Pre-Paid Legal Insurance: Quality Legal Coverage On The Cheap

America is a litigious society and pre paid legal insurance is one of the best ways to give yourself at least some protection. You may only be partially protected, but something is better than nothing. Hint: take what you can get and run with it.

It is also an inexpensive way for a real estate investor to cover “first-tier” legal needs at a very affordable price. That includes legal questions, basic document review, and some assistance in dealing with tax authorities.

The Problem: Too Many Lawyers

As Dan Quail once famously stated, the United States is home to 70% of the world’s lawyers and we are adding 40,000 new ones every year. What do you think all those newly minted lawyers need to grow and survive? You guessed it – lawsuits. A lawsuit is to an attorney like water is to a fish.

According to “Legal Reform Now!” there are 15 million lawsuits filed in state courts every year. That translates to 30 new lawsuits filed every minute. Statistically, you have a 1 in 4 chance of being hit with a lawsuit before you die.

It used to be two things certain – death and taxes. Now it’s three things certain – death, taxes, and lawsuits. At least for those fortunate enough to reside in the good old USA.

It has been said that for every engineer in America, there are 109 engineers in Japan. On the other hand, for every attorney in Japan, there are 112 attorneys in America. And a good share of them are employed attacking the American manufacturing sector. Is it any wonder we lag in manufacturing. We justify this and stroke our collective egos with the mantra that we are the “knowledge” experts.

You think this doesn’t effect you? As a matter of fact, every American pays an approximate $800 to $900 “lawsuit tax” every year, as reported by the Foundation For Fair Civil Justice. How so? All those businesses that the attorneys are attacking – you think they pay the bill? They simply pass it on to the consumer in higher prices – a whopping $261 billion dollars and that was back in 2005.

Putting it differently, that’s over two percent of the US Gross Domestic Product. At 4.5 percent, manufacturing businesses bear a disproportionate share of that burden.

InsidePrison.com reports the following as examples of the kinds of frivolous lawsuits that are being filed:

* A professional baseball player – outfielder Andrew Jones — was sued for tossing a ball to fans (2002)

* Little League coaches were sued for $25,000 when a boy lost a fly ball in the sun and was struck in the eye

* Stella Liebeck, received a $3 million award for spilling coffee on herself at a McDonalds (1992)

The Solution: Pre Paid Legal Insurance

To protect yourself, sign up with one of the several pre paid legal insurance companies. The company bearing the name Pre Paid Legal may be the market leader, but shop around and find the best fit for you. Costs and benefits vary and what’s right for someone else may not be right for you.

Services include simple phone consultation on legal questions, review of various real estate contracts, and review of LLC papers that I personally drew up using the NOLO “LLC Maker” program. The latter saved me at least $500, which is the typical attorney fee for setting up an LLC. The NOLO program cost me $35 and I have used it twice.

For about $20 a month, pre paid legal insurance is well worth the peace of mind it provides, not to mention the tangible services rendered. My recommendation: don’t leave home without it.

Oliver Woods is a real estate entrepreneur who can help you get the strongest return available in the current marketplace if you have been struggling to sell your house — sellers may apply at his website. He also specializes in locating the top deals for residential and commercial investors who are looking for bargains in distressed properties:

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