{"id":30449,"date":"2016-03-31T19:33:59","date_gmt":"2016-03-31T19:33:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-legal\/legal\/practice\/the-basics-of-legal-malpractice-insurance.html"},"modified":"2016-06-20T18:51:50","modified_gmt":"2016-06-20T18:51:50","slug":"the-basics-of-legal-malpractice-insurance","status":"publish","type":"practice","link":"https:\/\/lp.findlaw.com\/legal\/practice\/practice-guide\/the-basics-of-legal-malpractice-insurance.html","title":{"rendered":"The Basics of Legal Malpractice Insurance"},"content":{"rendered":"
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At some point in your career, it may happen. A disgruntled client, rightly or wrongly, may sue you for legal malpractice. It is a risk that concerns all attorneys. Even if the allegations are baseless, dealing with such a claim will consume an inordinate amount of time and possibly money. To protect against this risk, attorneys obtain legal malpractice insurance<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Jurisdictions vary<\/a> on the whether they require attorneys to carry malpractice insurance, don’t require it, or require a written disclosure to the client if attorneys don’t carry it. Commonsense however, weighs strongly in favor of always carrying malpractice insurance, regardless of your jurisdiction’s requirements.<\/p>\n

Benefits of Maintaining Malpractice Insurance<\/b><\/p>\n

Having a malpractice insurance policy in place:<\/p>\n

1. Protects you against claims of professional negligence;<\/p>\n

2. Protects your staff and associates;<\/p>\n

3. Provides you with the peace of mind to focus on other aspects of your practice;<\/p>\n

4. Could provide your practice with a means to outsourcing risk management;<\/p>\n

5. Builds client confidence in your practice, thus legitimating your practice;<\/p>\n

6. May fulfill your ethical and professional obligations; and<\/p>\n

7. Might cover the cost of having independent legal counsel represent you in an ethical complaint.<\/p>\n

The FindLaw Guide to Malpractice Insurance<\/b><\/p>\n

To help attorneys deal with the many questions that may arise regarding legal malpractice insurance, FindLaw has put together The FindLaw Guide to Malpractice Insurance<\/a>, a 4 page downloadable pdf.<\/p>\n

The Guide addresses the following various questions that many attorneys have when it comes to obtaining legal malpractice insurance:<\/p>\n