Which fictional lawyers get the most Google traffic?
Suits' Harvey Specter, portrayed by Gabriel Macht, is the top-searched fictional lawyer in eight states, according to Google Trends data. (Photo by Shane Mahood/USA Network/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)
When the reckless, self-assured Harvey Specter struts into an office on Suits, are you riveted to the television screen? Do you do a Google search of him to learn more about his character?
If the answer is yes, then you are in good company. Specter is the top-searched fictional lawyer in eight states, according to an August blog post by Murphy & Prachthauser, a Wisconsin personal injury law firm. The post, which has received some media attention, discusses the differences in the popularity of fictional lawyers by region using Google Trends search data. While Specter was the most popular in Connecticut, Florida and New Jersey, lawyer-vigilante Matt Murdock of Daredevil came in second with seven states, including Maryland, Nevada and Virginia.
The post was the result of a brainstorming session between Murphy & Prachthauser attorneys and Go Fish Digital media consultants about how to bring more traffic to the firm’s website. The attorneys wanted something catchy and relatable. They first created a list of 49 well-known fictional lawyers.
“Our goal was to take a unique and fun approach by combining pop culture with legal themes,” says Thadd Llaurado, a Murphy & Prachthauser partner. “As fans of law-related TV shows, we wanted to see how our favorites compared to popular shows in different regions of the country.”
Jason Segel played lawyer Marshall Erikesen on How I Met Your Mother with Alyson Hannigan and Cobie Smulders. (Photo by Fotos International/Courtesy of Getty Images)
Ernie Cottier, a research assistant at Go Fish Digital, used the lawyer list to research via Google Trends which fictional lawyers had been the most searched in the past 12 months. Cottier focused on the top fictional lawyers in each state. He says to stay tuned for more analytics-based blog posts from the firm.
Llaurado expected regional preferences to be reflected in the data, but the results were mixed.
For instance, Llaurado says, despite Wisconsin being in a different region from Alabama, Louisiana or Tennessee, all of them share an interest in the naïve-turned-jaded Alicia Florrick from The Good Wife. Meanwhile, Wisconsin’s neighboring states—Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois and Iowa—favor different fictional lawyers, including street-smart Michael Ross and jealous-but-skilled Louis Litt from Suits.
Ally McBeal ended in 2002 but the title character still has high search rates. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
Quirky Ally McBeal from her eponymous show was the most-searched fictional lawyer in three states and the District of Columbia, while approachable Marshall Eriksen of How I Met Your Mother won him the most fans in Colorado, Idaho and Kansas.
Llaurado says his favorite fictional lawyer is Vinny Gambini from My Cousin Vinny. The 1992 film depicted the New York City-based Gambini stuck in an Alabama courtroom and unfamiliar with its rules. Arguably, Gambini was unfamiliar with the rules of any courtroom.
“Having tried cases in various states, I can relate to the challenges he faced in adjusting to a completely different part of the country,” Llaurado says.
Cottier’s favorite fictional lawyer also comes from a film released the same year. His choice “didn’t make any lists,” but Cottier stands by Lt. Daniel Kaffee from A Few Good Men. Kaffee, played by Tom Cruise, famously prodded military officer Col. Nathan Jessep, played by Jack Nicholson, into screaming, “You can’t handle the truth!” in a highly dramatized court-martial scene.
Kaffee is “willing to take risks to take care of a client, which I think is kind of cool,” Cottier says.
This story was originally published in the February-March 2025 issue of the ABA Journal under the headline: “As Seen on TV: Personal injury firm examines by region which fictional lawyers are frequently Googled.”
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