Differences between Pre Paid Legal and Legal Plans

It is not uncommon to see the terms “legal plans” and “pre paid legal services” used interchangeably. While they share a lot of characteristics in common, there are a number of differences you should be aware of.

Both of these terms refer to an arrangement whereby you pay a fixed monthly or yearly fee in exchange for legal services. The idea behind them is to save consumers on high legal fees whilst offering a valuable service. That’s where the differences lie: what kind of service is offered and what is covered. What are you entitled to in both schemes?

Pre paid legal services cover for specific legal services: free phone consultation and advice, drafting of simple wills and trusts, review of sample contracts and writing of letters on your behalf. Legal services not provided will get charged at regular attorney fees, but you may be eligible for discounts. Legal insurance, by contrast, works much like other insurance plans, like health or car insurance. Although specific legal services are offered at times, your insurance provider will typically offer a policy that covers for all legal services. The policy will pay on behalf of you, the policy holder, or reimburse all expenses, costs or fees that you pay for legal services up to the policy limit. For instance, your policy might reimburse any fees incurred in your court judgments or pay your bail money – a service not provided by most pre paid legal plans.

Your legal insurance is also pegged to other insurance policies you may already have. If you run into legal problems involving your other insurance, then your legal insurance policy will protect you against loss or liability. For instance, if you are involved in a car accident when your auto insurance has already run out and you are subsequently sued for recovery of damages, you will be protected by legal plan insurance. The other difference between the two schemes is related to your choice of attorney. In a pre paid legal service, you get to choose from a restricted number of the attorneys in the network. By contrast, a legal insurance plan provides legal coverage regardless of attorney. You are free to set up interviews with any number of attorneys and choose the ones you think will provide the best service for your personal legal needs.

Finally, pre paid legal plans are much more accessible to the general public. Legal plans are harder to come by as only a limited number of insurance companies offer such arrangements.

Technorati Tags: pre paid legal,pre paid legal plans,pre paid legal services

Pre Paid Legal Plans: An Intro

What if you could pick up the phone and call an attorney to get advice about any and all legal matters of interest to you? The attorney would draft your will, review it and update it for every other year, make phone calls and write letters on your behalf negotiate your contracts and represent you in court. If you are traveling in another state and need any form of legal advice, he will refer you to a competent attorney in that state for no extra cost to you.

This all seems great on paper, but the mere thought of paying hundreds of dollars an hour to put an attorney on retainer is enough to persuade most people not to seek pre paid legal coverage.

You will be surprised to know that such coverage does indeed exist under an arrangement similar to your health or insurance plan. Pre paid legal plans offer you access to all these legal services, for a monthly charge of $10 to $25. If you are employed, you may incur no charge if your employer provides pre paid legal services as a fringe benefit.

Technorati Tags: pre paid legal,pre paid legal plan

Types of Pre Paid Legal Plans

A pre paid legal plan is a scheme based on the payment in advance of a set fee to defray the cost of providing future legal services to the members enrolled in the scheme. They vary in cost, scope of legal coverage provided and how the legal services are provided. We will look at the different types of pre paid legal plans available in the United States and how to enroll into them.

An individual pre paid legal plan is readily accessible to the general public. There are two types of individual plans: access and comprehensive. An access pre paid legal plan is the most basic plan. It is designed to give easy access to lawyer and a set of simple legal services for a low cost. Basic services furnished include unlimited toll-free phone access to your attorney for consultation and advice, letters written by the lawyer on your behalf, brief office consultation and the drafting or review of simple legal documents.

Complex legal issues not covered will be subject to an hourly or flat rate negotiable with your provider.

The comprehensive plan goes beyond basic legal services, to offer more complex and comprehensive coverage for a premium in cost. Generally, all the benefits of an access plan are provided at no cost to you, plus a broader range of services like drafting complicated legal documents, negotiations with adverse parties, and legal representation in court cases such as divorce and child custody. They also cover all the costs involved in a legal litigation. Comprehensive plans typically start at $300 per year and are most beneficial to middle-class families.

A group pre paid legal plan is typically sponsored by an organization as a fringe benefit to its members. The lawyer or law firm contracted provides free or low-cost legal coverage to all members of the sponsoring organization. Employers, labor unions and even universities are now increasingly offering group pre paid legal plans to enhance the value of their benefits package and reduce the cost of administrative burden. Law firms are contracted to provide participating member’s telephone and office consultation for their most frequently needed pre paid legal matters. These typically include: Preparation of wills and trusts, document preparation and review, debt and real estate matters and family law.

Additional legal coverage can be contracted according to a fee schedule negotiable between the plan sponsor and provider, and publicized to participating members.

Technorati Tags: pre paid legal,pre paid legal plan

Types of Prepaid Legal Services

Over 100 million Americans are signed up for pre paid legal services. Also called legal insurance, these plans are similar to those provided by Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) and cover the legal needs of the member, spouse and any dependent children.

In a pre paid legal service plan, the customer pays a fixed monthly subscription fee of up to $25 for the services of pre-selected lawyers. The most basic plans provide advice and consultation by telephone. Plan members receive a few hours of free office consultation with their assigned attorney. They may also include review and advice on simple legal documents, preparation, drafting or an update of a simple will. Phone calls and letters can be written on behalf of members, a service helpful for credit problems and consumer protection.

More comprehensive plans cover clients’ personal legal needs ranging from services that require more time and effort on the part of your attorney, such as contracts, wills and deeds, to legal representation in negotiations and courts cases related to family matters, bankruptcy and real estate issues.

Technorati Tags: pre paid legal,pre paid legal service