Access Legal | Missed Growth Opportunity for Law Firms as Report Reveals 84% Of Clients are Satisfied with the Service – But 66% Don’t Leave a Review
High client satisfaction isn’t translating into real commercial gains for small and mid-sized law firms, a new report has warned.
Research from Access Legal, a legal technology provider, has uncovered an ‘advocacy gap’ where most UK consumers say they’re happy with the legal services they’ve received but they didn’t leave a review. It suggests that a ‘silent majority’ of satisfied clients could be turned into advocates who help firms build their reputation and win more new business.
As many as 84% of clients had a positive experience – yet two-thirds didn’t leave a review, despite 40% saying they’d choose a firm based on a recommendation.
The findings form part of Access Legal’s latest report, The value gap: Why client satisfaction no longer guarantees growth, based on a survey of 1,000 UK consumers who have used legal services in the past two years. The research examines client satisfaction, decision-making factors, and the role of reviews and recommendations in choosing a firm, as well as attitudes to digital tools and AI.
Andrew Stevens, General Manager at Access Legal, said:
“When a ‘silent’ majority of satisfied clients leaves no public feedback, it can have real commercial implications for law firms. The online reviews and ratings they do receive may be out of date or not accurately reflect the quality of service being delivered across the sector, especially if a vocal minority of negative comments dominate. This results in a benchmarking blind spot, where firms appear to be underperforming relative to peers, despite delivering strong outcomes across fees, communication and results.
“For firm leaders, this has real consequences. Reviews and ratings are increasingly used as a proxy for performance, reputation and competitiveness. If satisfied clients remain silent, firms risk making strategic decisions based on an incomplete or distorted picture, underestimating their strengths and misjudging where improvement is genuinely needed.
“Without visible advocacy from the majority of satisfied clients, firms risk reduced visibility, lost referrals, weaker competitive advantage and skewed benchmarking against peers. In effect, happy clients have become invisible clients – and that’s a business problem.
“The root cause is often timing. Legal matters are inherently stressful, and by the end of a case most clients simply want to move on. Firms frequently ask for reviews at the wrong moment, rather than during emotional peaks where relief, progress or positive outcomes are still fresh.”
He added:
“To unlock real commercial value, firms need structured, well-timed advocacy touchpoints throughout the journey, making it as easy as possible for clients to provide feedback. This is where a client communication app is useful – it can not only prompt users to provide reviews but also track sentiment in real-time to identify advocates and enable fee-earners to make improvements during the case rather than afterwards.”
Access Legal’s report also uncovered a link between internal efficiency and positive client sentiment.
Separate data from InCase, Access Legal’s client onboarding and communication app, found that firms have seen their ratings increase as they introduced self-service tools.
Call volumes dropped by 65% between 2021 and 2024 – while average fee earner rating nudged up from 4.02/5 to 4.06/5 during the same period, jumping to 4.17/5 in January 2025, the highest on record.
The report sets out five strategic priorities for firms to turn satisfied clients into visible advocates, including deploying AI where it delivers genuine value and using client experience metrics to demonstrate ROI.
To explore the full findings, research insights and recommendations, download the report here.
