Just like life and health insurance, there is such a thing as legal insurance. Although not as widely offered, it is available with certain employers. It seems to be particularly available to those who work for a government agency.
The presence of legal insurance has allowed multiple clients to retain me for purposes of filing a bankruptcy where they otherwise could not afford to pay an attorney fee.
Some policies will only offer a percentage discount off the typical attorney fee. Others allow for payment in full for attorney fees in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy. No legal plans offer payment of the bankruptcy court filing fees.
This has proved to be an invaluable policy to several of my clients. It not only allowed them to retain myself as an attorney at no cost, but also because they were not paying an out of pocket attorney fee, it enabled them to request payment of their filing fees in installments or that they be outright waived altogether.
Some of the prominent legal insurance plans are Hyatt, ARAG, and CLC. Check with your employer to see if it’s offered. If so, you should inquire as to whether bankruptcy coverage is available, particularly if you are having debt issues.
Peter Bricks is a member of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA). He is a regular contributor to bankruptcyblog.org has bankruptcy attorney offices in Jonesboro, Cumming, Atlanta and Dunwoody.