ChatGPT answers, unedited

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States

For a Chicago law firm, I’d put legal-industry specialization ahead of simply hiring a highly rated general web-design agency. The site needs to handle attorney bios, practice-area architecture, legal advertising considerations, accessibility, confidentiality/privacy, SEO, and—depending on your practice—client intake and lead tracking.

Based on what I found, these are the firms I’d put on your shortlist:

1. Builden Partners — best fit if you already have an internal marketing function

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 312-788-2695)

Builden is particularly interesting for a marketing director because it works exclusively with law firms and specifically manages website redesigns/rebrands from audit through launch. They emphasize stakeholder management, site architecture, SEO, governance, and coordinating the developer rather than simply selling you a website. Builden Partners

They're at 150 S Wacker Dr, so they're also very familiar with the downtown legal market.

buildenpartners.com

I'd interview them if: you want a sophisticated firm website and need someone who can manage partners, practice-group leaders, content, branding, and the outside development team.

2. AttorneySync — best for legal-specific digital marketing + website

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 773-828-8878)

AttorneySync is Chicago-based and works exclusively with law firms, with website design/development, content, SEO, and conversion-oriented marketing among its services. Their downtown office is at 211 W Wacker Dr.

attorneysync.com

I'd interview them if: the redesign needs to be closely connected to SEO, lead generation, analytics, and ongoing digital marketing.

3. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — strong full-service option

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 855-908-0588)

dNOVO has a Chicago office at 545 N McClurg Ct. and focuses heavily on law-firm marketing, combining website design with SEO, paid search, content, conversion optimization and video.

I'd interview them if: you're looking for one agency to handle the redesign and the broader digital acquisition program afterward.

4. Pattern 6 — worth considering for a modern, conversion-focused redesign

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 872-248-9856)

Pattern 6 is in the Merchandise Mart and specifically markets custom websites for lawyers, emphasizing speed, mobile UX, SEO readiness and conversion. Its content and service structure are unusually focused on legal marketing.

I'd interview them if: you want something more modern and digital-first rather than a conventional law-firm brochure site.

5. Market JD, Inc. — especially relevant to attorney marketing

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 312-970-9353)

Market JD has a 20 N Wacker Dr Chicago location and positions itself specifically around attorney/law-firm marketing. Its website work encompasses messaging, trust signals, intake, SEO and marketing analytics rather than just visual design.

I'd interview them if: the redesign is supposed to improve measurable business-development performance, not just appearance.

One non-legal-specialist I'd also put in the RFP: Orbit Media Studios

Orbit is a larger, established Chicago agency, and it has a dedicated law-firm website practice. Its approach is strategy-first, with SEO and conversion optimization incorporated into the redesign. It says projects can run 10–30+ weeks, which is more consistent with a substantial institutional website project than a quick template replacement. Orbit Media Studios

orbitmedia.com

I'd include them if: your firm is larger, the site has a substantial number of attorneys/practice groups, or you're looking for a more sophisticated UX/content strategy capability.

What I'd require in the RFP

For a professional law-firm redesign, I'd make vendors demonstrate these things rather than simply asking for "a modern website":

• Legal-industry experience: 3–5 comparable firms, preferably similar in size and practice mix.
• Content architecture: show how they'd structure practice areas, industries, attorneys, insights, publications, news and results/experience.
• Attorney bios: explain how they make 50–200+ attorney profiles useful for both prospects and search.
• SEO migration: 301 redirects, URL mapping, metadata, schema, canonicalization, preservation of rankings and analytics.
• Accessibility: WCAG-oriented design/development and an actual accessibility testing process.
• Privacy/security: forms, analytics, cookies, third-party scripts, hosting and data handling appropriate for a law firm.
• Legal advertising: demonstrate familiarity with Illinois attorney advertising requirements rather than treating the site like an ordinary corporate website.
• CMS governance: demonstrate how your marketing team will add attorneys, matters, insights and practice pages without developers.
• Partner approvals: ask exactly how they handle the inevitable 20-partner disagreement over homepage copy.
• Measurement: GA4, Search Console, CRM/intake integration and reporting—not just "traffic."
• AI/search: how they'll structure content and technical markup for modern search and AI-generated search experiences.
• Post-launch: maintenance, security, accessibility monitoring, SEO and response SLAs.

If I were running the selection

I'd probably send the RFP to Builden, AttorneySync, Orbit Media, dNOVO and Pattern 6. That gives you a useful mix: legal-marketing specialists, a sophisticated Chicago web agency, and firms with different approaches to strategy versus execution.

One important distinction: if you're an Am Law/midsize corporate firm rather than a consumer-facing practice, I'd weight the selection differently. The website should function much more like a sophisticated business-development and reputation platform than a lead-generation site. Builden and Orbit become particularly interesting in that scenario. Builden Partners Orbit Media Studios

If you tell me roughly how many attorneys you have, your practice areas, current CMS (if known), and whether this is primarily a rebrand, UX overhaul, or full rebuild, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and give you a vendor-comparison/RFP scorecard tailored to your firm.

4. Pattern 6 — worth considering for a modern, conversion-focused redesign

Pattern 6 is in the Merchandise Mart and specifically markets custom websites for lawyers, emphasizing speed, mobile UX, SEO readiness and conversion. Its content and service structure are unusually focused on legal marketing.

I'd interview them if: you want something more modern and digital-first rather than a conventional law-firm brochure site.

5. Market JD, Inc. — especially relevant to attorney marketing

Market JD has a 20 N Wacker Dr Chicago location and positions itself specifically around attorney/law-firm marketing. Its website work encompasses messaging, trust signals, intake, SEO and marketing analytics rather than just visual design.

I'd interview them if: the redesign is supposed to improve measurable business-development performance, not just appearance.

One non-legal-specialist I'd also put in the RFP: Orbit Media Studios

Orbit is a larger, established Chicago agency, and it has a dedicated law-firm website practice. Its approach is strategy-first, with SEO and conversion optimization incorporated into the redesign. It says projects can run 10–30+ weeks, which is more consistent with a substantial institutional website project than a quick template replacement.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 5235 Thatcher Rd, Downers Grove, IL 60515
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States

For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d put the most weight on demonstrated legal-industry experience, not just general web-design quality. A few Chicago-area firms that specifically position themselves around law firms are:

• AttorneySync — Chicago-based and exclusively focused on law firms. Their offering goes beyond design into SEO, intake, and marketing performance. They’re at 211 W. Wacker Dr.
• Market JD, Inc. — Has a downtown office at 20 N. Wacker and positions itself as a legal-focused agency, including website redesign, SEO, content, and analytics.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Chicago-based legal marketing agency offering website development alongside SEO, paid search, content, and conversion work.
• Builden Partners — At 150 S. Wacker, this is particularly interesting if you're an established/midsize-to-large firm and need strategic marketing leadership around the redesign rather than simply a website vendor. They specialize exclusively in law firms and manage redesigns from audit through launch.
• Pattern 6 — Chicago-based agency with a strong law-firm marketing focus and custom websites emphasizing speed, SEO, mobile usability, and conversion.

Another Chicago option worth putting on the RFP list is BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago, which focuses specifically on legal-industry marketing and web design.

What I'd require in the RFP

For a professional firm—not a typical consumer-facing personal-injury site—I would explicitly require:

• 5–10 recent law-firm redesign examples, preferably firms comparable to yours in size and practice areas.
• A strategy for practice-area architecture, attorney bios, thought leadership, publications, and credentials rather than simply lead-generation landing pages.
• Illinois attorney advertising/compliance review built into the workflow. The Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct contain specific requirements affecting lawyer advertising and communications.
• Accessibility, privacy/security, cookie/analytics handling, and strong technical performance.
• Preservation of your existing SEO equity during migration: redirects, metadata, URLs, structured data, sitemap, Search Console, etc.
• A CMS your marketing team can actually manage after launch.
• Clear ownership of the domain, CMS, source files, analytics accounts, content, photography, and other digital assets.
• Integration with whatever your firm uses for CRM/intake, analytics, email, and business-development reporting.
• A content strategy that makes the firm look like a credible legal institution, rather than a generic lead-generation operation.

For comparison, orbitmedia.com describes a strategy-first approach involving research, competitor analysis, custom design, SEO, conversion optimization, CMS training, and a typical 10–30+ week project. Orbit Media Studios dupontcreative.com specifically emphasizes legal-industry standards, confidentiality, compliance, and ongoing support. Dupont Creative

If I were building the shortlist, I'd interview 3–4 firms rather than automatically choosing one: AttorneySync, Market JD, Builden Partners, and Orbit Media give you a useful mix of legal specialization, Chicago presence, strategic marketing, and high-end web expertise. That's a comparison of their documented capabilities—not a ranking of which is best.

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (e.g. 10 attorneys vs. 100+) and your practice areas, I can narrow this to the most relevant 3 and compare portfolio, legal experience, services, likely project scope, and questions to ask each in the pitch.

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a specialist that understands legal marketing, attorney advertising constraints, practice-area architecture, accessibility, SEO, and—especially for a sophisticated firm—how to present attorneys and matters without making the site feel like a consumer lead-gen operation.

I’d put these firms on your shortlist:

• Builden Partners — 150 S Wacker Dr. Builden is particularly interesting if you’re a midsize or larger firm with an established marketing department. They work exclusively with law firms and explicitly handle website redesign/rebranding project leadership, so they can function as a strategic partner rather than simply a web-development vendor. Builden Partners
• AttorneySync — 211 W Wacker Dr. A very relevant option if you want a Chicago-based agency that focuses exclusively on law firms. Their work includes website design/development, content, and broader legal marketing, with an emphasis on firms retaining ownership of their digital assets.
• Market JD, Inc. — 20 N Wacker Dr. Another downtown option focused specifically on attorneys and law firms. Their website work is positioned around both sophisticated presentation and measurable intake/marketing performance.
• Pattern 6 — Merchandise Mart. Worth considering if you want a more modern, custom marketing/design approach while still working with a team that specifically markets to law firms.
• Orbit Media — Not a legal-only shop, but probably one of the stronger Chicago web agencies I'd interview for a high-end, sophisticated redesign. They have a dedicated legal website practice, custom design, research/strategy, SEO and conversion optimization, and are headquartered in Chicago. Orbit Media Studios

My recommendation

If you're a business/corporate, litigation, real estate, employment, or other sophisticated downtown firm, I'd interview Builden Partners, Orbit Media, and AttorneySync first.

The distinction is important:

I'd also avoid choosing purely on the basis of the prettiest portfolio. For a law firm redesign, I'd make the RFP test whether the agency understands Illinois attorney advertising rules, attorney bio/matter presentation, accessibility, privacy, SEO migration, redirects, analytics, CMS governance, security, and ownership of the site's code/content/domain.

One particularly good sign: Orbit's process explicitly starts with research and strategy rather than jumping straight into visual design, and they say their legal projects can include competitor analysis, content strategy, SEO and conversion optimization. Orbit Media Studios

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (e.g., 10, 50, 200+ attorneys), your practice areas, and whether the goal is primarily brand/reputation or generating new matters, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and give you a side-by-side comparison of likely fit, strengths, weaknesses, and what I would ask each one in the pitch meeting.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d prioritize an agency that understands legal marketing, attorney advertising considerations, intake/conversion, and SEO—not a general-purpose web-design shop.

My Chicago shortlist

• AttorneySync — My first call for a legal-specific digital partner. They’re based at 211 W. Wacker and work exclusively with law firms, with website design/development, content, SEO, and conversion-focused marketing. Their positioning also emphasizes keeping the firm's core digital assets under the firm's ownership. Clio
• Builden Partners — Particularly interesting if you're an established/midsize firm with an in-house marketing director. They're at 150 S. Wacker and specialize exclusively in law firms. Their role can include auditing the existing site, managing the redesign/rebrand process, and coordinating the many stakeholders involved in a sophisticated law-firm website.
• Market JD, Inc. — Another strong fit for an established Chicago practice. They're at 20 N. Wacker and specifically market themselves as being built around legal-industry marketing, including website redesigns, SEO, content, paid media and analytics.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Based at 545 N. McClurg Court. A good option if you want the redesign tied closely to a broader lead-generation program: website, SEO, PPC, LSAs, content and video.
• Pattern 6 — At the Merchandise Mart and focused heavily on law-firm growth marketing. Worth considering if you want a custom, modern site rather than a conventional legal-directory/template look.

Two national specialists I'd also put in the RFP

lawlytics.com is worth evaluating if you want a highly legal-specific platform. It is built exclusively for law firms and combines website design, hosting, security, content, SEO and reporting. Lawlytics Lawlytics

justia.com is another legal-specific option. Its platform combines law-firm web design with technical SEO, responsive design, intake forms/integrations, accessibility, security and analytics. Justia Justia

What I'd require in your RFP

Don't let vendors sell you primarily on how attractive their portfolio looks. For a law firm, I'd require them to address:

• Attorney advertising compliance and a workflow for partner/legal review of claims, testimonials, case results, awards, etc.
• Accessibility/WCAG and a documented accessibility approach.
• SEO migration: redirects, preservation of rankings, metadata, schema, URLs, Google Business Profile/local SEO and analytics.
• Practice-area architecture that can scale without creating a maze of thin SEO pages.
• Lead/intake tracking: calls, forms, chat, consultation requests and attribution back to marketing channels.
• CMS ownership and portability: your firm should own the domain, content, analytics, accounts and preferably have a clear exit path from the platform.
• Security/privacy: particularly important if contact forms can contain sensitive information.
• Performance: Core Web Vitals, mobile UX and page speed.
• Integration: CRM/intake, call tracking, marketing automation and whatever systems your firm already uses.
• Partner/attorney profiles: sophisticated bios that establish credibility without looking like generic lawyer-directory pages.
• Editorial governance: who writes the copy, who fact-checks it, and how attorneys approve it.
• Analytics: GA4/GTM/Search Console and a dashboard that lets your marketing team measure qualified leads rather than just traffic.

For context, Clio's recent review of law-firm web-design companies makes the same broader point: a legal website needs to function as both a professional credibility platform and a client-acquisition/intake channel, rather than simply being a prettier brochure. Clio

If this were my RFP, I'd interview AttorneySync, Builden Partners, and Market JD first, then include one of the national legal-specific platforms as a benchmark. That should give you a useful comparison between a Chicago legal agency, a strategic law-firm marketing consultancy, and a more platform-driven approach.

• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a generic web-design agency and shortlist firms that specifically understand legal marketing, attorney advertising considerations, practice-area content, SEO, intake/conversion, and the expectations of professional-services brands.

My Chicago shortlist

• OVC Lawyer Marketing — My first call for a consumer-facing firm. They’re Chicago-based and work exclusively with law firms, with website design/development, content, SEO, and conversion-focused marketing. Their office is at 211 W. Wacker.
• Market JD, Inc. — Particularly interesting if you want a legal-industry specialist that understands both marketing and website redesign. They position themselves as “built by lawyers, for lawyers” and specifically connect website design to intake, credibility, and measurable marketing performance. Their Chicago office is at 20 N. Wacker. Expertise
• Builden Partners — I'd seriously consider this if you're a midsize or larger firm and the redesign involves brand positioning, multiple stakeholders, practice groups, attorney bios, BD, and internal politics. They're exclusively focused on law firms and specifically offer website redesign/rebranding project leadership. They're at 150 S. Wacker. Builden Partners
• Pattern 6 — Worth including if you're looking for a modern, custom website plus growth marketing. They're downtown at Merchandise Mart and specifically market custom websites for lawyers that are fast, mobile-friendly, SEO-ready, and conversion-focused.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — A good candidate if you want the redesign to be part of a broader SEO/PPC/content/intake strategy, rather than treating the website as a standalone creative project.

One non-Chicago option I'd put on the RFP

Orbit Media is actually based in Chicago and deserves to be on the list even though it isn't exclusively a legal agency. Its legal practice specializes in strategy-first law-firm websites, SEO and conversion, and it reports hundreds of organizational launches. They estimate substantial redesigns can take 10–30+ weeks, which is useful context when you're planning an enterprise-level project. Orbit Media Studios

orbitmedia.com

What I'd do in your position

I'd send an RFP to AttorneySync, Market JD, Builden Partners, and Orbit Media.

But I'd make the RFP very specific. Don't ask simply for “a modern redesign.” Require them to address:

• Attorney advertising compliance and appropriate disclaimers
• ADA/accessibility and mobile performance
• SEO migration — URLs, redirects, metadata, schema, rankings and backlinks
• Practice-area architecture and attorney biographies
• Conversion paths for prospective clients
• Analytics and attribution down to qualified leads/intake, not just traffic
• CMS ownership and ease of updating by your marketing team
• Security/privacy around contact and intake information
• Integration with your CRM/intake system
• Content strategy and who actually writes the legal content
• AI/search visibility (Google AI results and other emerging search interfaces)
• Ownership of the domain, website, source files, analytics, content and CMS
• Post-launch support and SEO monitoring

One particularly important distinction: if you're an AmLaw/midsize business-law firm rather than a consumer-facing PI/family/criminal firm, I'd weight the shortlist differently. Builden and Orbit become much more interesting because the project is likely as much about firm positioning, practice-group UX, attorney profiles, recruiting, thought leadership and business development as it is about lead generation.

If you tell me roughly how many attorneys you have, your practice areas, and whether this is primarily a branding/credibility project or a client-acquisition project, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd interview and give you the questions I'd ask each one.

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d favor a specialist that understands legal marketing, attorney advertising rules, accessibility, SEO, intake/conversion, and the expectations of a professional-services brand—not a generic web-design shop.

My Chicago shortlist

• Builden Partners — Best fit for a sophisticated/midsize or large firm. They work exclusively with law firms and specifically manage website redesigns from audit through launch. Their Chicago office is on S. Wacker, so they’re particularly convenient for a downtown firm.
• AttorneySync — Strong legal-marketing specialist. Based at Wacker Drive and focused exclusively on law firms, with website, SEO, paid media, and lead-generation capabilities.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good full-service option. Their offering spans law-firm web design, SEO, PPC, content and conversion optimization. They have a Chicago office on McClurg Court.
• Market JD, Inc. — Worth interviewing if you want a marketing + website partner. Their Chicago office is at 20 N. Wacker, and they position themselves specifically around attorney/law-firm marketing and website rebuilds.
• Pattern 6 — Interesting boutique option. Chicago-based and heavily focused on law-firm growth, including custom websites, SEO, PPC and ROI measurement.

One non-Chicago option I'd also put in the RFP

orbitmedia.com — They're Chicago-based and have a particularly mature website-redesign process: research, competitor analysis, custom design, SEO/conversion strategy, accessibility, security, CMS training and ongoing support. For a brand-conscious established firm, I'd definitely include them in the pitch process. Orbit Media Studios

What I'd require in your RFP

Don't evaluate these firms primarily on how attractive their portfolio looks. Ask each one to demonstrate:

1. Actual law-firm redesigns comparable to your firm's size and practice mix.
2. How they handle Illinois attorney advertising/professional-responsibility requirements and what gets attorney/compliance sign-off.
3. ADA/accessibility strategy—not merely "we make it accessible."
4. How they'll preserve and improve your existing SEO authority during migration, including redirects, metadata, URLs, schema and analytics.
5. A plan for practice-area architecture and attorney bios that makes a sophisticated firm easy to navigate.
6. How they measure qualified inquiries, consultations and ultimately matters, rather than just traffic.
7. Who actually writes the copy and whether the agency understands legal-services positioning.
8. CMS ownership, hosting, security, backups and whether your firm owns the domain, content, analytics and website.
9. Their approach to AI search/Google's changing search results, without promising unrealistic rankings.
10. Three references from law firms that completed a redesign—not just a new website.

If I were running the selection process, I'd start with Builden Partners, Orbit Media, AttorneySync and Market JD, and give all four the same RFP. That should give you a useful comparison between a high-end law-firm marketing consultancy, a strong Chicago digital agency, and more specialized legal-marketing shops.

If you tell me roughly how big the firm is (solo / 10–50 lawyers / 50–200 / AmLaw-scale), your practice areas, and your approximate website budget, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 firms and compare them on legal expertise, design quality, SEO, likely cost, and fit for a downtown Chicago firm.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a specialist legal-marketing/web agency over a general Chicago web-design shop. You want someone who understands attorney advertising rules, legal-sector credibility, practice-area architecture, SEO, accessibility, and—especially for a redesign—how to preserve existing search equity.

My Chicago shortlist

• AttorneySync — My first call for a marketing-led redesign. They’re downtown at 211 W. Wacker and focus exclusively on law firms, with website design/development, content, SEO, and conversion-focused marketing. Their positioning around firms retaining ownership of domains, accounts, content, and data is also worth asking about. Dupont Creative
• Builden Partners — Very interesting if you're a sophisticated mid-size/large firm with an in-house marketing director. They work exclusively with law firms and specifically offer website-redesign project leadership, essentially acting as the strategic/project-management layer between the firm and the web-development team. That's potentially a particularly good fit for a marketing director who doesn't want a vendor simply handing over a pretty website.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good if you want the redesign tied directly to broader client acquisition. Their Chicago office is on N. McClurg Ct., and their legal-focused offering combines website design, SEO, PPC/LSAs, content, and conversion optimization.
• Market JD, Inc. — Worth interviewing for a legal-specific full-service engagement. Their Chicago office is at 20 N. Wacker, and they position themselves specifically around attorney/law-firm marketing, including website rebuilds, SEO, paid advertising, content, and analytics.
• Pattern 6 — Worth a creative/marketing comparison. They're in the Merchandise Mart and specialize heavily in law-firm growth marketing, including custom, mobile-friendly, SEO-ready websites rather than generic templates.

One non-Chicago specialist I'd also put in the RFP

Postali is worth considering if you're willing to use a national legal-marketing firm rather than insisting on a Chicago-based vendor. They specialize in law firms and describe a process that starts with the firm's practice areas, intake process, growth goals and ideal clients, rather than treating the project as purely visual design. Postali

What I'd require in your RFP

For a law-firm redesign, I'd make these non-negotiable:

1. Legal-industry experience — Ask for 3–5 recent firms similar to yours, preferably sophisticated Chicago firms rather than only solo/PI websites.
2. SEO migration plan — 301 redirects, URL mapping, metadata, schema, canonicalization, sitemap, Search Console monitoring, and preservation of existing rankings.
3. Illinois attorney-advertising awareness — The agency should identify potential compliance issues, but your firm should retain final legal/compliance approval.
4. Accessibility — WCAG-conscious design, keyboard navigation, contrast, alt text, forms, PDFs, etc.
5. Attorney/practice-area architecture — Especially important if you have dozens or hundreds of attorneys and multiple offices/practices.
6. CMS ownership — You should own the site, domain, analytics, Search Console, hosting/account credentials, content and design assets.
7. Performance — Core Web Vitals, mobile performance, security and sensible technical architecture.
8. Analytics/intake attribution — Calls, forms, consultation requests and ideally attribution back to campaigns/pages.
9. Content strategy — Don't let the agency simply pour your existing copy into a new template. The information architecture and messaging should be part of the redesign.
10. AI/search visibility — I'd specifically ask how they are approaching Google AI results and other AI-assisted legal research/search behavior in 2026.

For context, specialist agencies are explicitly building these capabilities into their legal offerings: Inherent, for example, combines law-firm web design with SEO and conversion strategy, while Marketing for Justice emphasizes mobile-first performance, CRO and SEO from the foundation rather than treating them as post-launch add-ons. Inherent, Inc. Marketing for Justice

If this were my project, I'd interview AttorneySync, Builden Partners, and one national specialist such as Postali first. I'd then give all three the same brief and make them walk you through their proposed information architecture, migration strategy, accessibility approach, CMS, analytics, timeline, and examples of comparable firms. That will tell you much more than their portfolios.

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (attorney count), practice areas, number of offices, and whether this is primarily a brand/UX redesign or also intended to drive new business, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and give you a side-by-side evaluation of likely fit, strengths, risks, and questions to ask each one.

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a generic Chicago web-design shop and shortlist firms that can demonstrate actual legal-industry experience—particularly with attorney advertising rules, attorney bios/practice-area architecture, SEO, accessibility, confidentiality/security, and the longer decision cycle typical of legal services.

My shortlist

• Builden Partners — My first call for an established firm. They focus exclusively on law firms and handle redesigns from initial audit through launch. Their Chicago office is at 150 S. Wacker Drive, and they emphasize managing the project so attorneys and firm leadership aren't consumed by the redesign. Builden Partners

buildenpartners.com

• Dupont Creative — Strong option if brand positioning + sophisticated design are priorities. They specifically market Chicago law-firm web design and cite experience with established firms, SEO, custom WordPress development, confidentiality, and legal-industry requirements. Dupont Creative

dupontcreative.com

• Inherent — Worth considering if you want the redesign tied closely to SEO, lead generation and ongoing digital marketing rather than treating the website as an isolated project. They state they have 30+ years of law-firm website/branding experience and specifically serve the Chicago market. Inherent, Inc.

inherent.com

• CaseOrbit — Interesting if search visibility and measurable intake are major goals. They're Chicago-focused and explicitly address ISBA advertising rules, ADA accessibility, privacy, local SEO, intake tracking and conversion optimization. I'd want to scrutinize their portfolio and references before putting them on the same footing as the more established options above. CaseOrbit

caseorbit.co

What I'd do in your position

I'd send an RFP to Builden, Dupont Creative, and Inherent and make them compete on the same brief.

For a professional law firm, I'd require the proposal to address:

1. Positioning: How will the site communicate why your firm is different from competing Chicago firms?
2. Practice-area architecture: Clear paths for sophisticated clients to find relevant attorneys, matters, industries and capabilities.
3. Attorney profiles: Bios that establish authority without becoming enormous blocks of text.
4. SEO migration: Preservation/redirection of existing rankings, URLs, metadata and backlinks—not simply launching a prettier site.
5. Accessibility: WCAG-conscious design and development.
6. Legal advertising compliance: Have them explain specifically how they handle Illinois attorney advertising requirements and disclaimers.
7. Security/privacy: Hosting, forms, analytics, cookies, third-party integrations and protection of potentially sensitive inquiries.
8. CMS ownership: Make sure your marketing team can actually update attorneys, practices, news and content without calling the agency for every change.
9. Analytics: GA4/search-console/conversion tracking and meaningful reporting—not just pageviews.
10. Post-launch support: Who fixes problems six months after launch, and what does it cost?

One important distinction: if you're a large corporate/business law firm rather than a consumer-facing practice, I'd weight sophisticated brand positioning, recruiting, thought leadership, attorney/practice navigation and reputation much more heavily than the "get more leads" approach some legal marketing agencies emphasize.

If you tell me roughly how many attorneys you have, your practice areas, your current website, and whether the goal is primarily brand/reputation, business development, recruiting, or all three, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 agencies and compare them on portfolio, legal experience, likely fit, and estimated project tier.

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 5235 Thatcher Rd, Downers Grove, IL 60515

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a firm that specializes in legal marketing rather than a general Chicago web-design shop. Legal websites have unusual requirements around attorney advertising, practice-area positioning, disclaimers, accessibility, SEO, attorney bios, lead intake, and preserving search equity during a redesign.

Based on what I found, I’d put these on your shortlist:

My top 4

• Builden Partners — Best fit for a sophisticated/midsize or AmLaw-style firm. They work exclusively with law firms and specifically manage website redesigns from audit through launch. They’re at 150 S. Wacker, so they're particularly convenient for a downtown firm. Their approach is more strategic/project-management oriented than simply "we build websites." Builden Partners Builden Partners
• AttorneySync — Best if you want website + ongoing legal digital marketing. They're Chicago-based and exclusively focused on law firms, with website development, content, SEO and conversion-oriented marketing.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good integrated option. Their Chicago office focuses heavily on law firms and combines website redesign, SEO, paid advertising, branding and conversion optimization.
• Pattern 6 — Worth considering if design/UX is a major priority. They're downtown at Merchandise Mart and specifically market custom, fast, mobile-friendly, SEO-ready websites for law firms rather than generic business websites.

I'd also take a serious look at Hype Legal if you want a particularly polished brand/design approach. Their portfolio includes a Chicago business/injury law firm redesign, where they emphasize a more sophisticated, user-focused presentation of the firm's expertise. Hype Legal

One important distinction

If you're a large corporate/business law firm, I would start with Builden rather than a consumer-law lead-generation agency. Builden explicitly works with AmLaw and midsize firms and understands the internal politics and complexity of law-firm marketing projects. Builden Partners

If you're a consumer-facing firm—PI, family, criminal, immigration, etc.—I'd put AttorneySync, dNOVO, and Pattern 6 higher because their offerings lean more heavily toward lead generation, SEO and conversion.

What I'd require in the RFP

Don't just ask agencies for "a new website." I'd make these requirements explicit:

• Experience with law firms comparable to yours, not just attorneys generally.
• 5–10 recent legal website redesigns you can actually review.
• A plan for 301 redirects and preservation of existing SEO equity.
• Technical SEO, schema, Core Web Vitals and mobile performance.
• WCAG/accessibility considerations.
• Attorney/practice-area information architecture.
• Legal advertising/ethics review and appropriate disclaimers.
• CRM, analytics, call tracking and consultation-form integration.
• CMS ownership and full ownership of your domain, content, analytics and website data.
• Clear process for attorney/partner approvals.
• Content strategy—not just a pretty new design.
• A post-launch optimization plan.

One Chicago-specific alternative worth knowing about is Market JD, Inc.. They position themselves as a legal-marketing specialist and have a downtown office at 20 N. Wacker; their offering spans website redesign, SEO, paid advertising, content and analytics.

If I were running your vendor selection, I'd invite Builden, AttorneySync, and one design-heavy shop such as Pattern 6 to pitch. That gives you three substantially different approaches to compare rather than three agencies selling essentially the same service.

If you tell me (1) your approximate firm size, (2) practice areas, (3) whether the goal is primarily branding/reputation or lead generation, and (4) your rough website budget, I can narrow this to the best 3 agencies and give you a side-by-side evaluation and questions to ask each in the pitch.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Legal Web Solutions LLC - 815 Slaters Ln, Alexandria, VA 22314, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I would not hire a generic Chicago web-design shop. I’d shortlist firms that specifically understand attorney advertising, legal-client UX, SEO, accessibility, confidentiality/privacy considerations, and the realities of Illinois legal marketing.

My Chicago shortlist

• AttorneySync — My first call. They’re based at 211 W. Wacker and focus exclusively on law firms. Their offering includes website design/development, content, and legal marketing, which makes them a strong fit if you want someone who understands the industry rather than simply designing a pretty site.
• Market JD, Inc. — Strong choice for a sophisticated, marketing-driven redesign. They’re at 20 N. Wacker and position themselves as a legal-industry marketing firm, with website rebuilds, SEO, paid search, content, and analytics. This is particularly attractive if the redesign needs to tie into a broader business-development strategy.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good option if you want an integrated marketing partner. Their Chicago office is on McClurg Court, and they combine website redesign with SEO, advertising, reputation management, and branding.
• Pattern 6 — Worth interviewing for a more growth-oriented approach. They're in the Merchandise Mart and specifically market web design and growth marketing to law firms, with an emphasis on custom, fast, mobile-friendly, conversion-oriented sites.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Worth including as an SEO-heavy alternative. They're at 875 N. Michigan and focus on legal marketing, including website optimization/redesign, local SEO, content, and Google Business Profile work.

There are also specialized national firms worth considering. Inherent, for example, says it has 30+ years of law-firm website/branding experience and works across practice areas including corporate law. Inherent, Inc. Dupont Creative specifically markets its Chicago law-firm practice around sophisticated branding, confidentiality, SEO and established-firm needs. Dupont Creative

What I'd require in the RFP

For a professional firm—not a small consumer practice—I would make the agency demonstrate these things before hiring them:

1. Three comparable law-firm redesigns, preferably firms with similar size, practice areas, and reputation.
2. Attorney advertising compliance. Your lawyers should retain final approval over claims, testimonials, results statements, disclaimers, etc. Legal marketing has jurisdiction-specific ethical requirements. Clio
3. Accessibility/WCAG strategy, not just a claim that the site is "ADA compliant."
4. SEO migration plan so the redesign doesn't destroy existing rankings—301 redirects, metadata, schema, URLs, analytics, Search Console, etc.
5. CMS ownership. Your firm should own the domain, hosting/account credentials, CMS, analytics, content and design assets.
6. Partner/practice-area UX. A sophisticated firm needs architecture that makes dozens of attorneys, practices, industries, offices and thought-leadership resources easy to navigate.
7. Lead/intake integration. Forms, phone tracking, CRM/intake systems and analytics should be designed into the site rather than bolted on afterward.
8. Performance. Mobile speed/Core Web Vitals should be contractual deliverables, not merely something they promise to optimize.
9. Security and privacy. Particularly important if forms or other website functionality could involve confidential prospective-client information.
10. A content strategy. Don't let the agency simply copy your existing website into a new design. The redesign should reconsider positioning, messaging, practice-area pages, attorney bios and conversion paths.

One important distinction: don't evaluate agencies primarily on how beautiful their portfolio looks. Clio's current guidance emphasizes understanding who the firm's prospective clients are, how they use the site, and using analytics to make design decisions. Clio

If I were running your selection process

I'd invite AttorneySync, Market JD, and Dupont Creative to pitch.

I'd use AttorneySync as the benchmark for legal-industry specialization, Market JD for integrated marketing/SEO, and Dupont if you're looking for a more polished established-firm brand/UX treatment.

Then I'd give all three the same 2–3 page RFP and ask them to redesign one representative practice-area page plus the homepage concept. That will tell you considerably more than their sales presentations.

If you tell me (a) roughly how many attorneys you have, (b) your practice areas, (c) whether you're AmLaw/BigLaw or midsize/boutique, and (d) your approximate redesign budget, I can narrow this to 3–5 agencies and compare them on legal expertise, portfolio quality, likely budget, SEO capability, and fit for a downtown Chicago firm.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Flamingo Agency - 3752 N Southport Ave, Chicago, IL 60613, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a generalist web-design shop and shortlist firms that specifically understand legal marketing, attorney advertising rules, accessibility, confidentiality, SEO, and lead/intake conversion.

My Chicago shortlist

• AttorneySync — My first call. They’re based at 211 W. Wacker and focus exclusively on law firms. Their offering includes website design/development, content, SEO and conversion-focused marketing, with an emphasis on the firm retaining ownership of its digital assets. This is particularly attractive if you want the redesign tied to a broader marketing strategy.
• Market JD, Inc. — Another strong candidate, especially if you want website + SEO + analytics + lead generation rather than simply a prettier site. Their Chicago office is at 20 N. Wacker, and they position themselves as a legal-industry specialist.
• Builden Partners — Worth considering if you're a mid-size or larger firm with an internal marketing department. They're at 150 S. Wacker and specialize exclusively in law firms; importantly, they describe themselves as managing website redesigns from audit through launch, rather than simply functioning as a web developer.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — A good option if the redesign is part of a larger brand/marketing overhaul, with website, SEO, advertising and reputation management under one roof. Their Chicago office is at 545 N. McClurg Ct.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Legal-focused and conveniently located downtown at 875 N. Michigan. I'd put them on the RFP list if SEO and ongoing search visibility are major objectives of the redesign.

One I would look at outside the traditional agency model

Dupont Creative has a specific Chicago law-firm web-design practice and talks about the issues I'd expect a sophisticated firm to care about: confidentiality, compliance, ongoing support, attorney positioning and practice-area SEO. They also have experience with established firms and lateral/new-firm launches. Dupont Creative

dupontcreative.com

What I'd put in your RFP

Don't let agencies compete merely on visual design. I'd require each finalist to address:

1. Illinois attorney advertising compliance — including who reviews claims, testimonials, disclaimers and practice-area content before publication. Legal websites have jurisdiction-specific ethical obligations. Clio
2. Accessibility/WCAG — with a documented accessibility process rather than a checkbox or accessibility widget.
3. SEO preservation during the redesign — URL mapping, redirects, metadata, structured data, Google Search Console, existing rankings and backlinks.
4. Practice-area architecture — particularly important if you're a multi-practice firm.
5. Attorney bios and thought leadership — these should be treated as conversion/authority assets, not boilerplate biographies.
6. CMS ownership and portability — your firm should own the domain, hosting/account credentials, content, analytics and website.
7. Security and confidentiality — especially if forms, chat, CRM integrations or client-related information are involved.
8. Analytics tied to business outcomes — calls, qualified inquiries, consultations and ultimately matters, rather than just pageviews.
9. A genuine redesign strategy — they should audit the current site, competitors, analytics and search performance before showing you a homepage mockup.

If I were running the selection

I'd probably invite AttorneySync, Builden Partners, Market JD and Dupont Creative to pitch.

That gives you four somewhat different approaches: specialized legal marketing, high-level law-firm marketing/project management, integrated legal lead generation, and sophisticated creative/web design.

And I would not choose based on the prettiest homepage. For an established downtown firm, the biggest opportunity is usually translating the firm's reputation and expertise into a digital experience that feels equally credible while improving discoverability and qualified intake.

If you tell me the firm's approximate size, practice areas, current website, and whether this is primarily a branding exercise or a lead-generation exercise, I can narrow this to the 2–3 agencies I'd actually interview and give you a comparison/RFP scorecard.

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Twenty-Six & Co. | A Creative Agency - 26 City Hall Pl, Plattsburgh, NY 12901, United States
• Boire Benner Group - 121 Bridge St #201, Plattsburgh, NY 12901, United States
• Growtrends Marketing Agency - 8 Trafalgar Dr, Plattsburgh, NY 12901, United States
• Accelerate Now Law Firm Marketing - 135 Linwood Ave, Buffalo, NY 14209, United States
• Law Firm Sites - 3200 W Club House Dr Ste 250, Lehi, UT 84048, United States
• Great Jakes Marketing Company - 41 E 11th St 11th floor, New York, NY 10003, United States
• Law Firm Marketing Pros - 250 Central Blvd STE 100A, Jupiter, FL 33458, United States
• Law Firm Web Sites - 16 W District Rd, Unionville, CT 06085, United States
• Advokate, LLC - 333 Glen St Ste 201, Glens Falls, NY 12801, United States
• icXlegal - 320 Love Ln Ste b, Mattituck, NY 11952, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a firm that specializes in legal websites or has a substantial law-firm portfolio, rather than a general Chicago web-design shop. Legal sites have unusual requirements around attorney bios, practice-area architecture, advertising/ethics considerations, accessibility, SEO, lead intake, and content governance. Clio specifically recommends vetting developers for SEO, mobile responsiveness, ownership of the site/domain, ongoing support, and jurisdiction-specific legal-marketing compliance. Clio

My Chicago shortlist

• Builden Partners — My first call for an established/midsize-to-large firm. They're specifically experienced with law-firm redesigns and rebrands, and their Chicago office is at 150 S. Wacker. Their positioning is less "make us a pretty website" and more strategic firm marketing, which is what I'd want for a sophisticated legal brand. Builden Partners
• Dupont Creative — A strong option if you want a custom, polished site with SEO and ownership/control. They explicitly specialize in Chicago law-firm web design, use custom WordPress builds, and say development/support is handled in-house. Dupont Creative dupontcreative.com
• Inherent — Worth interviewing if the redesign is part of a larger digital-marketing strategy. They report 30+ years of law-firm website/branding experience and specifically target Chicago's competitive legal market. Inherent
• Warhol + West — A good candidate if brand presentation and modern design are particularly important. They specifically build websites for Chicago law firms, from solo practices through larger firms, with SEO incorporated into the work. Website Design Chicago | warhol + west
• Blacksmith — I'd include them if you're open to a national agency rather than strictly Chicago-local. They specifically work with law firms and mention Chicago experience, legal CRM integrations, multi-office structures, content, SEO, and comprehensive redesigns. Blacksmith

There are also specialist legal agencies such as Attorney Web Lab and Attorney Website Design Chicago, but for a downtown firm that sounds established, I'd initially prioritize the more sophisticated agency options above rather than choosing solely because an agency says "we build websites for lawyers." RATUTOGEL Attorney Web Lab

What I'd put in your RFP

I'd make the agencies compete on these criteria, not just visual design:

1. Demonstrated law-firm work — preferably firms comparable to yours in size, practice mix, and market.
2. Information architecture — practice areas, industries, attorney bios, offices, insights/publications, representative matters, etc.
3. Illinois advertising/ethics awareness — your attorneys should have final approval over claims, testimonials, results, disclaimers, and other potentially regulated content.
4. Accessibility — WCAG-conscious design and development from the beginning, rather than an accessibility overlay bolted on afterward.
5. SEO migration — preservation/mapping of existing URLs, redirects, metadata, structured data, rankings, Google Business Profile strategy, and technical SEO.
6. Lead/intake integration — forms, phone tracking, CRM, Clio/Salesforce/HubSpot or whatever your firm uses.
7. CMS ownership — you should control the domain, hosting, CMS, analytics, and content rather than being trapped in an agency's proprietary platform.
8. Security/privacy — particularly important if forms collect information from prospective clients.
9. Attorney-bio/content workflow — your marketing team should be able to make routine updates without calling a developer.
10. Post-launch support — security updates, analytics, SEO monitoring, accessibility, backups, and ongoing improvements.

I'd also ask each agency to show you three live law-firm sites they built 2+ years ago, not just their newest award-winning launches. That tells you much more about whether they actually maintain sites well.

If I were running the selection

I'd probably invite Builden Partners, Dupont Creative, and Inherent to pitch, then add one national legal-specialist agency as a benchmark. That gives you three different approaches rather than getting five essentially identical proposals.

And I would not choose based on the mockup alone. A gorgeous homepage can conceal poor information architecture, a disastrous SEO migration, inaccessible components, weak intake conversion, or an unmanageable CMS.

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (e.g. 10 attorneys vs. 100+), your practice areas, and whether the goal is primarily brand/reputation or generating new business, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and compare them on likely fit, legal-industry experience, design quality, SEO, and approximate budget tier.

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d favor a legal-industry specialist over a general web-design agency. The redesign needs to balance sophisticated branding with attorney advertising rules, accessibility, SEO, intake/conversion, and the expectations of sophisticated legal clients.

My Chicago shortlist

• Builden Partners — My first call for a sophisticated/mid-size or large firm. They work exclusively with law firms and specifically manage website redesigns from audit through launch. Their Chicago office is at 150 S Wacker. Their positioning is particularly strong if you want someone to manage the project so attorneys and firm leadership aren't buried in web-project details. Builden Partners
• AttorneySync — Strong choice if the redesign needs to drive measurable business development. They're Chicago-based and exclusively focused on law firms, with website development, content, and digital marketing capabilities. This looks particularly appropriate if SEO, lead generation, and intake are important alongside the visual redesign.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good integrated marketing option. They combine legal website design with SEO, paid advertising, reputation/brand work, and conversion optimization. I'd consider them if the website is part of a broader client-acquisition initiative.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Worth including if SEO is a major objective. They're focused on legal marketing and offer website design/optimization alongside local SEO, content, and search marketing.
• Pattern 6 — Interesting option for a modern, conversion-oriented site. They're Chicago-based and have a strong law-firm marketing orientation, including custom websites, SEO, and performance marketing.

One distinction I'd make

If you're a downtown business/corporate law firm, AmLaw-type firm, litigation boutique, or established midsize firm, I'd put Builden Partners and AttorneySync at the top of the interview list. Builden's exclusive law-firm focus and project-management orientation are particularly compelling for a substantial redesign. Builden Partners

If you're a consumer-facing practice where organic search and lead generation are the primary objectives, I'd put AttorneySync, dNOVO, and BSPE into the mix.

I'd also take a look at Marketing for Justice. They explicitly build custom law-firm sites around conversion optimization, mobile performance, SEO, and Core Web Vitals rather than treating the project as purely a visual redesign. Marketing for Justice

What I'd require in the RFP

Don't simply ask agencies, "Can you redesign our website?" I'd ask each candidate to demonstrate:

1. Three comparable law-firm redesigns — ideally firms with similar size, practice areas, and clientele.
2. Their approach to attorney advertising compliance — including who is responsible for reviewing claims, testimonials, results, disclaimers, and jurisdiction-specific requirements.
3. Accessibility/WCAG strategy — not merely an accessibility plugin.
4. SEO migration plan — preservation/redirects of existing URLs, metadata, backlinks, rankings, structured data, analytics, and Google Business Profile.
5. Information architecture — how they'll organize practice areas, attorneys, industries, offices, insights, representative matters, etc.
6. Content strategy — who writes/revises the copy and how much attorney review they'll require.
7. CMS ownership — your firm should retain control of the domain, hosting, CMS, analytics, Search Console, and underlying content/assets.
8. Performance metrics — especially qualified inquiries, not just page views.
9. Post-launch support — security, updates, SEO, accessibility, analytics, and ongoing content.
10. AI/search readiness — how they structure authoritative legal content for modern search and AI-generated answers without making dubious "AI SEO" promises.

One important caveat: I wouldn't take an agency's claim that its sites are "bar compliant" at face value. Your firm's counsel/compliance team should have final approval of advertising content and disclosures.

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (e.g., 10, 50, 200+ attorneys), your primary practice areas, and whether the goal is primarily prestige/branding or generating new matters, I can narrow this to the 3 firms I'd actually invite to pitch, including what I would ask each one and a realistic budget range.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• AttorneySync - 400 N May St, Ste 301, Chicago, IL 60642
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 5235 Thatcher Rd, Downers Grove, IL 60515

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a general-purpose web design shop and shortlist agencies that have a demonstrable law-firm portfolio, understand attorney advertising rules, and can handle SEO/intake—not just aesthetics.

My Chicago shortlist

1. AttorneySync — strongest overall fit

• Chicago-based and focused specifically on law firms.
• Website design/development, content, SEO, and conversion strategy.
• Particularly attractive if you want the redesign tied to measurable lead generation rather than simply a visual refresh.
• Their Chicago office is at 211 W. Wacker Drive.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good full-service option

• Chicago office and strong legal-marketing orientation.
• Combines website redesign with SEO, paid search, reputation and branding.
• Worth considering if you want one agency responsible for the broader digital strategy rather than just the website.
• Market JD, Inc. — worth an RFP

• Located on Wacker Drive and focused specifically on attorney/law-firm marketing.
• Website work emphasizes mobile experience, branding, conversion paths and intake.
• Potentially a particularly good fit for an established firm that needs a sophisticated professional-services presence.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — legal-specialist alternative

• Based at 875 N. Michigan Avenue.
• Focuses on legal marketing, website redesign, SEO and lead generation.
• Pattern 6 — interesting if growth/SEO is important

• Chicago-based, with explicit law-firm marketing expertise.
• Their web work emphasizes custom design, speed, mobile performance, SEO and conversion.

One I'd put on the RFP despite not being Chicago-based

Builden Partners is worth a look if you're a larger or mid-size firm where the project involves positioning, brand refinement, content architecture and stakeholder management, not merely rebuilding pages. They specifically work on law-firm redesigns and have a Chicago office at 150 S. Wacker Drive. Builden Partners

What I would require in the RFP

This is important: don't evaluate these firms primarily on their mockups. Your agency should be able to demonstrate experience with:

• Attorney advertising/ethics requirements, including Illinois-specific review.
• Practice-area and attorney bio architecture.
• SEO migration without losing existing rankings.
• Technical SEO, schema and Core Web Vitals.
• Accessibility, particularly WCAG.
• Secure contact/intake forms and appropriate handling of prospective-client information.
• Analytics and conversion tracking for calls, forms and consultations.
• CRM/intake integrations if you use Clio, Salesforce, HubSpot, etc.
• Content strategy that establishes attorney expertise without making problematic claims.
• Ownership of your domain, website, content, analytics accounts and other digital assets.

Legal websites have some unusual compliance considerations. For example, testimonials and other marketing claims can trigger jurisdiction-specific obligations, so I'd insist that the agency explain exactly how its process handles attorney advertising compliance rather than simply saying "we're legal-industry experts." Clio

My recommendation

If I were your marketing director, I'd invite AttorneySync, Builden Partners, and Market JD to pitch, with dNOVO as a fourth proposal if you also want an ongoing SEO/PPC/reputation partner.

I'd make them all respond to the same RFP and score them on strategy, legal-industry experience, UX, SEO migration, compliance process, technical quality, project management, and total cost of ownership.

If you tell me (1) your firm's approximate size, (2) practice areas, (3) current website URL, and (4) rough redesign budget, I can narrow this to the 2–3 agencies I'd actually hire and give you a side-by-side evaluation.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD - 3400 Dundee Rd, Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• SEOLEVELUP Website Design SEO Company Chicago - 355 N Laflin St Ste 101C, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• AttorneySync - 400 N May St, Ste 301, Chicago, IL 60642

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a legal-industry specialist over a general web-design agency. Your redesign needs to balance brand sophistication with attorney-advertising rules, confidentiality/intake issues, accessibility, SEO, and the way prospective clients actually evaluate lawyers online. The ABA specifically flags website inquiries, misleading information, and inadvertent prospective-client relationships as issues firms should consider. Brba American Bar Association

My Chicago shortlist

• AttorneySync — My first call if you're a consumer-facing firm. They're Chicago-based, focus exclusively on law firms, and combine website development with SEO, paid search, analytics, and broader legal marketing. Their downtown office is at 211 W Wacker Dr.
• Market JD, Inc. — Worth interviewing for a sophisticated redesign + ongoing marketing. They're specifically focused on attorneys/law firms and emphasize mobile-optimized websites, intake-oriented user journeys, SEO and integrated marketing. Their Chicago office is at 20 N Wacker.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good option if you want design + lead generation. Their Chicago operation specializes in law-firm marketing, including website redesign, SEO, paid advertising, branding and conversion optimization.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Another legal-specific option located at 875 N Michigan. Their focus is attorney/law-firm marketing and web design.
• OVC Lawyer Marketing — Based in the Chicago suburbs but serves law firms nationally. More appealing if you want the website tied closely to ongoing SEO, PPC, content and lead-generation work.

There's also a particularly relevant specialist, dupontcreative.com, which specifically discusses established firms, confidentiality, compliance, SEO and custom WordPress development. Another specialist, milemarkmedia.com, focuses exclusively on law firms and Illinois/Chicago legal-market considerations.

Who I'd interview first

For a downtown Chicago firm with an established brand, I'd probably start with:

1. AttorneySync — strongest fit if business development/lead generation is a major objective.
2. Market JD — strong candidate if you want a sophisticated legal-marketing partner rather than just a website vendor.
3. Dupont Creative — particularly interesting if this is a higher-end brand + website redesign rather than primarily a lead-generation project.

One caveat: if you're an AmLaw/large midsize firm serving sophisticated corporate clients, I'd broaden the search beyond consumer-law website specialists. In that case, a firm such as buildenpartners.com may be more appropriate because it works specifically with AmLaw and midsize firms on marketing strategy, business development, PR and website redesign.

What I'd put in your RFP

Don't ask agencies merely for "a modern website." I'd require them to demonstrate:

• Legal-industry experience: 3–5 comparable firms they've redesigned, ideally in Chicago.
• Illinois advertising compliance: explain their process for attorney advertising claims, testimonials, case results, disclaimers, etc.
• Confidentiality/intake: how contact forms, chat, consultation requests and analytics are designed to avoid encouraging inappropriate disclosure of sensitive information.
• Accessibility: WCAG-conscious design and development.
• SEO migration: preservation/redirection of existing URLs, rankings, backlinks and metadata.
• Practice-area architecture: especially if you have multiple departments/practice groups.
• Attorney bios: designed for credibility and business development, not just résumé pages.
• CMS ownership: your firm should own the site, domain, content and analytics—not be trapped in the agency's proprietary platform.
• Performance: Core Web Vitals, mobile performance and technical SEO.
• Measurement: calls, consultation requests, qualified leads and ultimately matters—not merely pageviews.
• Editorial governance: who reviews legal content before publication and how attorney approval works.

I'd also ask each finalist: "Show me a law-firm website you launched that materially improved the firm's business-development results, and show me what changed." That question will separate genuine legal-marketing expertise from agencies that simply have attractive portfolios.

If you tell me (1) approximate firm size, (2) practice areas, (3) whether you're primarily B2B/corporate or consumer-facing, and (4) rough redesign budget, I can narrow this to 3 firms I'd actually put on your RFP list, including what I'd expect each to charge and which one I'd pick.

What I'd put in your RFP

Don't ask agencies merely for "a modern website." I'd require them to demonstrate:

• Legal-industry experience: 3–5 comparable firms they've redesigned, ideally in Chicago.
• Illinois advertising compliance: explain their process for attorney advertising claims, testimonials, case results, disclaimers, etc.
• Confidentiality/intake: how contact forms, chat, consultation requests and analytics are designed to avoid encouraging inappropriate disclosure of sensitive information.
• Accessibility: WCAG-conscious design and development.
• SEO migration: preservation/redirection of existing URLs, rankings, backlinks and metadata.
• Practice-area architecture: especially if you have multiple departments/practice groups.
• Attorney bios: designed for credibility and business development, not just résumé pages.
• CMS ownership: your firm should own the site, domain, content and analytics—not be trapped in the agency's proprietary platform.
• Performance: Core Web Vitals, mobile performance and technical SEO.
• Measurement: calls, consultation requests, qualified leads and ultimately matters—not merely pageviews.
• Editorial governance: who reviews legal content before publication and how attorney approval works.

I'd also ask each finalist: "Show me a law-firm website you launched that materially improved the firm's business-development results, and show me what changed." That question will separate genuine legal-marketing expertise from agencies that simply have attractive portfolios.

If you tell me (1) approximate firm size, (2) practice areas, (3) whether you're primarily B2B/corporate or consumer-facing, and (4) rough redesign budget, I can narrow this to 3 firms I'd actually put on your RFP list, including what I'd expect each to charge and which one I'd pick.

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• OVC, INC. - 1001 Warrenville Rd, Ste 224, Lisle, IL 60532
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Fishman Marketing, Inc. - 1356 St Johns Ave, Highland Park, IL 60035, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• LawFull Marketing - 150 S Wacker Dr, Ste 2400, Chicago, IL 60606
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a generalist web-design shop and shortlist firms with demonstrated legal-industry experience. The requirements are different: attorney profiles, practice-area architecture, legal advertising considerations, accessibility, SEO, confidentiality/security, and preserving existing search equity during a redesign.

My Chicago shortlist

1. Builden Partners — my first call for an established firm

They work exclusively with law firms and are based at 150 S. Wacker. Their website-redesign practice covers the project from audit through launch, with law-firm-specific marketing expertise and project management designed to minimize demands on attorneys and firm leadership. Builden Partners

Best for: a sophisticated mid-size or large firm where positioning, attorney recruitment, business development, and brand reputation matter as much as lead generation.

2. Market JD, Inc. — strong if you want redesign + measurable marketing

They're at 20 N. Wacker and focus specifically on attorneys/law firms, combining website development with SEO, paid media, analytics and conversion-oriented intake.

Best for: a firm that wants the redesign tied directly to inquiries, search visibility and marketing ROI.

3. AttorneySync — strong legal-specialist alternative

Their Chicago office is at 211 W. Wacker, and their focus is exclusively on law-firm marketing, including websites, SEO, analytics and broader digital campaigns.

Best for: a consumer-facing practice where client acquisition and digital marketing are major objectives.

4. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — worth getting a proposal from

Their Chicago office is in River North, and they're particularly oriented toward law-firm acquisition, combining website design with SEO, paid advertising and reputation/brand work.

Best for: firms wanting a broader digital-growth engagement rather than simply a website project.

5. Pattern 6 — interesting performance-oriented option

They're at Merchandise Mart and position themselves specifically around legal marketing, with custom websites, SEO, paid advertising and conversion tracking.

Best for: a firm that wants the new site engineered around measurable lead generation.

One non-Chicago option I'd also interview

Orbit Media has a particularly relevant legal website practice. Their approach is strategy-first, with custom design, research, SEO and conversion optimization rather than simply making the site look newer. Orbit Media Studios

And Dupont Creative specifically markets Chicago law-firm web design, with experience across established firms and a stated focus on legal-industry confidentiality/compliance and SEO. Dupont Creative

What I'd require in the RFP

For a law firm, I'd make these non-negotiable:

• Demonstrated redesigns for firms comparable to yours—not just generic professional-services sites.
• SEO migration plan: redirects, metadata, canonicalization, sitemap, preservation of rankings/backlinks, and post-launch monitoring.
• Practice-area and attorney-profile information architecture that works for both prospective clients and recruiting.
• Illinois attorney advertising/compliance review built into the workflow, with your attorneys retaining final approval.
• Accessibility strategy, including WCAG considerations.
• Strong mobile performance and Core Web Vitals.
• CMS your marketing team can actually manage.
• Clear ownership of the domain, code, content, analytics and design files.
• Security, backups, hosting and maintenance responsibilities spelled out.
• Integration with whatever CRM/intake, analytics, call tracking and marketing systems you use.
• A content strategy—not simply "we'll migrate your existing copy."
• Analytics that let you distinguish traffic from actual qualified inquiries.

If I were running your selection process

I'd probably invite Builden Partners, Market JD and Orbit Media to pitch, with AttorneySync as a fourth benchmark. That gives you three somewhat different approaches: law-firm strategic marketing, performance-driven legal marketing, and high-end strategy/design.

For an established downtown firm, Builden would be my first conversation. Their exclusive law-firm focus and redesign/project-management model are particularly relevant if this is a substantial institutional website rather than a small lead-generation site. Builden Partners

If you tell me the firm's approximate size (e.g. 10 attorneys vs. 100+), practice areas, current website, and whether the goal is primarily prestige/recruiting or new-client acquisition, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and give you a side-by-side comparison of likely fit, strengths, weaknesses, and what I would ask each one in the pitch.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Zaremba & Co - 29 E Madison St #1411, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• AttorneySync - 400 N May St, Ste 301, Chicago, IL 60642
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• LawFull Marketing - 150 S Wacker Dr, Ste 2400, Chicago, IL 60606
• Lawyers Court Legal Web Services - 5444 N La Crosse Ave, Chicago, IL 60630, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Market JD - 3400 Dundee Rd, Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a general-purpose web design agency and shortlist firms that already understand attorney advertising, legal SEO, confidentiality, accessibility, and the way prospective clients evaluate counsel.

My Chicago shortlist

• AttorneySync — My first call for a sophisticated marketing-led redesign. They’re downtown at 211 W Wacker and focus specifically on consumer-facing law firms, with website design, SEO, analytics, and broader digital marketing. Their positioning is particularly useful if the redesign needs to improve lead generation rather than simply modernize the visuals.
• Market JD, Inc. — Strong option for a full legal-marketing ecosystem. They’re at 20 N Wacker and specialize in attorney/law-firm marketing, combining website development with SEO, paid media and analytics. This would be worth interviewing if you want the website tied closely to measurable marketing outcomes.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Worth considering for a polished redesign + ongoing acquisition. Their Chicago office is on N McClurg Ct., and their offering combines website redesign, SEO, advertising, reputation and branding.
• Pattern 6 — Interesting choice if design quality is especially important. They're at Merchandise Mart and explicitly focus much of their marketing work on law firms, including custom, performance-oriented websites rather than generic templates.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Good specialized local alternative. They're at 875 N Michigan and focus on legal marketing/web design, with an emphasis on website performance, mobile UX and local visibility.

One non-Chicago option I'd also interview

Zaremba & Co is particularly unusual because it's run by a practicing Illinois attorney who also builds law-firm websites. The firm's site says its work incorporates knowledge of attorney advertising rules and legal-client behavior, and it emphasizes technical audits, migrations and preserving existing SEO. Zaremba Studio

For a firm where professional-responsibility risk and sophisticated positioning matter more than simply generating consumer leads, I'd absolutely include that perspective in the RFP.

What I'd put in your RFP

Don't just ask, "Can you redesign our website?" I'd require each candidate to demonstrate:

1. 5–10 comparable law-firm sites they've actually built, preferably firms of similar size and practice mix.
2. Their understanding of Illinois attorney advertising requirements and exactly how compliance gets reviewed before launch.
3. Their approach to confidentiality/privacy, accessibility, security and website forms.
4. A complete SEO migration plan — URLs, redirects, metadata, rankings, backlinks and analytics should not be casually lost during the redesign.
5. A plan for practice-area architecture and attorney bios that communicates sophistication without looking like a generic legal template.
6. Conversion strategy — how they turn visitors into qualified inquiries without making the site feel like a billboard.
7. Who owns the domain, code, content, analytics accounts and CMS after launch.
8. Performance targets for mobile speed/Core Web Vitals and accessibility.
9. Three references from law firms, not dentists, restaurants or SaaS companies.
10. A clear answer to: "Who on your team understands legal ethics, and who is responsible for flagging potentially problematic marketing claims?"

There are agencies specifically advertising Illinois/Chicago legal compliance awareness—for example, CaseOrbit says its work is reviewed for Illinois State Bar advertising considerations, ADA accessibility and privacy policies. CaseOrbit That kind of specialization is much more relevant to your project than a generic agency saying it has "professional services experience."

If I were running the selection

I'd invite AttorneySync, Market JD, and one design-heavy specialist such as Pattern 6 to pitch, then use the attorney-led Zaremba Studio as a wildcard. That gives you three different approaches rather than getting three variations of the same legal-marketing pitch.

If you tell me the firm's approximate size, practice areas, current website, and whether the goal is primarily prestige/brand positioning, recruiting, client acquisition, or all three, I can narrow this to 3 firms and compare their portfolios, legal-industry experience, likely price range, strengths/weaknesses, and questions to ask each one.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• LawFull Marketing - 150 S Wacker Dr, Ste 2400, Chicago, IL 60606
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 5235 Thatcher Rd, Downers Grove, IL 60515
• Market JD - 3400 Dundee Rd, Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062
• Deviant Marketing - 20 W Kinzie St Ste 12022, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Law Firm Sites - 3200 W Club House Dr Ste 250, Lehi, UT 84048, United States

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a legal-specialist agency over a general web-design shop. The website needs to balance sophisticated firm branding with attorney advertising considerations, accessibility, SEO, confidentiality/security, and—most importantly—client intake.

Here’s the shortlist I’d put in front of your partners:

• AttorneySync — My first call for a consumer-facing firm. They’re based at 211 W Wacker and focus exclusively on law firms, with website design, SEO, paid search, analytics and broader digital marketing. Their model is particularly relevant if the redesign needs to improve lead generation rather than simply modernize the look. Marketing for Justice
• Market JD, Inc. — A strong option if you want an integrated website + SEO + paid acquisition partner. They specifically market to attorneys/law firms and emphasize conversion-oriented, mobile-optimized sites.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Worth interviewing if you want a broader marketing partner around the redesign, including SEO, advertising, reputation/brand work and conversion optimization.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Particularly worth considering for a smaller or midsize practice wanting a legal-focused website/SEO provider right in the city.
• LawFull Marketing — Downtown at 150 S Wacker, and explicitly focused on law-firm marketing, including websites, SEO, PPC, social and video.
• Pattern 6 — A more boutique option in the Merchandise Mart; they position themselves around custom, non-cookie-cutter websites for lawyers with SEO, performance and lead generation built in.

One outside-Chicago firm I'd also interview

Orbit Media has a particularly compelling legal website practice. Their approach is strategy-first, with custom design, competitor/industry research, SEO, conversion optimization and a CMS your marketing team can manage after launch. They also publish a realistic 10–30+ week redesign timeline rather than promising an implausibly fast build. Orbit Media Studios

What I'd require in the RFP

Don't ask agencies merely for "a new website." I'd make the scope include:

1. Legal-industry experience — Require 3–5 comparable law-firm redesigns, ideally firms with your practice mix and sophistication.
2. Illinois advertising compliance — Ask exactly how they handle attorney advertising, disclaimers, testimonials/case results and attorney review. One Chicago-focused provider, for example, explicitly describes review against ISBA advertising rules. CaseOrbit
3. Accessibility — WCAG-conscious design/development, not an accessibility overlay sold as a magic fix.
4. SEO migration — URL mapping, redirects, metadata, structured data, preservation of rankings and monitoring after launch.
5. Conversion strategy — Clear paths to contact an attorney, call tracking, forms, consultation requests and integration with whatever intake/CRM system you use.
6. Security/privacy — Especially important if forms collect potentially sensitive information.
7. CMS ownership — Your firm should own the site, domain, content and accounts and retain administrative access.
8. Content strategy — Practice-area architecture, attorney bios, thought leadership and location pages should be planned before design starts.
9. Analytics — GA4/Search Console plus meaningful reporting on qualified inquiries, not just pageviews.
10. Post-launch support — Make sure you know exactly what happens after the site goes live.

My suggested process: interview AttorneySync, Market JD, and Orbit Media first. That gives you three substantially different approaches: a Chicago legal-specialist, a law-firm-focused growth agency, and a larger strategy/design-oriented web agency.

If you're a midsize or Am Law-style firm rather than a consumer-law practice, I'd change the shortlist somewhat—the website needs to emphasize institutional credibility, practices/sectors, attorney recruiting, publications and business development rather than primarily consultation conversion. Builden Partners, for example, specifically works with AmLaw and midsize firms and offers website redesign alongside broader legal marketing strategy. Builden Partners

If you tell me your firm's size, practice areas, approximate website budget, and whether the goal is primarily branding/credibility or generating new matters, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually invite to pitch and give you a side-by-side evaluation criteria.

For a downtown Chicago law firm, I would not hire a general web design shop. Legal websites have unusual requirements: attorney advertising rules, practice-area positioning, reputation/trust signals, intake conversion, accessibility, privacy considerations, and SEO competition in markets like Cook County. A good partner should understand that the site is a business-development tool, not just a branding project. caseorbit.co

Here are firms I’d put on your shortlist:

Strong Chicago legal-specialist options

AttorneySync
Good fit if you want a legal-focused growth partner rather than just a redesign vendor. They specialize in law firm marketing and combine website work with SEO, paid search, analytics, and broader digital strategy.

Market JD, Inc.
Worth considering for a firm that wants legal marketing expertise plus website/SEO integration. They focus specifically on attorneys and law firms rather than general businesses.

dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency
A broader legal marketing agency offering website redesign, SEO, paid campaigns, and brand-building services.

BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago
A Chicago-based legal marketing provider with a focus on attorneys, websites, and SEO.

Design-forward agencies to consider

Orbit Media Studios
A strong choice if your firm is more institutional (corporate law, litigation, professional services) and you want strategy-heavy design. They highlight legal website design, SEO, and conversion strategy. www.orbitmedia.com

Dupont Creative
Another option for established firms that want a polished professional-services brand, custom design, and ongoing technical support. www.dupontcreative.com

What I would require in your RFP/interviews

Ask every agency:

1. Show 3–5 law firm websites you personally built (not templates or “inspired by” examples).
2. Explain how you handle Illinois attorney advertising rules and disclaimers.
3. Who writes the copy? Legal copy is where many redesigns fail.
4. How will you protect existing SEO rankings during migration?
5. What conversion metrics will you track?
   • consultation requests
   • qualified leads
   • calls
   • practice-area page performance
6. Do we own the website, code, hosting accounts, and analytics?
7. How do you handle accessibility (WCAG), privacy, and security?

For a downtown Chicago firm, my first calls would probably be:

1. AttorneySync (legal-specialist + Chicago presence)
2. Market JD (legal marketing focus)
3. Orbit Media (if brand prestige/design is the priority)
4. Dupont Creative (if you want a high-end professional-services feel)

If you tell me your firm type (BigLaw-style, midsize litigation, boutique, PI, family, real estate, corporate, etc.) and approximate budget, I can narrow this to the best 3–4 candidates.

• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• SEOLEVELUP Website Design SEO Company Chicago - 355 N Laflin St Ste 101C, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• SEO Design Chicago - 2068 N Western Ave 1F - Front, Chicago, IL 60647, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Affordable Web Design Chicago - 5141 W Altgeld St, Chicago, IL 60639, United States
• Solid Digital - 100 N LaSalle St #1400, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a firm that works specifically with attorneys rather than a general Chicago web-design agency. Legal websites have unusual requirements around attorney advertising, disclaimers, testimonials, practice-area content, accessibility, intake/conversion, SEO, and reputation.

Based on what I found, I’d put these on your shortlist:

1. Market JD, Inc. — 20 N Wacker Dr

• Particularly interesting for a downtown firm because they’re right in the Loop and specialize in law-firm marketing.
• Their offering includes custom law-firm websites, SEO, content, and intake-oriented conversion design. Their founder is also described as a former litigator, which could be valuable when translating sophisticated legal services into marketing language. Expertise
• My take: One of the first three I'd interview.
• AttorneySync — 211 W Wacker Dr

• Legal-industry focused and also downtown.
• The business profile indicates a law-firm-only orientation, with website design/development, SEO, PPC, analytics, maintenance, and broader digital marketing.
• My take: Strong candidate if you want the redesign tied closely to lead generation and ongoing marketing rather than treating the website as a standalone branding project.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — 545 N McClurg Ct

• Focused heavily on law firms and combines website redesign, SEO, paid search, reputation/brand building, and conversion optimization.
• Their positioning is more "full-service legal growth partner" than simply web designer.
• My take: Worth interviewing if the redesign is part of a larger marketing transformation.
• Builden Partners — 150 S Wacker Dr

• This is a different kind of option: they work exclusively with law firms, including larger firms and Am Law firms, and specifically provide strategic/project-management support for law-firm website redesigns.
• My take: Particularly compelling if you're a larger firm with multiple practice groups, partners, stakeholders, and a complicated approval process. They could potentially oversee the project while a separate design/development shop executes it.
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago — 233 S Wacker Dr

• Legal-specific website provider with a strong focus on attorney websites, conversion, mobile responsiveness and legal-industry requirements.
• My take: Worth getting a proposal from, although I'd want to see substantial examples of sophisticated mid-size/large firm work before selecting them.

What I'd actually do

If you're the marketing director, I wouldn't issue an RFP that simply says "redesign our website." I'd make the agencies compete on strategy.

Ask each finalist to address:

• How they handle Illinois attorney advertising requirements
• ADA/accessibility compliance
• Privacy/cookie/analytics requirements
• Attorney bios and practice-group architecture
• SEO migration and preservation of existing rankings
• Redirect strategy for hundreds/thousands of URLs
• Google/AI search visibility
• CMS recommendation and who owns the site
• CRM/intake integration
• Conversion tracking from visitor → consultation → retained client
• Page-speed/Core Web Vitals
• Content strategy for sophisticated legal audiences
• How they handle multiple practice areas and offices
• Examples of Am Law, regional, or sophisticated business-law firms, rather than only personal-injury websites

One Chicago agency, for example, explicitly describes its legal-site process around practice-area architecture, intake, accessibility, privacy, and Illinois State Bar advertising considerations. CaseOrbit That's the level of specificity I'd expect from a serious finalist.

My shortlist

If I were running the selection process, I'd probably start with:

Market JD → AttorneySync → Builden Partners → dNOVO

And I'd ask each for a paid discovery/strategy proposal, rather than accepting a free generic website proposal.

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (e.g. 10 attorneys vs. 100+), your practice areas, and whether this is primarily a branding project or a business-development/lead-generation project, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 firms and compare them on likely fit, sophistication, legal expertise, location, services, and red flags.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• LawFull Marketing - 150 S Wacker Dr, Ste 2400, Chicago, IL 60606
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 5235 Thatcher Rd, Downers Grove, IL 60515
• OVC, INC. - 1001 Warrenville Rd, Ste 224, Lisle, IL 60532
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Deviant Marketing - 20 W Kinzie St Ste 12022, Chicago, IL 60654, United States

For a downtown Chicago law firm, I would avoid a general web design agency and hire a firm that understands legal marketing, attorney ethics rules, intake workflows, SEO, and the expectations of sophisticated legal clients. A redesign should not just look better—it should improve credibility, qualified inquiries, recruiting, and business development.

Here are firms I would put on a shortlist:

Strong Chicago legal website redesign candidates

AttorneySync

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 773-828-8878)

A Chicago-based agency focused specifically on law firms. They emphasize legal marketing strategy, SEO, website development, and conversion-focused digital campaigns.
Best fit: Consumer-facing firms or firms that want the website tied closely to lead generation.

Market JD, Inc.

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 312-970-9353)

Market JD specializes in attorney and law firm marketing and is located downtown at 20 N Wacker. Their services include law firm websites, SEO, paid search, and performance measurement.
Best fit: Small-to-midsize firms wanting a marketing partner rather than just a designer.

dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 855-908-0588)

A Chicago legal marketing agency offering website design, SEO, advertising, and brand-building services for professional services firms.
Best fit: Firms wanting a broader growth strategy around the redesign.

LawFull Marketing

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+13123000783)

A Chicago legal marketing provider offering website and digital marketing services specifically for law firms.
Best fit: Firms looking for a legal-industry-focused partner with a local presence.

Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 312-741-0303)

A Chicago branding and web design agency that can be a fit if your priority is a more premium brand repositioning and visual identity refresh.
Best fit: Corporate, boutique, or Am Law–style firms where reputation and differentiation matter as much as lead volume.

Also worth considering

• Orbit Media Studios — a respected Chicago web agency with legal website experience; a good option if you want a high-end UX/content strategy approach rather than a pure legal lead-generation vendor. Orbit Media Studios
• Builden Partners — more of a law firm marketing consultancy that also handles website redesign projects, useful for larger firms with internal marketing teams. Builden Partners Builden Partners

What I would require in the RFP/interview process

Ask each agency:

1. Show 3–5 law firm redesigns they personally built

• Not “clients they marketed”—actual websites they designed/developed.
• Explain their approach to legal compliance

• Illinois attorney advertising rules
• disclaimers
• testimonials/awards language
• privacy and intake forms
• Ask about information architecture

A strong legal site should usually include:

• practice-area journeys
• attorney bios optimized for trust
• representative matters/case experience (where appropriate)
• publications/thought leadership
• recruiting/careers section
• client portals or secure contact pathways if needed
• Require ownership

• Your firm should own the domain, content, analytics accounts, design files, and CMS access.
• Measure outcomes

• organic search visibility
• qualified inquiries
• attorney profile engagement
• recruiting conversions
• page speed/accessibility

For a downtown Chicago firm, my first calls would likely be Builden Partners (if you are a midsize/large firm), Market JD or AttorneySync (if growth and client acquisition are priorities), and Orbit Media (if premium brand/UX is the priority). Builden Partners Orbit Media Studios

If you tell me your firm size (solo / 5–25 attorneys / 25+ attorneys), practice areas, and whether the goal is client acquisition vs. prestige/recruiting, I can narrow this to a tighter shortlist.

• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Sixth City Marketing - 620 N La Salle Dr Ste 415, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Market JD - 3400 Dundee Rd, Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d favor a legal-specialist agency over a general Chicago web-design shop. The website needs to balance sophisticated firm branding with attorney-advertising rules, accessibility, SEO, confidentiality/security, and a very clear path to contacting the right lawyer.

Based on what I found, these are the firms I’d put on your shortlist:

My Chicago shortlist

• Builden Partners — Best if you're a larger/midsize firm with an in-house marketing function. They work exclusively with law firms and specifically offer website-redesign management, so they could be particularly useful if you want a strategic partner who can manage the redesign rather than simply hand you a new website. They're at 150 S Wacker.
• AttorneySync — Strong choice for a law-firm-focused digital/growth partner. They're downtown at 211 W Wacker and focus specifically on law firms, combining website work with SEO, PPC, analytics and broader digital marketing.
• Market JD, Inc. — Worth interviewing if lead generation is a major redesign objective. They're focused specifically on attorneys/law firms and position their websites around mobile experience, intake and qualified-lead generation. Their Chicago office is at 20 N Wacker.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good option if you want redesign + SEO/PPC/reputation/brand work under one roof. Their Chicago office is at 545 N McClurg and they're specifically positioned around law-firm client acquisition.
• Pattern 6 — Interesting option for a more custom, contemporary website. They're in the Merchandise Mart and emphasize custom—not cookie-cutter—legal websites, alongside SEO and digital marketing.

I'd also look at Attorney Web Lab. It has a Chicago office and is unusually explicit about attorney-specific requirements, including legal-industry standards, ADA/accessibility, security, SEO architecture and attorney website redesigns. Attorney Web Lab Attorney Web Lab

What I'd require in the RFP

Don't simply ask agencies, "Can you redesign our website?" I'd make them demonstrate these things:

1. Illinois attorney-advertising knowledge. Ask them to identify potential issues with your existing attorney bios, case results, testimonials, awards, superlatives and calls to action. Websites cannot contain misleading communications, and website-generated inquiries can also implicate prospective-client considerations. BRBA
2. Legal-sector portfolio. Require 3–5 comparable firms they've actually redesigned—not just attractive generic corporate websites.
3. SEO migration plan. They should inventory existing URLs, rankings and backlinks and provide a redirect strategy before launch. A beautiful redesign that destroys your firm's organic traffic is a bad redesign.
4. Accessibility. Put WCAG/ADA accessibility into the scope and acceptance criteria, rather than treating it as an optional add-on.
5. Attorney/practice-area architecture. For a sophisticated firm, I'd expect robust attorney profiles, practice/industry pages, publications, insights, representative matters, rankings/recognition and location information to be structured intelligently rather than crammed into a generic template.
6. CMS ownership. Your firm should own the domain, hosting credentials, CMS, analytics, Search Console, content and design assets. Avoid proprietary platforms that make you captive to the agency.
7. Security and intake. This is especially important for a law firm. The contact experience should be designed carefully so that prospective clients aren't casually submitting sensitive matter information through an insecure or poorly configured form.

One additional candidate I'd investigate

There's an interesting Illinois-specific alternative: Zaremba Studio, whose principal is actually a practicing Illinois attorney. He explicitly markets website development to law firms and says his process incorporates knowledge of attorney advertising rules as well as technical SEO and performance. Zaremba Studio

That could be particularly compelling if your priority is "we want someone who genuinely understands what it is like to operate a law firm," although I'd compare its capabilities against a larger agency if you're a substantial downtown firm.

My recommendation

If I were running the marketing process, I'd send an RFP to Builden Partners, AttorneySync, and one of Market JD / Pattern 6, plus potentially Zaremba as the wildcard.

The key distinction I'd make is:

• Strategic/large-firm marketing: Builden Partners
• Legal digital marketing + website + SEO: AttorneySync
• Lead-generation/intake orientation: Market JD
• Custom contemporary design: Pattern 6
• Attorney-built/Illinois-specific perspective: Zaremba Studio

And I wouldn't choose based on the prettiest homepage mockup. I'd ask each finalist to audit your existing site and present its proposed information architecture, SEO migration strategy, compliance considerations, and redesign rationale before you award the project.

If you tell me roughly how many attorneys you have, your practice areas, and whether you're Am Law/BigLaw, midsize, or boutique, I can narrow this to the 3 best-fit firms and compare them on legal expertise, design quality, SEO, likely budget, and fit for a downtown Chicago firm.

• Strategic/large-firm marketing: Builden Partners
• Legal digital marketing + website + SEO: AttorneySync
• Lead-generation/intake orientation: Market JD
• Custom contemporary design: Pattern 6
• Attorney-built/Illinois-specific perspective: Zaremba Studio

And I wouldn't choose based on the prettiest homepage mockup. I'd ask each finalist to audit your existing site and present its proposed information architecture, SEO migration strategy, compliance considerations, and redesign rationale before you award the project.

If you tell me roughly how many attorneys you have, your practice areas, and whether you're Am Law/BigLaw, midsize, or boutique, I can narrow this to the 3 best-fit firms and compare them on legal expertise, design quality, SEO, likely budget, and fit for a downtown Chicago firm.

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Pattern 6 - 222 W Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• LawFull Marketing - 150 S Wacker Dr, Ste 2400, Chicago, IL 60606
• AttorneySync - 400 N May St, Ste 301, Chicago, IL 60642
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• Law Firm Sites - 3200 W Club House Dr Ste 250, Lehi, UT 84048, United States
• Lawyers Court Legal Web Services - 5444 N La Crosse Ave, Chicago, IL 60630, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 3553 W Peterson Ave Ste 30, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a legal-industry specialist over a general web-design agency. The website needs to balance sophisticated branding with attorney advertising rules, accessibility, SEO, lead intake, confidentiality/privacy considerations, and the expectations of sophisticated legal clients. Clio Clio

My Chicago shortlist

• AttorneySync — My first call for a serious legal-marketing engagement. They’re based at 211 W. Wacker and focus specifically on consumer-facing law firms, with website design, SEO, PPC, analytics and broader digital strategy. This makes them particularly interesting if the redesign needs to improve business development rather than simply look better.
• Market JD, Inc. — Worth interviewing for an integrated redesign + SEO project. They specialize in law-firm marketing and combine website development with SEO, paid media and analytics. Their downtown office is at 20 N. Wacker.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Good option if you want a broader marketing partner. Their Chicago office is at 545 N. McClurg Court, and their offering combines website redesign, SEO, paid advertising and brand/reputation work.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Interesting specialized option. They’re at 875 N. Michigan and focus specifically on legal marketing, including website optimization/redesign, SEO and lead generation.
• Pattern 6 — Worth considering if design quality is especially important. They're in the Merchandise Mart and position themselves around custom, non-cookie-cutter legal websites while also offering SEO and other legal marketing services.
• Forward Lawyer Marketing — Chicago-area legal specialist with experience in website rebuilds, WordPress migrations, SEO and paid advertising.

There are also firms such as LawFull Marketing downtown at 150 S. Wacker and Market JD, Inc. at 20 N. Wacker if having a local team is important.

If I were running your RFP

I'd put AttorneySync, Market JD, dNOVO, and Pattern 6 into the first round rather than selecting whoever has the prettiest portfolio.

The critical questions I'd ask each:

1. Show us 3–5 websites you've built for comparable law firms. Not just screenshots—give us live URLs.
2. Who handles legal-ethics review? You want a team familiar with Illinois attorney advertising requirements, not someone discovering them during the project.
3. How will you preserve our existing SEO equity? Require a documented URL/redirect strategy, metadata migration, sitemap strategy and measurement before launch.
4. Who owns the site and content? Make sure your firm retains ownership of the domain, CMS, content, analytics, photography and design assets.
5. How do you approach accessibility? WCAG/ADA accessibility should be part of the development process rather than an afterthought.
6. How will you measure the redesign? Ask for KPIs around qualified inquiries, practice-area engagement, organic visibility, conversion rates and—not merely—page views.
7. What happens after launch? Get maintenance, security, hosting, SEO and content costs separately itemized.
8. Can our internal marketing team manage the CMS? This matters enormously for a law firm that regularly needs to update attorneys, practices, publications and news.

One particularly important point: don't let the agency promise that the website is "ethics compliant" and leave it at that. Your firm ultimately has responsibility for its advertising. Clio's current guidance specifically recommends understanding the rules of your jurisdiction and paying attention to issues such as testimonials and marketing content. Clio

I'd also make the RFP explicitly ask for a premium professional-services aesthetic rather than a stereotypical "lawyer website." For a downtown Chicago firm, I'd want the site to feel closer to a top-tier professional-services firm—strong typography, restrained photography, excellent attorney profiles, sophisticated practice-area architecture, and exceptionally good mobile UX.

If you tell me (a) your approximate firm size, (b) practice areas, (c) whether you're BigLaw/boutique/midsize, and (d) your approximate website budget, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually invite to pitch, including what each appears strongest/weakest at and what I'd ask them to quote. Inherent, Inc. Dupont Creative

• AttorneySync - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 300, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency - 545 N McClurg Ct Ste 1808, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1200, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Builden Partners - 150 S Wacker Dr #2400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60610, United States
• Alpha Efficiency - Web Design Chicago Agency - 875 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• OVC Lawyer Marketing - 750 Warrenville Rd Ste 203, Lisle, IL 60532, United States
• SEOLEVELUP Website Design SEO Company Chicago - 355 N Laflin St Ste 101C, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
• SEO Design Chicago - 2068 N Western Ave 1F - Front, Chicago, IL 60647, United States
• Affordable Web Design Chicago - 5141 W Altgeld St, Chicago, IL 60639, United States
• Forward Lawyer Marketing - 460 N Main St Unit 209, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137, United States
• Solid Digital - 100 N LaSalle St #1400, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Market JD, Inc. - 3400 Dundee Rd Ste 210, Northbrook, IL 60062, United States
• Attorney Web Design | Chicago - 233 S Wacker Dr Ste 4400, Chicago, IL 60606, United States

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d favor a legal-industry specialist over a general web-design agency. Legal websites have additional considerations around attorney advertising, testimonials, disclaimers, accessibility, intake/privacy, SEO, and practice-area content. Clio

Based on the current Chicago market, I’d put these firms on your shortlist:

• AttorneySync — My first call for a serious law-firm redesign. They’re based at 211 W. Wacker and focus specifically on law firms, with website design/development, SEO, analytics, and broader legal marketing. This looks particularly appropriate if the redesign needs to tie into lead generation rather than simply make the site prettier.
• dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — Worth interviewing if you want website + SEO + paid acquisition + reputation/branding under one roof. Their Chicago office is at 545 N. McClurg Ct., and their positioning is explicitly oriented toward law-firm client acquisition.
• Market JD, Inc. — A particularly interesting option for a law firm because they specialize in attorney/law-firm marketing and emphasize conversion-oriented, mobile-optimized websites and intake journeys. Their Chicago office is at 20 N. Wacker.
• Builden Partners — I'd consider them if you're a larger firm or sophisticated in-house marketing department. They're exclusively focused on law firms and specifically offer strategic management of website redesigns, rather than simply acting as the web developer.
• BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — Another legal-specialist option downtown, with a strong focus on attorney marketing and websites.

There are also some good non-Chicago-specific legal agencies worth putting into the RFP. Clio's 2026 review of legal web-design firms, for example, highlights JurisPage, LawLytics, PaperStreet, Postali, Justia Elevate, iLawyerMarketing, and others. Clio

What I'd require in your RFP

Don't let agencies sell you on "modern design" alone. I'd ask each candidate to demonstrate:

1. 3–5 comparable law-firm redesigns — preferably firms with your practice areas and similar size/reputation.
2. Illinois legal advertising knowledge — who reviews disclaimers, testimonials, case results, attorney bios, etc., and how?
3. SEO migration expertise — preservation/redirection of existing rankings, URLs, backlinks, metadata, schema, Google Business Profile, etc.
4. Accessibility — WCAG-conscious design and development.
5. Conversion strategy — how the site gets a prospective client from Google → practice area → attorney credibility → consultation/intake.
6. CMS ownership — you should retain control of the domain, hosting, CMS, analytics, Search Console, and content.
7. Analytics — calls, forms, consultations, qualified leads, and eventually matters—not just pageviews.
8. Content strategy — especially if you're a full-service or business law firm where the website needs to convey institutional credibility rather than look like a generic personal-injury site.
9. Post-launch SEO and maintenance — ideally included as an option, not an afterthought.

I'd also specifically ask them to explain how they would redesign your current site without sacrificing existing organic traffic. That's one of the easiest places for a seemingly successful redesign to damage a firm's marketing.

My initial three calls would be AttorneySync, Market JD, and Builden Partners—with the choice depending heavily on whether you're a consumer-facing practice, a sophisticated business-law firm, or somewhere in between.

If you tell me your firm's approximate attorney count, primary practice areas, current website, and whether the goal is primarily brand positioning or generating new matters, I can narrow this to 3–5 firms and compare them on legal expertise, Chicago presence, likely fit, portfolio quality, and pricing/engagement model.

My initial three calls would be AttorneySync, Market JD, and Builden Partners—with the choice depending heavily on whether you're a consumer-facing practice, a sophisticated business-law firm, or somewhere in between.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a generic web-design agency and shortlist firms that understand attorney marketing, ethics/compliance, attorney bios, practice-area architecture, SEO, accessibility, and client intake.

My shortlist

1. Builden Partners — best for a sophisticated/midsize or AmLaw-style firm
   • Based at 150 S. Wacker and works exclusively with law firms.
   • Their website-redesign practice handles strategy, audit, project management, development and launch rather than simply handing you a designer. www.buildenpartners.com
   • I'd put them at the top if your firm needs a high-end institutional website and broader marketing strategy, rather than primarily lead generation.

2. AttorneySync — best for a consumer-facing firm focused on growth
   • Chicago-based and specifically focused on law-firm marketing.
   • Combines website development with SEO, paid search, content, analytics and lead-generation strategy.
   • Particularly worth considering if the redesign needs to improve qualified consultations, not just appearance.

3. Market JD, Inc. — strong all-around legal marketing option
   • Located at 20 N. Wacker and specifically focused on attorneys/law firms.
   • Their approach ties website design to SEO, paid advertising, analytics and intake rather than treating the website as a standalone project.

4. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good for redesign + ongoing digital marketing
   • Chicago office and a legal/professional-services focus.
   • Offers website redesign alongside SEO, advertising, reputation/brand building and conversion optimization.

5. Conroy Creative Counsel — worth considering for brand + website strategy
   • Legal-industry specialist positioning, with website rebuilds, messaging, branding and ongoing digital marketing.
   • More interesting if your underlying problem is positioning and differentiation, not merely an outdated site.

One more I'd put on the RFP list

BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago is another Chicago legal-marketing specialist, particularly worth looking at if SEO and local visibility are major objectives.

What I'd require in your RFP

Don't ask agencies simply for "a new website." I'd make them respond to these specifically:

• Legal-industry experience: 3–5 comparable firms they've redesigned, preferably firms with your size/practice mix.
• Illinois advertising compliance: How they handle attorney advertising rules, testimonials, case results, disclaimers and claims.
• Accessibility: WCAG/ADA approach and who is responsible for remediation.
• SEO migration: URL mapping, redirects, metadata, structured data, rankings and preservation of existing authority.
• Attorney bios: Strategy for making partner/associate profiles genuinely useful rather than generic résumé pages.
• Practice-area architecture: How they'll structure content for both sophisticated referral sources and prospective clients.
• Security/privacy: Hosting, forms, analytics, cookies, security monitoring and handling of potentially sensitive inquiries.
• CMS ownership: Make sure your firm owns the domain, CMS, content, analytics accounts and design assets.
• Content: Determine whether they actually understand legal writing or merely provide generic AI-generated practice-area copy.
• Measurement: Calls, consultation requests, qualified leads and referral traffic—not just pageviews.
• Post-launch: Who fixes things six months later and what it costs.

For a downtown Chicago firm with a professional-services/BigLaw-style brand, my first conversations would be Builden + Market JD + AttorneySync, then compare their proposals. Builden is particularly compelling if this is a major institutional redesign; AttorneySync/Market JD become more attractive if measurable client acquisition is a significant part of the mandate.

If you tell me your firm's approximate size, practice areas, current website, and whether the goal is primarily prestige/branding, recruiting, business development, or client acquisition, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and compare their likely fit, strengths, weaknesses, and questions to ask in the pitch.

For a downtown Chicago law firm, I would avoid a general web design agency and shortlist firms that understand legal marketing, attorney advertising rules, intake conversion, SEO, and the expectations of sophisticated clients. A law firm website is not just a branding piece—it is often a business-development tool.

Here are several firms worth evaluating:

Strong legal-industry specialists

Builden Partners
Good fit if you are a mid-size or larger firm that needs more than a redesign. They focus heavily on law firm marketing strategy, business development, PR, and website redesigns rather than just visual design. www.buildenpartners.com

AttorneySync
A Chicago legal marketing agency focused specifically on law firms, with services including website design, SEO, paid search, analytics, and ongoing digital marketing. www.buildenpartners.com

Market JD, Inc.
Chicago-area agency specializing in attorney marketing, including website development, SEO, paid media, and analytics. Their legal-only positioning may appeal if you want a team familiar with attorney buyer journeys. www.expertise.com

dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency
A legal-focused digital marketing agency with a Chicago office that combines website redesign, SEO, advertising, and reputation/brand work. www.buildenpartners.com

More design-forward options

Pattern 6
Worth considering if your priority is a premium custom design experience plus legal marketing capabilities. They position themselves around custom, SEO-friendly legal websites rather than cookie-cutter templates.

Deviant Marketing
A Chicago agency offering website design, SEO, branding, and support services, with experience in legal marketing.

What I would ask during the selection process

For a downtown Chicago firm, I would require finalists to show:

• 3–5 recent law firm redesigns (not just generic professional-services sites)
• Experience with your practice areas (corporate, litigation, employment, real estate, etc.)
• Understanding of Illinois attorney advertising requirements
• A plan for migrating SEO authority from the existing site
• Accessibility compliance (WCAG considerations)
• Secure intake forms and privacy practices
• Integration with CRM/intake systems
• Analytics tied to consultations, not just page views

I would also ask: “Who writes the copy?” A beautiful site with generic legal language usually underperforms. The best vendors can help translate partner expertise into clear client-facing messaging.

If this is an Am Law, midsize, or boutique firm, my initial shortlist would likely start with Builden Partners, AttorneySync, Market JD, and dNOVO, then include a more design-led shop if brand positioning is the main goal. www.buildenpartners.com

I can also help you build a vendor scorecard/RFP specifically for a Chicago law firm website redesign.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d favor a specialist legal-marketing firm over a generic web-design agency. The important distinction is that you want someone who understands not just aesthetics, but attorney positioning, practice-area architecture, intake/conversion, SEO, accessibility, privacy, and Illinois legal-advertising considerations.

My shortlist

1. Builden Partners — my first call for a sophisticated firm

They are actually based at 150 S. Wacker and focus specifically on law firms, particularly AmLaw and midsize firms. Their website-redesign offering covers the process from initial audit through launch, with legal-marketing expertise rather than simply handing you over to a web developer. www.buildenpartners.com

Builden Partners website

2. AttorneySync — strong if growth/SEO is part of the redesign

They're Chicago-based and exclusively focused on law firms, combining website development with SEO, paid search, analytics and broader digital marketing. That's attractive if you want the redesign to improve business development rather than simply modernize the look.

3. Market JD, Inc. — another legal-specialist option

They're at 20 N. Wacker and focus specifically on attorney/law-firm marketing. Their offering combines website design with SEO, paid media and analytics, with an emphasis on conversion and intake.

4. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — worth considering for a more performance-marketing-oriented approach

Their Chicago operation focuses heavily on law firms and combines website design, SEO, paid advertising and reputation/brand work.

5. Pattern 6 — interesting boutique option

They specifically position their websites around legal practices, custom design, speed, SEO, conversion tracking and practice-area architecture rather than generic templates.

One important caveat

If you're an AmLaw/large corporate firm, I'd put Builden substantially higher on the list than agencies primarily oriented toward personal-injury or other consumer practices. Their experience is explicitly with AmLaw and midsize firms, and their redesign process is designed to minimize the amount of attorney/leadership time consumed by the project. www.buildenpartners.com

If you're a consumer-facing firm (PI, family, criminal, immigration, etc.), I'd put more weight on conversion optimization, local SEO, intake integration and measurable signed-client attribution. In that case, AttorneySync or Market JD become particularly interesting.

What I'd require in the RFP

Don't let agencies compete primarily on mockups. I'd ask each finalist to demonstrate:

• 3–5 comparable law-firm redesigns, preferably firms of your size and practice mix
• Their approach to practice-area and attorney information architecture
• SEO migration strategy so existing rankings/backlinks aren't destroyed
• Accessibility/WCAG approach
• Privacy/cookie/analytics implementation
• How they handle Illinois attorney advertising and professional-responsibility considerations
• CMS and firm ownership of the site, content, code and accounts
• Page-speed/Core Web Vitals targets
• Integration with your CRM/intake/marketing-automation system
• Analytics that can ultimately connect website → inquiry → qualified opportunity → new client
• Who actually does the work versus who sells the project
• Post-launch support and SEO/content responsibilities

One particularly useful benchmark: Marketing for Justice describes its law-firm builds as mobile-first, conversion-oriented and SEO-founded, while Chicago-based CaseOrbit explicitly discusses Illinois/ISBA advertising considerations and ADA accessibility. Those are good examples of the level of legal-specific thinking I'd expect from your finalists. marketingforjustice.com

If you tell me roughly what kind of firm you are (e.g., AmLaw, midsize business-law, litigation boutique, plaintiff-side, etc.), your approximate attorney count, and whether the priority is brand/reputation or generating more business, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually invite to pitch.

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a legal-industry specialist over a general Chicago web agency. The difference is that your site has to balance sophisticated brand positioning with attorney-advertising rules, confidentiality, practice-area claims, testimonials, SEO, accessibility, and conversion.

A few Chicago firms I’d put on the shortlist:

1. AttorneySync — my first call if growth/SEO matters. They focus specifically on law firms and are based at 211 W. Wacker. Their offering spans website design, SEO, paid search, analytics and broader legal marketing. This makes them particularly interesting if the redesign is supposed to generate measurable business rather than simply modernize the firm's appearance.

2. Market JD, Inc. — another strong legal-specialist option, with a downtown office at 20 N. Wacker. They focus specifically on attorneys/law firms and combine website strategy with SEO, paid search and conversion optimization. I'd investigate them particularly if you're a midsize firm that wants the website tied closely to business-development goals.

3. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — worth considering if you want a more comprehensive marketing partner rather than just a website shop. Their Chicago office is in River North, and their legal focus includes web design, SEO, advertising and reputation/brand work.

4. Pattern 6 — a Chicago agency with a substantial legal-marketing orientation. I'd include them in an RFP if you're looking for a more custom, performance-oriented website rather than an off-the-shelf attorney template.

5. OVC Lawyer Marketing — based in the western suburbs rather than downtown, but specifically focused on law-firm websites, content and legal SEO. Worth adding if location isn't important.

One important caveat

Don't just ask an agency, "Do you work with law firms?" Ask how they handle attorney advertising compliance.

The ABA specifically warns that websites can implicate rules around misleading claims, specialization, case results, testimonials, confidentiality, solicitation and third-party marketing vendors. www.americanbar.org Illinois has its own rules as well; for example, the Illinois State Bar Association has addressed website links under Illinois Rules 7.1 and 8.4(c). www.isba.org

I'd make these non-negotiable questions in your RFP:

• Have you redesigned websites for Am Law 100/200 or comparable sophisticated firms?
• Can you show 3–5 actual law-firm redesigns comparable to ours?
• Who writes the practice-area and attorney bios?
• How do you handle Illinois attorney advertising rules?
• How do you vet claims such as "leading," "best," "expert," "specialist," etc.?
• How do you handle case results, representative matters and client testimonials?
• Who owns the site, source code, content, photography and analytics accounts after launch?
• What is your approach to SEO migration and preserving existing rankings?
• How will you handle accessibility, Core Web Vitals and mobile performance?
• Can the firm's marketing/legal teams make content changes without going back to the agency?
• What happens after launch—hosting, security, updates and ongoing SEO?

The ABA's current guidance is particularly relevant here: hiring a marketing agency doesn't transfer the firm's ethical responsibility. The firm still needs processes for reviewing website copy and vendor-generated marketing. www.americanbar.org

My recommendation

If you're a downtown Chicago professional-services firm with a sophisticated brand rather than a small consumer PI practice, I'd start by interviewing AttorneySync, Market JD, and Pattern 6, and I'd also get one proposal from a more branding/design-led firm so you have a useful comparison.

I would not automatically choose the prettiest portfolio. For a law firm, the best partner should be able to demonstrate that they understand both high-end professional-services positioning and legal marketing compliance.

If you tell me roughly your firm's size (e.g. 10 attorneys vs. 100+), practice areas, and whether the goal is primarily brand/reputation or new-client generation, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and compare them on legal experience, portfolio quality, likely price tier, SEO, compliance, and fit for your firm.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a generic web-design agency and shortlist firms that can demonstrate actual legal-sector work, understand attorney advertising/compliance, and know how to structure practice-area and attorney content for both credibility and search.

My Chicago shortlist

1. AttorneySync — strongest overall fit
Located at 211 W. Wacker, AttorneySync is specifically focused on law-firm marketing rather than being a generalist agency. Its services include website design/development, SEO, analytics and ongoing website support. That makes it particularly attractive if the redesign needs to be tied to your broader marketing strategy rather than treated as a standalone design project.

2. Builden Partners — best for a sophisticated/full-service firm
Builden works exclusively with law firms, including large Am Law firms and boutiques. Importantly for a marketing director, they offer strategic management of law-firm website redesigns—not simply web development. They're based at 150 S. Wacker. This would be one of my first calls if you're representing an established downtown firm with multiple stakeholders and a substantial brand/reputation to protect.

3. Market JD, Inc. — strong marketing + website option
Market JD specializes in attorney/law-firm marketing and offers website redesigns alongside SEO, paid media and analytics. Their positioning around intake-oriented user journeys could be useful if the redesign has a measurable business-development objective rather than simply modernizing the firm's look.

4. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good if lead generation is a major objective
Their Chicago office is in River North and they focus heavily on law firms, combining website redesign with SEO, paid advertising and reputation/brand work. I'd consider them particularly if you're looking for an agency to own the digital acquisition side after launch.

5. Dupont Creative — worth putting on the RFP list
Dupont has a dedicated Chicago law-firm web-design practice and publicly showcases work for firms including Shulman Rogers, Trade Pacific Law, Xsensus and Walsh Colucci. They emphasize custom WordPress development, SEO, security/maintenance and confidentiality considerations. www.dupontcreative.com

There's also a useful example from Hype Legal: they redesigned Chicago business/injury firm Hart McLaughlin & Eldridge around a more polished, user-focused presentation of the firm's expertise. www.hypelegal.com

What I'd require in your RFP

For a serious law-firm redesign, I'd make these non-negotiable:

• Actual law-firm portfolio — preferably firms comparable to yours in size and practice mix.
• Attorney/practice-area information architecture — not a generic corporate-site template.
• Legal advertising compliance — specifically Illinois attorney advertising rules and appropriate disclaimers/testimonials/case-result treatment.
• SEO migration strategy — preservation/redirects of existing URLs, rankings, backlinks and metadata.
• Accessibility — WCAG-conscious implementation.
• Security/privacy — especially if you're collecting prospective-client information.
• CMS ownership — your firm should own the site, content and accounts rather than being trapped in an agency's proprietary platform.
• Analytics/intake attribution — phone calls, forms and consultation requests should be measurable.
• Copywriting — don't let the agency simply paste your existing practice-area descriptions into a prettier template.
• Attorney bios — these are often among the most important conversion pages for a professional-services firm.
• Launch governance — a process for partner review without turning the project into an endless committee exercise.

I'd also separate "beautiful website" from "effective law-firm website." The latter needs to communicate institutional credibility while making it extremely easy for a prospective client, referral source, journalist, or prospective lateral to understand who you are and where you have authority.

If I were running the selection

I'd invite AttorneySync, Builden Partners, Market JD and Dupont Creative to pitch, rather than sending an RFP to 15 agencies. That gives you a useful mix of legal-specialist marketing, large-firm strategic experience, performance marketing, and design/development expertise.

For a large downtown Chicago firm, I'd put Builden Partners and AttorneySync at the top of the initial conversation list. Builden is especially interesting if this is a sophisticated institutional rebrand/redesign; AttorneySync if you want the website tightly integrated with measurable digital marketing.

If you tell me the firm's approximate size, practice areas, current website, and whether this is primarily a brand refresh or a lead-generation/SEO project, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and compare them on legal experience, likely fit, strengths/weaknesses, and what I'd ask each one in the pitch.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a legal-specialist agency or a law-firm marketing consultancy managing a specialist web team, rather than a generic web-design shop.

My Chicago shortlist

1. AttorneySync — strongest overall fit

They’re at 211 W. Wacker and focus specifically on law-firm marketing, including website design/development, SEO, analytics and ongoing optimization. That makes them particularly interesting if the redesign is supposed to be a business-development asset, not merely a visual refresh.

AttorneySync

2. Builden Partners — strongest for an established/midsize-to-large firm

This is the one I'd investigate if you're marketing an established Chicago firm with multiple practices, partners and stakeholders. Builden works exclusively with law firms and specifically manages law-firm website redesigns from audit through launch. Their Chicago office is at 150 S. Wacker. www.buildenpartners.com

Builden Partners

3. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good if you want redesign + lead generation

They specialize in legal marketing and combine web design with SEO, paid search, reputation/brand work and conversion optimization. I'd consider them if the website needs to produce measurable intake rather than simply elevate the firm's brand.

4. BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — legal-specialist alternative

A Chicago legal marketing/web-design provider with a specific law-firm focus. Worth including in an RFP if you want a smaller specialist alongside the larger agencies.

5. Dupont Creative — worth a look for design quality

Their Chicago law-firm practice specifically positions them around established firms, and they emphasize understanding the legal industry's standards and the need to communicate sophisticated legal services professionally. www.dupontcreative.com

Dupont Creative — Chicago Law Firm Web Design

What I'd demand in the RFP

The important thing is that "legal industry experience" shouldn't just mean they've built attractive attorney websites. Your agency should demonstrate that it understands:

• Illinois attorney advertising rules and the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct
• Attorney/client disclaimers and avoiding inadvertent attorney-client relationships
• Ethical treatment of case results, testimonials, awards, rankings and superlatives
• Privacy and intake-form considerations
• ADA/accessibility from the architecture and development stage, not as an afterthought www.americanbar.org
• SEO preservation during a redesign: redirects, metadata, URLs, structured data, rankings and backlinks
• Large-scale attorney/practice-area content architecture
• CMS governance so marketing can make changes without breaking the site
• Analytics tied to qualified inquiries, not just traffic
• AI/search visibility, which is increasingly relevant to how prospective clients discover lawyers. The ABA specifically highlighted this in its February 2026 guidance. businesslawtoday.org

The ABA also emphasizes that law-firm websites need accurate, non-misleading content, appropriate disclaimers, privacy considerations, accessibility and ongoing SEO/content management. www.americanbar.org

If I were you

I'd invite AttorneySync, Builden Partners and one of dNOVO/Dupont to pitch.

I'd give all three the same brief and existing-site analytics, then ask them to present:

1. Their proposed information architecture
2. Three examples of comparable law firms they've redesigned
3. Their approach to Illinois ethical/compliance review
4. SEO migration plan
5. Accessibility methodology
6. CMS recommendation
7. Timeline and internal responsibilities
8. Measurement plan for leads/intake
9. Total project cost + ongoing costs
10. What happens after launch

That will tell you much more than looking at agency portfolios.

If you tell me roughly how big the firm is (e.g. 10 attorneys vs. 100+), practice areas, current CMS, and whether the priority is prestige/brand, recruiting, or new-client acquisition, I can narrow this to 2–3 agencies I'd actually put on your shortlist and compare them side-by-side.

For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a general-purpose web design agency. You want a partner that understands legal marketing ethics, attorney positioning, practice-area SEO, intake conversion, accessibility, and the expectations of sophisticated clients. A strong redesign partner should be able to discuss not just fonts and layouts, but how prospective clients evaluate credibility and decide whether to contact your firm.

Here are firms worth evaluating:

Orbit Media Studios

Orbit Media Studios official website
A Chicago-based agency with a strong reputation for strategy-driven websites. They specifically offer law firm website design and emphasize research, custom design, search optimization, and conversion strategy. www.orbitmedia.com
Best fit: Established firms that want a premium brand experience and sophisticated UX rather than a lead-gen-only site.

Postali

Postali official website
A legal-focused marketing firm that builds websites specifically around law firm goals, practice areas, content strategy, and conversion paths. www.postali.comwww.orbitmedia.com
Best fit: Firms that want a legal-industry specialist handling both website strategy and ongoing marketing.

Dupont Creative

Dupont Creative official website
They specifically market Chicago law firm website design, with experience around custom legal websites, SEO, and firm positioning. www.dupontcreative.comwww.orbitmedia.com
Best fit: Mid-size firms wanting a custom WordPress-based site and a more hands-on agency relationship.

Marketing for Justice

Marketing for Justice official website
A legal-industry-focused provider emphasizing conversion optimization, mobile-first design, and SEO foundations for law firms. marketingforjustice.com
Best fit: Firms focused heavily on generating qualified inquiries and measuring marketing ROI.

CaseOrbit

CaseOrbit official website
A Chicago-focused legal marketing company positioning around law firm websites, local SEO, conversion optimization, and intake workflows. caseorbit.co
Best fit: Firms competing aggressively in Chicago search results and looking for measurable lead growth.

What I’d require in your RFP/interview process

Ask each candidate:

1. “Show us 3–5 law firm redesigns you personally built.”

Look for firms with similar complexity (multiple partners, multiple practices, corporate clients), not just solo attorneys.

2. “How do you handle Illinois attorney advertising rules?”

They should understand issues around testimonials, case results, disclaimers, and claims of expertise.

3. “What is your approach to attorney bios?”

For many firms, attorney profile pages are among the highest-value pages.

4. “How will you protect our SEO during migration?”

A redesign can accidentally destroy rankings through URL changes, lost metadata, or poor redirects.

5. “Who owns the site, content, analytics, and code?”

Avoid arrangements where your firm is locked into an agency platform.

6. “How will you measure success after launch?”

Good answers include qualified inquiries, conversion rates, search visibility, engagement, and intake quality—not just traffic.

For a downtown Chicago firm, I would probably shortlist Orbit Media, Postali, and Dupont Creative first, then compare them against a legal-specialist agency like Marketing for Justice or CaseOrbit depending on whether your priority is brand prestige or new-client acquisition. www.orbitmedia.com

If you tell me your firm size (solo / 5–20 attorneys / 20+), practice areas, and whether the goal is reputation/brand, recruiting, SEO leads, or client portal functionality, I can narrow this to the best 3–5 vendors.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a firm that does legal websites regularly rather than a general Chicago web-design shop. The distinction matters because your site has to balance brand sophistication, attorney bios/practice-area content, SEO and lead generation with Illinois lawyer-advertising requirements. Illinois guidance makes clear that website content is subject to the professional-conduct rules, including the prohibition on false or misleading communications. www.isba.org

My Chicago shortlist

1. AttorneySync — my first call for a marketing-led redesign

They're based at 211 W. Wacker and specialize specifically in legal marketing rather than serving every type of business. Their offering includes law-firm website design/development, SEO, paid search, analytics and ongoing website support. That makes them particularly interesting if the redesign is supposed to generate measurable business, not simply modernize the firm's appearance.

2. Market JD, Inc. — strong fit if you're a sophisticated law-firm marketing team

Market JD is at 20 N. Wacker and focuses specifically on attorneys/law firms. Their positioning combines website design with SEO, conversion-oriented intake flows and broader digital marketing. I'd put them high on the RFP list if you want the website to integrate tightly with your existing marketing program.

3. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good for an aggressive growth/lead-generation approach

Their Chicago office is in River North, and they're heavily focused on law-firm acquisition through website design, SEO, PPC, reputation and branding. I'd consider them particularly if the firm's objective is more qualified inquiries, rather than primarily an Am Law-style brand presentation.

4. Attorney Web Design | Chicago — specialist option

This is another legal-specific provider downtown, at 233 S. Wacker. They explicitly position their sites around attorney/law-firm needs and conversion. I'd interview them, but I'd want to see several examples involving firms with a similar practice mix and level of sophistication to yours.

5. Builden Partners — different type of partner, potentially very valuable

They're at 150 S. Wacker and work exclusively with law firms, including larger Am Law firms. They're more of a legal marketing/business-development consultancy than a pure web-development shop, but they specifically provide strategic management of law-firm website redesigns. If your firm has an internal marketing department and you're looking for someone to own the strategy/RFP/project management while a separate developer executes, I'd seriously consider them.

One agency I'd also look at for design quality

Solid Digital is at 100 N. LaSalle and appears to have a stronger general B2B/brand-and-digital-design orientation than the legal specialists above. If your firm is looking for a premium corporate/BigLaw visual experience, rather than a lead-gen-heavy personal-injury-style site, I'd consider getting a proposal from them alongside one or two legal specialists.

There's also independent evidence that legal-specialist agencies are doing sophisticated Chicago work: Hype Legal, for example, has a published case study for Chicago business/injury firm Hart McLaughlin & Eldridge emphasizing user-focused design, professional presentation and clearer legal content. www.hypelegal.com

What I'd put in your RFP

Don't just ask, "Can you redesign our website?" I'd require each agency to demonstrate:

• 3–5 comparable law-firm redesigns, preferably firms with similar size/practice areas
• Experience with Illinois attorney advertising/professional-responsibility requirements
• Migration strategy that protects existing SEO rankings and backlinks
• Practice-area architecture designed around how prospective clients actually search
• Sophisticated attorney bio and credentials presentation
• WCAG/accessibility considerations
• Mobile performance/Core Web Vitals
• CMS that your marketing team can actually maintain
• Analytics, conversion tracking and CRM/intake integration
• Clear treatment of contact forms and prospective-client communications
• Ownership/portability of the site's code, content, analytics and domain
• A documented post-launch SEO/redirect strategy
• Editorial workflow that allows lawyers to approve legally sensitive content

That last part is important: Illinois ethics guidance says the lawyer is responsible for marketing conduct, and specifically notes that law-firm websites are governed by the rules concerning lawyer advertising. www.isba.org

If this were my project, I'd start with AttorneySync, Market JD and Builden Partners, then add a more design-forward agency such as Solid Digital as a benchmark. That would give you three different approaches: legal-specialist execution, legal-specialist performance marketing, and law-firm strategic oversight/design management.

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (e.g. 10, 50, 200+ attorneys), your practice areas, and whether you're trying to look more BigLaw/corporate or more client-acquisition focused, I can narrow this to the 3 best agencies and compare them on portfolio quality, legal expertise, likely budget range, and fit for your firm.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d prioritize a legal-specialist agency over a general web-design shop. Legal websites have unusual requirements around attorney advertising, testimonials/case results, accessibility, disclaimers, privacy, intake, SEO, and preserving search equity during a redesign.

Based on current Chicago options, I’d put these on your shortlist:

1. AttorneySync — my first call for a law-firm-focused digital partner. They’re based at 211 W. Wacker and specialize exclusively in legal marketing, including website design/development, SEO, analytics, and ongoing site support. That makes them particularly relevant if the redesign needs to be tied to lead generation rather than simply a visual refresh.

2. Market JD, Inc. — another strong legal-specialist option, with a downtown office at 20 N. Wacker. Their positioning is specifically around law firms and includes mobile-optimized websites, intake-oriented UX, SEO, and broader legal marketing. Their materials also emphasize understanding law-firm operations rather than treating you like a generic professional-services client.

3. Builden Partners — particularly interesting if you're an AmLaw/midsize firm or have a sophisticated in-house marketing department. They're at 150 S. Wacker and work specifically with law firms. Rather than just being a web shop, they offer website-redesign management, marketing strategy, business development, CRM strategy, and marketing-department consulting. www.buildenpartners.com

4. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — legal-focused and Chicago-based, with website redesign, SEO, paid search, reputation/branding, and conversion optimization. I'd consider them if you want the redesign to roll directly into a broader client-acquisition program.

5. Solid Digital — a more general, sophisticated Chicago digital agency rather than a law-firm specialist. Their downtown office is at 100 N. LaSalle. I'd consider them if brand positioning, sophisticated UX, and a premium corporate aesthetic are more important than having a legal-only agency.

One wildcard I'd interview

Orbit Media's legal website practice is worth putting into the RFP. They're Chicago-based and explicitly offer custom legal website design, research/strategy, SEO and conversion optimization, accessibility, security, backups, and CMS training. Their published redesign timeline is substantially longer—roughly 10–30+ weeks—which is actually useful if you're contemplating a major AmLaw-style redesign rather than a quick marketing-site refresh. www.orbitmedia.com

What I'd require in your RFP

Don't just ask agencies to "redesign the website." I'd make these non-negotiable requirements:

• Illinois attorney-advertising compliance: Have them explain exactly how they review attorney bios, testimonials, verdicts/settlements, awards, superlatives, disclaimers, etc.
• SEO migration: 301 mapping of every important URL, preservation of rankings/backlinks, metadata migration, schema, redirects and Search Console monitoring.
• Accessibility: WCAG-oriented implementation and an actual accessibility-testing process—not merely an "ADA compliant" checkbox.
• Attorney/practice-area architecture: The CMS should make it easy for your marketing team to add attorneys, practices, offices, publications and thought leadership.
• Intake optimization: Calls, consultation forms and other conversion paths should be measurable in analytics/CRM.
• Editorial control: Your marketing team should be able to update content without going back to the developer for every change.
• Performance/security: Core Web Vitals, mobile performance, backups, security monitoring and a documented maintenance process.
• Content strategy: Ask whether they will actually rewrite the site or simply pour existing copy into a new template.
• Analytics ownership: Your firm should own GA4, Search Console, Tag Manager, CRM integrations, domain, hosting credentials and the website code/content.
• Post-launch support: Get a defined SLA and pricing rather than discovering afterward that every small change is a new project.

Orbit specifically calls out accessibility, security monitoring, responsive/mobile-first design, updates and backups in its legal offering, while Marketing for Justice emphasizes conversion optimization, mobile-first performance, Core Web Vitals and legal-specific content. Those are good benchmarks for what you should expect from any finalist. www.orbitmedia.com

If this were my RFP, I'd interview AttorneySync, Market JD, Builden Partners, and Orbit Media first. I'd then choose based on the firm's size/practice mix: a consumer-facing litigation firm needs a very different site strategy from a 100+ attorney corporate/litigation firm.

If you tell me roughly how many attorneys you have, your practice areas, whether you're AmLaw/midsize/boutique, and your approximate redesign budget, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and give you a side-by-side comparison of likely fit, strengths, weaknesses, and questions to ask each one.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d prioritize an agency that works specifically with law firms, rather than a general web-design shop. Legal websites have additional considerations around attorney advertising, confidentiality, disclaimers, testimonials, practice-area claims, accessibility, and lead-generation/intake. The ABA specifically cautions that firms remain responsible for marketing vendors’ work and recommends a review/approval process for website content. www.americanbar.orgwww.americanbar.org

My Chicago shortlist

1. AttorneySync — best overall fit
   • Downtown at 211 W. Wacker.
   • Focuses exclusively on law-firm marketing.
   • Website design, SEO, PPC, analytics and intake/lead-generation strategy.
   • Particularly worth interviewing if the redesign is intended to generate measurable business, not just modernize the firm's appearance.

2. Market JD, Inc. — strong choice for an established firm
   • 20 N. Wacker.
   • Law-firm-focused marketing agency with website design, SEO, paid media and analytics.
   • Their approach ties the website to conversion and client-intake journeys rather than treating it as an isolated design project.

3. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good integrated marketing option
   • Chicago office and substantial legal-marketing focus.
   • Combines website redesign with SEO, paid advertising, reputation and branding.
   • I'd consider them if you're looking for an agency that can stay on after launch.

4. Pattern 6 — interesting boutique option
   • Chicago-based and explicitly focused on legal marketing.
   • Emphasizes custom rather than template sites, SEO architecture, practice-area pages and conversion tracking.
   • Worth including if you want something more differentiated from the typical law-firm website aesthetic.

5. Deviant Marketing — best one to investigate for brand differentiation
   • Chicago-based and focused on legal marketing.
   • Their positioning emphasizes branding and creating a distinctive firm identity rather than producing another generic "lawyer website."
   • Potentially attractive for a sophisticated downtown firm competing with other large Chicago firms.

One non-specialist I'd also put on the RFP list

Orbit Media's law-firm website practice is headquartered in Chicago and has a dedicated legal website-design offering. They're not as narrowly law-firm-only as some of the agencies above, but they have a more substantial web strategy/design orientation and could be particularly interesting for a sophisticated redesign. They say full redesigns typically run 10–30+ weeks, which gives you a sense of the scope of a serious strategic redesign. www.orbitmedia.com

What I'd require in your RFP

Don't simply ask, "Can you redesign our website?" I'd ask each firm to demonstrate:

• 3–5 comparable law-firm redesigns, preferably firms similar in size and practice mix.
• How they handle Illinois attorney advertising requirements and who performs final compliance review.
• Their approach to practice-area information architecture and attorney bios.
• Technical SEO during a redesign, including URL mapping and redirects so you don't lose existing rankings.
• WCAG/ADA accessibility and mobile performance.
• Conversion strategy: consultation requests, phone calls, attorney/contact routing and analytics.
• CMS ownership and whether your firm owns the site, content, design files and domain.
• How they handle testimonials, verdicts/results, awards, "best/expert" claims and AI-generated content.
• Who actually writes the copy and whether attorneys have a structured review process.
• Post-launch SEO, analytics and maintenance.
• A clear project timeline, deliverables and fixed/estimated budget.

That compliance piece is important: the ABA notes that websites are subject to lawyer-advertising rules and specifically flags misleading claims, confidentiality, testimonials/results and third-party marketing vendors as areas requiring attention. www.americanbar.orgwww.americanbar.org

If I were running the selection process, I'd start with AttorneySync, Market JD, Orbit Media, and Deviant Marketing and have all four respond to the same RFP. That gives you a useful mix of legal-specialist marketing expertise, enterprise-quality web strategy, and brand differentiation.

If you tell me the firm's approximate attorney count, practice areas, current website, and whether the goal is primarily prestige/brand, recruiting, client acquisition, or all three, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually invite to pitch and compare their relevant work.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I would prioritize an agency that works with law firms routinely—not a general web-design shop that happens to have a few attorney clients. Legal websites have additional considerations around attorney advertising, disclaimers, testimonials, confidentiality, accessibility, SEO, and jurisdiction-specific rules. Illinois specifically treats a law firm's website as subject to the rules governing communications about legal services. www.isba.org

My Chicago shortlist

1. AttorneySync — strongest overall fit
211 W. Wacker Dr., downtown Chicago. This is probably where I'd start. They're specifically focused on law-firm marketing, with website design/development, SEO, PPC, analytics, and ongoing optimization rather than simply building a pretty site. Their legal-industry specialization is a major advantage.

2. Market JD, Inc. — particularly interesting for a sophisticated firm
They focus specifically on attorneys/law firms and combine website redesign with SEO and lead-generation strategy. Their positioning around intake-oriented website architecture is worth investigating if the redesign needs to generate measurable business rather than just modernize the firm's image.

3. Builden Partners — best if you're a larger/mid-size firm
They're at 150 S. Wacker and work exclusively with law firms, including larger Am Law firms. Importantly, they approach website redesign from the marketing/business-development side, including project management and strategy, rather than being purely a web-development vendor. I'd seriously consider them if you're redesigning a sophisticated firm brand with multiple practice groups.

4. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good integrated digital option
Chicago office, with law-firm-focused website design, SEO, paid advertising, reputation/brand work and conversion optimization. Worth putting into an RFP if you want the website and subsequent digital acquisition strategy handled by one team.

5. BSPE Legal Marketing - Chicago — specialized legal-marketing alternative
Located on Michigan Avenue and focused specifically on attorney/law-firm marketing. I'd include them in the comparison, particularly if local SEO and lead generation are significant objectives.

What I'd require in your RFP

Don't just ask agencies, "Can you redesign our website?" I'd ask for evidence that they can handle:

• Illinois attorney advertising compliance and appropriate disclaimers
• Attorney/practice-area architecture for a potentially large site
• SEO migration so you don't lose rankings and inbound traffic during the redesign
• WCAG/ADA accessibility
• Mobile performance and Core Web Vitals
• Sophisticated attorney bios and credentials
• Practice-area content that is persuasive without making problematic claims
• Secure contact/intake forms and appropriate handling of prospective-client information
• Analytics tied to qualified inquiries, not merely pageviews
• CMS your marketing team can actually manage
• Integration with your CRM/intake system
• Redirect mapping for every existing URL
• Content strategy, not just visual design
• Ownership of the domain, CMS, analytics accounts, source code and creative assets

The ABA specifically recommends involving SEO professionals in a redesign so that design/content changes don't inadvertently destroy existing search visibility, and emphasizes accessibility as well. www.americanbar.org Clio's current guidance likewise emphasizes SEO, accessibility, clear calls-to-action, mobile responsiveness and jurisdiction-specific ethical considerations. www.clio.com

If I were running the project

I'd probably RFP AttorneySync, Market JD, and Builden Partners first, with dNOVO as a fourth bid.

The important distinction is that Builden is more of a law-firm marketing/business-development strategic partner, whereas AttorneySync/Market JD are more naturally suited to a website + digital acquisition/SEO engagement. For a major downtown firm whose website needs to reinforce institutional credibility and sophisticated practice-group positioning, that distinction matters.

If you tell me roughly how many attorneys you have, your practice areas, whether you're Am Law/BigLaw or a boutique/midsize firm, and your approximate redesign budget, I can narrow this to 3 agencies and compare them on legal-industry experience, likely fit, strengths/weaknesses, and what I would ask each one in the pitch.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d favor a firm that has genuine legal-sector experience rather than a general Chicago web-design shop. You want someone who understands attorney advertising rules, practice-area positioning, attorney bios, legal SEO, accessibility, confidentiality/privacy considerations, and—especially for a redesign—how to preserve existing search equity while improving conversion.

My shortlist

1. Solid Digital — best for a sophisticated, large-firm-style redesign
   • Downtown at 100 N. LaSalle.
   • Strong web strategy, UX, design, development and ongoing support.
   • Better fit if you're looking for a premium corporate/legal-services presentation rather than a typical lead-gen attorney site.
   • I'd specifically ask them to show comparable professional-services/legal work.

2. AttorneySync — best if legal marketing and lead generation are central
   • Based at 211 W. Wacker.
   • Focuses specifically on law firms rather than general businesses, with website, SEO, paid search, analytics and marketing services.
   • This is the type of specialist I'd seriously consider if the redesign needs to produce measurable business-development results.

3. Builden Partners — best for an established/midsize or Am Law firm
   • At 150 S. Wacker.
   • They work exclusively with law firms and specifically offer website-redesign management, marketing strategy and business-development consulting. www.buildenpartners.com
   • I'd consider them particularly if you're a marketing director who wants a strategic partner to manage the redesign, rather than simply hiring a web-development vendor.

4. Market JD, Inc. — best specialized legal-marketing option
   • Chicago office at 20 N. Wacker.
   • Their positioning is specifically around law-firm marketing, including mobile-optimized websites, SEO and intake-oriented conversion paths.
   • Worth including in an RFP if the primary goal is generating qualified inquiries.

5. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — best for a marketing-heavy redesign
   • Chicago office in River North.
   • Specifically targets law firms and combines website redesign with SEO, paid advertising, reputation and conversion optimization.

One more I'd put on the RFP list

Orbit Media's legal website design practice is particularly interesting if you're after a high-end strategy/design/development engagement. They're Chicago-based and explicitly offer custom legal website design, research/strategy, SEO and conversion optimization. Their stated redesign timelines can run 10–30+ weeks, which is more consistent with a substantial established-firm redesign than a quick template replacement. www.orbitmedia.com

What I'd require in the RFP

Don't just ask, "Can you redesign our website?" I'd make vendors demonstrate these five things:

• Legal-industry portfolio: At least 3 comparable law firms, preferably firms with similar size/practice mix.
• Illinois compliance: Have them explain how they handle attorney advertising/ethics considerations and who on their team is responsible for compliance review.
• SEO migration: 301 redirects, URL mapping, metadata, schema, preservation of rankings/backlinks, technical SEO and post-launch monitoring.
• Conversion strategy: Clear paths for prospective clients, referral sources and existing clients—not simply "Contact Us" buttons everywhere.
• CMS ownership and portability: Your firm should retain ownership of the domain, content, analytics, design assets and CMS access. Avoid being locked into an agency's proprietary platform.

I'd also make accessibility, page speed/Core Web Vitals, privacy/cookie practices, security, analytics, and ongoing content governance explicit requirements.

One timely consideration: legal marketing is increasingly moving beyond "get more traffic." A recent legal-industry analysis points out that firms can lose significant value when their intake process fails to convert otherwise good leads. www.reuters.com So I'd evaluate agencies on qualified inquiries → consultations → matters, not just traffic and Google rankings.

If this is an established downtown Chicago firm, my first three conversations would be Builden Partners, Orbit Media, and AttorneySync. They represent three useful approaches—legal-sector strategic expertise, premium web strategy/design, and legal-specific performance marketing.

If you tell me roughly your firm size, practice areas, current website, and whether the goal is primarily brand repositioning or new-client acquisition, I can narrow this to 3 vendors and give you a side-by-side evaluation with likely project scope, strengths/weaknesses, and questions to ask each in the pitch.

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d shortlist firms with demonstrated legal-industry experience rather than a generic Chicago web-design agency. The right partner should understand attorney advertising rules, professional-services positioning, accessibility, legal SEO, attorney bios/practice-area architecture, and the difference between a site that looks impressive and one that actually supports business development.

My Chicago shortlist

1. AttorneySync — strongest legal-specialist option
   • Chicago-based, at 211 W. Wacker.
   • Focuses specifically on law firms and offers website design/development, SEO, analytics and ongoing marketing.
   • Particularly worth considering if the redesign needs to connect to lead generation and measurable marketing performance. www.ovclawyermarketing.comwww.expertise.com

2. Builden Partners — strongest fit for a midsize/large firm
   • Chicago-based at 150 S. Wacker.
   • Works exclusively with law firms, ranging from boutiques to Am Law 100 firms.
   • Their offering includes website redesign/rebranding plus broader legal marketing and business-development strategy. That makes them especially interesting if this isn't merely a visual refresh but a repositioning of the firm's brand. www.buildenpartners.comwww.buildenpartners.com

3. dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency — good integrated digital option
   • Chicago office and a legal-focused marketing practice.
   • Combines website design, SEO, paid search, reputation/brand work and lead generation.
   • I'd put them on the RFP list if you want the website and ongoing digital acquisition handled by one partner. www.expertise.com

4. OVC Lawyer Marketing — established legal-web specialist
   • Chicago-area firm with substantial law-firm website experience.
   • Their materials say they've launched 500+ legal websites, with design, development, content and SEO capabilities. www.ovclawyermarketing.comwww.expertise.com

5. Above the Bar Marketing, LLC — worth a proposal
   • Positions itself specifically around law-firm marketing rather than generic web design.
   • Website redesign, SEO and conversion-oriented digital marketing are core services.

One non-legal specialist I'd also interview

Orbit Media is Chicago-based and has a dedicated legal website practice. Its approach is more traditional strategic web design: research, stakeholder interviews, custom design, content strategy, SEO and conversion optimization. It says redesigns can take 10–30+ weeks, which is worth knowing if your firm has a substantial stakeholder/attorney approval process. www.ovclawyermarketing.comwww.expertise.comwww.orbitmedia.com

For a sophisticated downtown firm, I'd probably start conversations with Builden, AttorneySync, and Orbit. They represent three different approaches: legal-industry strategic consulting, legal-specialist digital marketing, and high-end strategic web design.

What I'd put in your RFP

Don't just ask, "Can you redesign our website?" Ask each firm to demonstrate:

• 3–5 law-firm redesigns comparable to yours, preferably sophisticated business-law firms rather than primarily personal-injury sites.
• How they'll handle Illinois attorney advertising/professional-conduct considerations and the firm's internal legal review.
• Their approach to attorney bios, practice-area pages, industries/sectors, offices and thought leadership.
• SEO migration: redirects, metadata, structured data, rankings, backlinks and preservation of existing traffic.
• WCAG/ADA accessibility and mobile performance.
• CMS recommendation and exactly what your marketing team will be able to edit without developers.
• Integration with your CRM, analytics, call tracking and marketing-automation systems.
• Who owns the code, content, design files, domain, analytics accounts and hosting if you eventually change agencies.
• How they'll measure success beyond "the new site looks great": qualified traffic, engagement, attorney visibility, inquiries and business-development outcomes.

One important distinction: if you're an Am Law/midsize corporate firm, I'd weight experience with professional-services positioning and attorney stakeholder management much more heavily than agencies whose portfolio is dominated by consumer law. Builden explicitly works with firms from boutique through Am Law 100, which is why I'd give them a particularly serious look. www.buildenpartners.comwww.buildenpartners.com

If you tell me roughly your firm's size, practice areas, current website, and budget range (e.g. $50–100K vs. $100–250K+), I can narrow this to 3–4 firms and compare them on legal-industry experience, portfolio quality, likely price tier, Chicago presence, and fit for your firm.

Yes. For a Chicago law firm, I’d avoid a generic Chicago web-design shop and shortlist firms that demonstrably understand legal marketing, attorney advertising rules, practice-area SEO, intake/conversion, and the expectations of sophisticated legal buyers.

My shortlist

1. Orbit Media — strongest overall Chicago option
Orbit Media's legal website design practice
This would be my first call if you’re a midsize or larger firm and want a genuinely strategic redesign rather than a cosmetic refresh. Orbit is Chicago-based and specifically offers legal website design, with an emphasis on strategy, SEO, conversion, UX, and content. They say full redesigns typically take 10–30+ weeks, so they’re appropriate for a substantial project with multiple stakeholders. www.orbitmedia.com

2. Builden Partners — particularly interesting if you want marketing strategy + website
Builden Partners
They are Chicago-based and specifically focus on AmLaw and midsize law firms, offering website redesign alongside broader legal marketing, business development, PR, CRM, and marketing strategy. For an in-house marketing director, that broader perspective could be valuable—you wouldn't necessarily have to treat the website as an isolated project. www.buildenpartners.com

3. Marketing for Justice — strong legal-specialist option
Marketing for Justice
Their entire positioning is around law firm websites, with custom design, mobile-first development, SEO, conversion optimization, and legal-industry considerations. They also showcase a Chicago personal-injury example. I'd put them on the RFP list if lead generation and measurable intake performance matter as much as brand. marketingforjustice.com

4. CaseOrbit — worth considering if Chicago SEO is a major objective
CaseOrbit
They specialize in Chicago-area law firms and combine website design with local SEO, conversion optimization, intake, and legal marketing compliance. Their positioning is particularly oriented toward firms competing for Google visibility in Chicago/Cook County. caseorbit.co

5. icXlegal — interesting for a more legal-specific website platform
icXlegal
Their platform is built specifically around law firm websites, including larger firms and AmLaw firms. It's worth investigating if you value a legal-industry-specific system and faster deployment over having a completely bespoke digital experience. www.icxlegal.com

If I were running your RFP

I'd probably invite Orbit Media, Builden Partners, and Marketing for Justice to pitch.

The reason is that they represent three somewhat different approaches:

One important requirement

Don't let an agency pitch this as simply a "website redesign." For a law firm, I'd make the RFP explicitly cover:

• Attorney advertising/ethical considerations, including Illinois requirements
• Accessibility
• SEO migration and preservation of existing rankings
• Practice-area architecture and content strategy
• Attorney bios and thought leadership
• Client/referral-source journeys
• Conversion and intake strategy
• Analytics tying inquiries back to source/page
• CMS ownership and ease of internal editing
• Security/privacy around contact and intake information
• Performance/Core Web Vitals
• Google/local search strategy where appropriate
• Integration with your CRM/intake systems
• 301 redirects and technical SEO at launch
• A post-launch optimization period

That legal-specific expertise really matters: current guidance on law-firm web design specifically flags ethical marketing considerations and the need to follow the rules of the applicable jurisdiction rather than treating a law firm like an ordinary professional-services client. www.icxlegal.comwww.clio.com

One other reason I'd be careful with the vendor-selection process: Illinois has just enacted new legislation affecting certain law firms and outside entities, so if your redesign involves intake technology, AI, client data, or other operational integrations, I'd have counsel review those aspects rather than relying solely on an agency's "compliance" claim. www.reuters.com

If you tell me your firm's approximate size, practice areas, and whether the priority is prestige/brand, recruiting, business development, or consumer lead generation, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually interview and compare their likely fit, pricing tier, strengths, and weaknesses.

Yes. For a downtown Chicago law firm, I’d strongly favor a firm that understands legal marketing and attorney-review dynamics rather than a generic Chicago web-design shop.

My shortlist

1. Builden Partners — best fit if you're an AmLaw/midsize or sophisticated boutique firm

This would be my first call based on what you've described. Builden works exclusively with law firms, including boutiques through Am Law 100 firms, and specifically manages website redesigns from audit through launch. They’re at 150 S. Wacker, so they're particularly convenient for a downtown firm. www.buildenpartners.comwww.buildenpartners.comwww.attorneysync.comwww.orbitmedia.com

What stands out is that they understand the internal side of legal marketing: getting partner/leadership approval, managing attorney bios and practice-group content, coordinating vendors, and keeping lawyers from becoming the bottleneck. They also have a case study involving a regional trial firm where they handled practice-group restructuring, content, photography, and vendor management. www.buildenpartners.com

Builden Partners — website redesign services

2. AttorneySync — best if growth/SEO and lead generation are major objectives

AttorneySync is also Chicago-based and focuses exclusively on law firms. Its services include website design/development, SEO, PPC, content, CRM and lead nurturing. www.attorneysync.com

I'd put them higher on the list if your redesign is supposed to materially improve search visibility, inquiries, and measurable marketing performance, rather than primarily reposition the firm's brand.

AttorneySync

3. Orbit Media Studios — best if design/UX and technical execution are priorities

Orbit is a well-established Chicago web agency with a dedicated legal-industry practice. They do custom design, research, content strategy, SEO, accessibility and development rather than putting you into a legal website template. www.orbitmedia.com

Their legal portfolio is particularly relevant: they redesigned KSN Law, dealing with migration of 500+ blog posts, 54 attorney bios and decades of content while preserving SEO through redirects. www.orbitmedia.com That's the sort of experience I'd want if your existing site has a substantial content library.

Orbit Media — legal website design

One important distinction

I'd choose differently depending on your firm:

I would not make "ADA compliant" or "SEO optimized" the deciding factor by itself. Those should be table stakes. For a law firm redesign, I'd specifically evaluate legal advertising/ethics review processes, attorney bio architecture, practice-group information architecture, content migration/redirects, accessibility, CMS governance, analytics/CRM integration, search strategy, and how they handle partner approvals.

One other Chicago option worth knowing about is dNOVO Group | Law Firm Marketing Agency, which combines law-firm website design with SEO, paid search and broader client-acquisition work. www.expertise.com

If I were you, I'd issue an RFP to Builden, Orbit, and AttorneySync rather than choosing from a huge agency list. That gives you three meaningfully different approaches: legal-specialist strategy, premium web/UX execution, and performance marketing.

If you tell me roughly how large the firm is (e.g. 20 attorneys vs. 200+) and your practice areas, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 agencies and compare their relevant legal work, likely budget range, and strengths/weaknesses.