A Google review from someone in a lawsuit with your business

Google's decision rests on its content policies. A lawsuit does not appear among them, and whatever happens in the dispute does not change the words on your listing. So the first question is not who is right. It is who the writer is to your business, and what their review actually says.

That works in your favor. The policy route rests on the words in the review and the record of the relationship, so it does not have to wait for the dispute to end. A review that meets a clause today can be reported today.

• A customer in a dispute over a job: a review of that experience is a real experience, and a harsh one is allowed. Parts of it can still break a policy.
• A subcontractor, supplier, landlord or consultant: Google names “a contractual or consultory relationship” as a conflict of interest.
• A former employee: Google names “current or former employment” as a conflict of interest.
• A competitor: Google bars posting “on a competitor's place or business to undermine that business' or product's reputation.”
• A former business partner or a former partner in your personal life: each has its own guide, linked below.

Reviews written during a dispute tend to say more than a customer review would. Read for these:

• A line that states the relationship, such as “as their supplier” or “I used to work there”.
• A full name or last name of you or your staff, or a home address or private number. Google treats these as personal information posted without consent.
• A call for others to post or pile on. Google bars encouraging “others to participate in harassment.”
• A threat aimed at a person. Google’s harassment policy covers a specific threat of harm.
• A running commentary on the dispute rather than an experience. Google asks for content “based on your experience” at a specific location.

• A dated screenshot of the review and the reviewer profile.
• The record that shows the relationship: the contract, invoices from them to you, or their employment file.
• A search of your customer records showing whether they ever bought from you.
• Any message where they said they would post about you.

Keep the dispute out of the review thread. If you reply, use one or two plain sentences about your business, with no case details, no amounts and no names. Readers cannot judge a lawsuit from a reply, and a long one only draws more attention to the review.

Report it from your Business Profile (Read reviews, then Report next to the review, then the reason, then Send report) or from the Reviews Management Tool. Choose the reason that matches the clause, not the one that sounds most serious. Google's help page says review evaluation typically takes several days. If the decision is no policy violation, you have a one-time appeal, and the guides to the appeal message and the appeal email cover each step after that.

The case sheet shows the review as posted, the clause, the reasoning and the supporting record, such as the contract that shows the relationship. The fee class depends on the work: a review that states the relationship in its own words is a simpler case than one where the proof has to be assembled from your records. Either way, the class and the fee are on the sheet before anything is filed, and nothing is filed until you accept.

Google decides. A fee is billed only after Google removes the review, and a declined case is filed a second time at the same fee. The free audit reads every low review on your listing first, so you can see whether the other side's friends or staff have posted too.