The verdict in three sentences
A general counsel weighing whether to hand an ICC arbitration or an investment dispute to a Toronto firm checks its website before the first call, and a dated site raises doubts about the firm's rigor far more than about its design. A redesign typically costs CAD 25,000 to 80,000 at a Toronto agency for a mid-sized firm, while Kolonell's fixed grid runs from $2,900 (Starter) to $8,900 (Premium), delivered in 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready. The real risk of a redesign is not the price: it is losing search visibility, publishing content that breaks lawyer advertising rules or breaking a client area, and each of those risks can be planned for.
The signals that cost credibility
Clients in this field (general counsel at mining or energy groups, boards, states and public entities) choose on partner reputation, experience with seats and institutions (ICC, LCIA, SIAC, HKIAC, ICSID), working languages and sector knowledge. The site must make those points verifiable in two minutes.
| Signal on the current site | What a general counsel concludes | Expected fix |
|---|---|---|
| Partner bios without seats or languages | International experience is vague | Structured profiles: seats, institutions, languages, sectors |
| Generic 'Arbitration' pages | The firm does a bit of everything | One page per dispute type: commercial, investment, construction |
| News stopped in 2023 | Inactive team or unannounced departures | Realistic pace, 1 post a month is enough |
| Slow on mobile, over 4 seconds | Technical neglect | Light pages, optimized images |
| French version missing or machine translated | Francophone clients poorly served | Professional translation where the target justifies it |
| Contact form with no confidentiality notice | Risk around sensitive information | Clear warning, no unsolicited attachments |
| Accessibility ignored | Possible non-compliance in Ontario | Aim for WCAG 2.0 AA at minimum |
In Ontario, the AODA sets web accessibility requirements for many organizations depending on their size, and the Law Society of Ontario's rules govern the marketing of legal services: no unverifiable claims, care with references to results and with descriptive labels. Personal data falls under PIPEDA and commercial email under CASL. This is not legal advice: have the final content signed off by the partner responsible for compliance.
Budget: what a redesign costs in Toronto in 2026
| Option | 2026 ballpark | Approximate USD equivalent | Typical timeline | What is included |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Large Toronto agency | CAD 80,000 to 250,000 | about $58,000 to $180,000 | 4 to 8 months | Brand strategy, custom design, integrations |
| Agency specialized in law firms | CAD 25,000 to 80,000 | about $18,000 to $58,000 | 3 to 5 months | Design, CMS, migration, basic SEO |
| Experienced freelancer | CAD 6,000 to 20,000 | about $4,300 to $14,400 | 6 to 12 weeks | Variable, often no copywriting |
| Kolonell Starter | $2,900 | not applicable | 3 to 4 weeks | Focused site, native copywriting, project manager |
| Kolonell Growth | $4,900 | not applicable | 3 to 4 weeks | Full structure by practice and by partner |
| Kolonell Premium | $8,900 | not applicable | 4 to 6 weeks | The multilingual tier, languages set in the quote |
Local ranges come from typical agency quotes and public rate pages of Canadian agencies; the CAD to USD conversion is approximate. All three Kolonell tiers include a project manager reachable in your time zone, native English or French copywriting and 3 months of support. A case extranet, a client portal or an integration with your document management system is priced on quote, as is maintenance after the 3 included months. Details are on the international offer.
Timeline by phase and risks to contain
| Phase | Kolonell duration | Deliverable | Main risk | Safeguard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scoping and inventory | Week 1 | URL list, site structure | Forgotten pages | Full inventory of existing URLs |
| Copy and sign-off | Weeks 1 to 2 | Copy by practice and by partner | Non-compliant content | Review by the compliance partner before go-live |
| Design and build | Weeks 2 to 3 | Mockups then staging site | Bios migrated badly | Profile by profile check |
| Redirects | Week 3 | 301 redirect map | Traffic loss | Every old URL points to its equivalent |
| Go-live | Week 3 or 4 | Public site, Search Console | Downtime | Off-peak switch, rollback ready |
| Follow-up | 3 months | Fixes, indexing | Late 404 errors | Weekly Search Console monitoring |
This timeline assumes internal content and approvals keep pace; in a law firm, review by several partners is often what stretches a project.
Questions to ask, and when a local agency is the better choice
Before signing, ask: who writes the bios and who approves them? How is the redirect map checked? Who owns the domain, the CMS and the logins? How are references to matters handled under Law Society rules?
A Toronto agency remains the better choice if you need repeated in-person workshops with a partners' committee, a full rebrand of your identity, or heavy integrations with internal systems from day one. As an example, Kolonell built the site of TR Signing Group (trsigninggroup.com), a signing services company in New Jersey, working remotely with the client: a professional services project run entirely online.
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Mini case study
Illustrative example: Kingsway Harbour Arbitration, a 9-lawyer firm in Toronto, receives a local quote of CAD 70,000, roughly $50,000. It picks Premium at $8,900, the multilingual tier, in English and French. It adds a legal translation review at $3,000 (market assumption) and partner portraits at $1,500 (market assumption). Total: $8,900 + $3,000 + $1,500 = $13,400, about $36,600 less than the local quote. The case extranet planned for a second phase will be priced on quote.
FAQ
How long does a redesign with Kolonell take?
Allow 3 to 4 weeks for Starter and Growth, 4 to 6 weeks for Premium, once content is approved. In a law firm, add 1 to 2 weeks for partner reviews.
Will we lose our search visibility?
Not if every old URL has a 301 redirect to its equivalent and Search Console is monitored after the switch. A temporary dip of a few weeks is still possible.
Can we mention our arbitrations on the site?
Only what is public or authorized by the client, and within Law Society marketing rules. Many firms describe sectors and amounts at stake as orders of magnitude, without names.
Is the client portal included?
No: secure areas, portals and integrations are priced on quote. The $2,900, $4,900 and $8,900 tiers cover the public site.
What happens after the 3 months of support?
Maintenance is offered on quote depending on update frequency. Local agencies often charge CAD 300 to 1,500 a month (market assumption).
Let's scope your project. A multilingual Premium public site for your Toronto firm can be scoped in one week and delivered in 4 to 6 weeks once content is ready. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
