Has anyone ever heard of Prepaid legal services: what exactly is it and what are the advantages of having it? Is it for any or everyone? Who benefits from it or is it a waste of time and money?

Has anyone ever heard of Prepaid legal services: what exactly is it and what are the advantages of having it? Is it for any or everyone? Who benefits from it or is it a waste of time and money?



My cousin belongs to a prepaid plan through one of the big unions - he swears by it. I looked at the list of names of participating Attorneys and they were all starting.

It's like any insurance policy - it only matters if you're insured if you have some sort of problem and then it becomes very important.

I would check the caliber of the Attorneys before I would sign up, also just what the plan provides and what it does not. If the plan provides $50 an hour toward legal fees and every Attorney on the list charges $50 an hour more than anybody else around, you aren't saving anything.

And what does it cover? Divorce? Family Law? Real Estate? Criminal? Estates and Wills?

I worked for a law firm that did pre-paid legal cases once in a while. The coverage didn't pay for much and once the "insurance" was used up the person had to come up with the rest of the money for the difference. Certain things are not covered under pre-paid legal plans either. Like Judy said above, it's usually attorneys who are starting that sign up for their services or older firms that need some extra income. Check out exactly what is covered by the plan you are looking at also before you pay for something you are not going to use.