Mesothelioma law firm SEO case study
By Ihor Lavrenenko · Updated
An asbestos and mesothelioma firm signed with Rathly in spring 2026 for technical repairs and links. Its rankings and impressions climbed. Its clicks didn't, and this study shows why.
- ✓Technical review in spring 2026
- ✓Case pages repaired and linked together
- ✓Links from relevant sites, month by month
- ✓Impressions up 59%, position 19.6 to 12.7
A national asbestos practice in a crowded niche
Mesothelioma and asbestos searches draw many law firms, from national practices to local injury firms. This firm ranks for asbestos searches across the country.
- 01
Scope of the work
The firm's own team covers content and site speed. Rathly handled crawl problems, redirects, internal links and new backlinks.
- 02
Two equal windows
We started in spring 2026. The study compares January to March 2026, before most of the work, with August to October 2026.
Technical repairs, then authority
A focused scope, so the before and after windows sit cleanly on either side of the work.
- 01Spring 2026
Technical audit
We reviewed the case, resource and attorney pages and listed every broken link and redirect problem we found.You get a prioritized list - 02Spring 2026
Fixes
We repaired the broken links and redirects and tied the asbestos exposure pages to the case pages.You get pages ready to rank - 03Ongoing
New links
We added links from relevant sites to the case pages, building authority month by month.You get rising authority - 04Today
Check your case pages
Send your site and we review it first.Talk to us →
Why higher rankings brought fewer clicks
Across the site, impressions rose 59% and average position improved by seven places. Clicks fell 24%, from 1.64K to 1.24K, and the click rate dropped from 0.5% to 0.2%.
- 01
Case searches
For mesothelioma attorney, the firm climbed from position 35.1 to 8.9. Paid ads and local listings sit above it, so searchers see the firm's result far more often than they click it.
- 02
Exposure questions
Many of the firm's visitors search for a ship, a job site or a product linked to asbestos. Google's AI Overviews now answer many of those questions on the results page.
- 03
What we do about it
Rankings are the base. The next step is pairing them with ads and map results, where the clicks for case searches now go.
mesothelioma attorney, from page four to page one
Search Console filtered to the firm's most valuable search. The climb is the work; the clicks show how the results page has changed.
Position 35.1 to 8.9
August to October 2026 against January to March 2026. The page now shows on page one, below ads and the map pack.
Click the screenshot for full sizeAsbestos searches that moved up
How the firm's case searches ranked in January to March 2026 and in August to October 2026. Branded searches sit outside this list.
| Search | Jan to Mar | Aug to Oct |
|---|---|---|
| mesothelioma attorney | 35.1 | 8.9 |
| top mesothelioma lawyers | 34.4 | 8.7 |
| mesothelioma lawyer | 14.9 | 11.5 |
| new haven mesothelioma law firm | 17.5 | 10.4 |
| mesothelioma attorneys utah | 20.2 | 10.9 |
| pittsburgh asbestos lawyer | 18.8 | 11.7 |
Search Console data. Searches in the top three rose from 248 to 298, and 281 reached page one.
What rankings can and can't do now
Other client case studies
Pest control · Dallas-Fort WorthPest control company
789keywords in Google's top threeForterra Pest Control launched a 377-page site in September 2026. Seven weeks later, Google clicks ran 52% above the summer.Web design, SEO, Google Maps, Link building · Jul to Nov 2026Read the case study →
Cosmetic dermatology · Manhattan and Long IslandCosmetic dermatologist
2x+patient requests from the websiteNew York Cosmetic, Skin & Laser Surgery Center got a rebuilt site, ten editorial links a month and answer-first pages. Patient requests more than doubled.Web design, SEO, Link building, AI search · Jul 2025 to Oct 2026Read the case study →
Upholstery cleaning · OrlandoUpholstery cleaning company
Top 3on Google Maps for upholstery cleaning orlandoPink Upholstery Cleaning opened in June 2026 with no website and no Google listing. Four months later, it sits in Google's map pack in Orlando.Web design, SEO, Google Maps, AI search, Meta ads · Jun to Nov 2026Read the case study →- +52%Google clicks in two monthsLaw firm · Missouri
Personal injury law firm
Technical fixes and editorial links. Google clicks rose 52%, and average position improved from 20.4 to 14.9.Technical SEO, Link building · Dec 2025 to Mar 2026Read the case study → - 35.6 → 3position for dui lawyerLaw firm · South Florida
Criminal defense law firm
Lawyer searches moved onto Google's first page and impressions grew 48%. Clicks didn't follow, and the study shows why.Technical SEO, Link building · Oct 2025 to Mar 2026Read the case study →
Move your case pages up in Google
- ✓ An audit before a long contract
- ✓ Fixes to the pages that matter
- ✓ Links you can check yourself
- ✓ A reply the same or next day