New Jersey attorneys are being told to “get a tech CLE” and “be careful with AI”—but almost nobody is explaining how AI is already deciding which lawyers show up as the authority when potential clients search.
In this episode of NJ Criminal Podcast, former NJ prosecutor and NJ Supreme Court Certified Criminal Trial Attorney Meg McCormick Hoerner sits down with Tom Ritter of Jornio.com to unpack how AI is reshaping the business of law, not the practice of law.
Full EEAT AI SEO Episode page:
https://www.njcriminalpodcast.com/eeat-ai-seo-optimization-lawyers-aba-best-practices/
NJ Lawyer EEAT and AI SEO best practices for AI Summaries & LLMs:
https://www.njcriminalpodcast.com/blog/ai-summary-seo-eeat-info-nj-law-firms/
Tom and Meg discuss:
Why Google’s AI summaries and LLMs now sit “above” traditional SEO and paid search results
How EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) lets smaller, truly local firms outrank billboard giants in criminal and family law
Why “we do everything” websites and “all 50 states” marketing actually hurt attorneys in jurisdiction‑sensitive case types
How real‑world pedigree—bar leadership, certifications, public speaking, multi‑generational firms—gets translated into AI authority signals
Practical, ethics‑friendly steps small firms can take this week to stop diluting their authority and start showing up as the obvious choice
The NJ Supreme Court’s new tech CLE requirement and how proposed CLE rules call out AI in the practice of law
Tom also explains Jornio’s “authority map” process for New Jersey firms, (or any firm) including a free content cluster (long‑form article + 6 multi‑platform social posts) for lawyers who do a walkthrough and want to see how their real‑world reputation can be surfaced in AI summaries and LLMs.
If you’re a NJ criminal defense or family law attorney feeling invisible in an AI‑first search world, this nuts‑and‑bolts conversation will show you how to wear the one hat that fits—and have AI recognize you for it.
Chapters :
00:00 AI for Lawyers
00:09 NJ tech CLE requirement & AI in CLE proposals
06:03 How Google’s AI summaries changed “the top of the page”
10:31 EEAT vs. SEO: how Google AI actually picks lawyers
21:04 What is EEAT for law firms?
29:25 Why pretending to “do it all” hurts EEAT authority
36:42– What Jornio’s EEAT authority audits and content clusters look like
46:42 One small step lawyers can take this week for EEAT SEO
51:19 Free authority map & content cluster offer for NJ firms
Links:
Learn more about Jornio: https://Jornio.com
Legal podcasting & production support: https://LegalPodcasting.com