client portal and integrations, to SEO and post-launch care. Get in touch via the contact form or at kontakt@informatix.com.pl.
👉 Building the foundations too? Check the business websites guide and the CRM application and client portal case study.
📖 See also: Laravel performance optimization and Laravel application security — OWASP Top 10.