Can Pre-Paid Legal Services Help Freelancers?

Credit: Andy Dean Photography on Photodune

As freelancers, the thought of trying to tackle a legal problem can be scary: whether you?re just trying to collect on an unpaid invoice or you?re facing a much bigger problem, the fact that we don?t have lawyers at our backs can make things more intimidating.

But just because you aren?t in a position to plunk down a few hundred dollars on a lawyer?s desk doesn?t mean that you are absolutely out of options. There are organizations that offer other alternatives, such as pre-paid legal services.

The mechanics of the opportunity are not so different from an insurance plan: you choose a plan and pay a monthly fee. Then, when you need legal help, you go to a lawyer and your plan pays the costs.

There are limits, of course, but the prices for most plans are much more affordable than an hour?s time with an attorney would be otherwise.

The Benefits for a Freelancer

Joe D?Eramo is a freelance copywriter and has used Pre-Paid Legal for several years, specifically for help with collections and copyright. D?Eramo explains his motivations for choosing Pre-Paid Legal?s services:

I purchased the Pre-paid Legal Plan?because it made sense. I have a very good friend who?s an attorney who offers his advice at no cost and will work for family discount. But I hate to impose on our friendship. He?s also a busy guy. Pre-Paid Legal gave me an option where I could get my legal questions answered in a timely fashion at a more than reasonable price without my own guilt.

He?s found the service helpful more than once:

The two areas where I have had to ask questions are copyright and collections. Generally, I?ve gotten enough advice where I felt comfortable enough without hiring an attorney. For the collections part, I hadn?t been able to collect from somebody and needed the money. To have a lawyer who will draft a letter on your behalf creates a kind of karma. I never ended up sending the letter and had payment that week.

With a pre-paid legal company, you do work through legal advisers that the company chooses. When D?Eramo has needed help, he calls a line the company maintains and leaves information about the legal problem he?s facing. Someone calls back within a day and he says, ?I?ve felt comfortable acting on the advice I?ve received, particularly where I had concerns about copyright issues.?

In fact, D?Eramo recommends other freelancers explore the options that using a pre-paid legal service provides:

At some point, if it hasn?t happened already, somebody is going to be unhappy or attribute liability for your services and seek damages. It?s best to have a legal response in place. Even if the service doesn?t cover it, they can point you in the right direction. I also recommend it if you have any difficulty collecting from clients. A nice letter on a law firm?s letterhead typically gets a response from people who are slow to pay.

There aren?t a lot of different companies offering pre-paid legal services; the main one is Pre-Paid Legal, the company D?Eramo uses. But you may be able to find local lawyers in your area who will let you work out a similar deal or barter services if you so choose.

A Few Concerns About Pre-paid Legal

If you run the phrase ?Pre-paid Legal? through a search engine, you may notice that the company operating under that name has had a few legal problems of their own. Pre-Paid Legal?s sales system does operate as a multi-level marketing arrangement, which can make many people uncomfortable. It?s worth noting that the organization?s issues stem from marketing practices specifically and not legal advice.

Photo credit: Some rights reserved by Andy Dean Photography.

Source: http://freelanceswitch.com/industry-tips/pre-paid-legal-services/

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