Technical SEO in Legal Disputes
Technical SEO covers the behind-the-scenes structure and configuration that allows search engines to discover, crawl, and index a website. When that structure breaks, rankings and traffic can suffer. In legal disputes, the question is often whether technical decisions or errors contributed to traffic loss or damaged online visibility.
As a technical SEO expert witness, Bill reviews how the site was built, how it changed over time, and whether technical choices were reasonable given the circumstances.
Crawling and Indexing
Search engines must be able to crawl and index a site before it can rank. Bill evaluates:
- Robots.txt configurations and their impact on crawl access.
- Use of meta robots tags, x-robots headers, and noindex directives.
- XML sitemaps and how they guide crawlers to important URLs.
- Whether critical sections of the site were unintentionally blocked.
These elements can determine whether search engines ever see a page, which is essential when traffic drops after configuration changes.
Redirects and URL Changes
When URLs change, redirects help search engines and users find the right pages. Poorly implemented redirects can lead to lost rankings and broken user journeys. Bill looks at:
- Whether redirects were set up correctly (for example, 301 vs. 302).
- Whether legacy URLs were mapped to relevant new URLs.
- Whether redirect chains or loops created problems for crawlers.
These assessments are especially important in cases involving site migrations, domain changes, or platform upgrades.
Canonical Tags and Duplicate Content
Canonical tags help search engines understand which version of a page is preferred. Used incorrectly, they can unintentionally tell search engines to ignore important URLs. Bill evaluates:
- Whether canonical tags point to appropriate target URLs.
- How duplicate or near-duplicate content was handled.
- Whether canonicalization strategies contributed to ranking losses.
Site Speed and Technical Performance
Technical performance, including site speed and core web vitals, can influence search visibility and user behavior. Bill reviews:
- Page load times and trends before and after key changes.
- Server and hosting configurations that may affect performance.
- Whether technical bottlenecks likely contributed to lost organic visibility.
These findings can support or challenge claims that performance changes harmed search rankings.
Platform Migrations and Redesigns
Large redesigns and platform changes are common flashpoints in SEO disputes. Bill reconstructs what changed, including:
- Alterations to navigation, internal linking, and site architecture.
- Changes to templates, titles, headings, and metadata.
- Differences in how content is structured and rendered to search engines.
He then compares those changes with analytics and search console data to assess the likelihood that a migration caused observed traffic losses.
Connecting Technical Issues to Business Impact
Technical SEO findings are most valuable when they are connected to real-world outcomes. Bill links technical missteps to specific traffic changes and, where appropriate, to potential revenue implications. This helps courts understand how configuration decisions inside a content management system can ultimately affect leads, sales, and brand visibility.
Related Pages
For additional context on how technical SEO fits into broader SEO disputes, see the Traffic Loss & Damages page and the How Search Engines Work in Legal Cases page.