Legal Picks

Do I Need Legal Protection?

March 6, 2020
4 min read
Young adult working or studying while seated at a long table
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You never know when life is going to gift you with a legal challenge, or even shower you with a few in rapid succession. At just about any stage in life, you will be faced with legal situations you cannot handle on your own. Having legal protection at the ready gives you peace of mind as you move through all life’s chapters, knowing that an attorney stands ready to help you when these matters surface.

Here are your options:

Option 1: Having a lawyer on retainer

You can have a lawyer positioned to help you at any time by having a lawyer on retainer. By paying a lump sum to an attorney before a legal issue arises, you reserve the lawyer’s availability to you when you need their legal assistance. At this point, the attorney taps into the retainer “deposit” you placed to pay for legal fees as work is done on your case.

This kind of legal protection typically falls outside most people’s budget.  A lawyer’s hourly rates, which can be hundreds of dollars per hour, can quickly suck up your retainer fee and you will then be billed monthly for additional hours worked on your case.

Option 2: Purchase a legal protection plan

An economical way to be prepared for the legal fees that come along with everyday legal mishaps is to purchase a legal protection plan. LegalShield has  1.7 million members who take advantage of our affordable, on-demand access to legal services. LegalShield has worked out partnerships with leading law firms across North America and as a result, each of our members pays far less for legal assistance than they would otherwise.

LegalShield's personal and family protection:

Legal protection plans cover representation or consultation in a wide range of personal legal matters you are likely to face at some point in your life. Our plan covers the following:

  • Residential loans
  • Auto accidents
  • Speeding tickets and traffic violations
  • Living Wills
  • Uncontested name changes*
  • Uncontested separations*
  • Tax audits
  • Uncontested divorces*
  • Uncontested adoptions*
  • Powers of Attorney
  • Trial defense in civil lawsuits*
  • Bankruptcy

* Trial defense is not available in all states. See a plan contract for specific state for complete terms, coverage, amounts, and conditions. A LegalShield Membership will give you access to the following:

  • Speak with your attorney on an unlimited number of personal legal issues
  • Your attorney can make calls and write letters on your behalf
  • Your attorney can review contracts and draft documents
  • One plan covers your whole family, including pre-existing issues
  • There’s no risk to try—you can cancel your plan at any time

Small business legal protection

Starting a small business involves running through a maze of legal procedures. For example, you'll need support to get your company established as a legal entity. From there, you face all sorts of legally based set-up issues, like composing an employee handbook of company policies, constructing employee and vendor contracts, navigating lease and service provider agreements, and so on.

Once your small business is up and running, you might as well be a sitting duck for a wide range of other legal situations. Intellectual property disputes, contract violations, debt collection are just a few examples of the legal battles you may encounter.

Larger corporations might hire staff legal counsel to take care of these and other business legal issues as they arise. This is a costly venture that most small businesses simply cannot afford. As a result, they open their checkbooks every time a contract needs to be reviewed or another legal issue pops up.

These legal fees can be crippling for a small business but are often considered to be the price of doing business. So many businesses accept the loss and move on. This is why the LegalShield Small Business Plan was created.

LegalShield's Small Business Plans

You can purchase a LegalShield Small Business Plan for $49 a month. This plan protects your company with the following legal assistance:

  • Speak with your attorney on an unlimited number of legal issues
  • Legal research on each matter is included at no additional charge.
  • Your attorney can make phone calls or write letters on your behalf.
  • Debt collection letters are included at no additional charge.
  • Your attorney can review documents and draft contracts.
  • Your attorney can defend your business in civil lawsuits.

Pre-trial work included at no additional charge.

Life is full of surprises

You never know when life is going to throw a legal puzzle at you. If you are not prepared to act quickly, it could end up costing you dearly. Legal plans give you access to an on-call network of lawyers, giving you an entire law firm in your back pocket. Legal fees can add up quickly, but with LegalShield, you can be covered for a fraction of the cost.

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When You Need Them

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*See your plan contract for details. Additional fees, limitations, and waiting periods may apply.