Prepaid Legal Services Plan

Prepaid Legal Services Plan

Access forms for Prepaid Legal Services Plans
View the list of Prepaid Services Plans registered in North Carolina

The North Carolina State Bar is charged with registering prepaid legal services plans (“prepaid plans”) in North Carolina . A prepaid plan must be registered with the North Carolina State Bar before it can operate in North Carolina and before a North Carolina licensed attorney can provide legal services to participants in the prepaid plan. (See North Carolina General Statute Section 84-23.1)

DEFINITION of PREPAID PLAN

A prepaid legal services plan or a group legal services plan is defined as any arrangement by which a person, firm, or corporation, not otherwise authorized to engage in the practice of law, in exchange for any valuable consideration, offers to provide or arranges the provision of legal services that are paid for in advance of the need for the service (“covered services”). In addition to covered services, a prepaid plan may provide specified legal services at fees that are less than what a non-member of the plan would normally pay. The legal services offered by a prepaid plan must be provided by a North Carolina licensed lawyer who is not an employee, director, or owner of the prepaid plan. A prepaid plan does not include the sale of an identified, limited legal service, such as drafting a will, for a fixed, one-time fee.

REGISTRATION IS NOT REGULATION

The North Carolina State Bar does not approve the prepaid plans registered with its office. The registration of any prepaid plan shall not be construed to indicate approval of the prepaid plan.

In addition, the North Carolina State Bar has no authority to regulate prepaid plans. However, the North Carolina State Bar does regulate the conduct of the lawyers who provide legal services to the participants in the prepaid plan.

27 NCAC 1, Subchapter E, Section .0300 contains the rules concerning prepaid legal services plans and should be read in its entirety.

PROCEDURE for REGISTERING A PREPAID PLAN

The initial registration process for prepaid plans is as follows:

1. An initial registration form must be submitted to the North Carolina State Bar's Authorized Practice Committee, addressed to Prepaid Plans Counsel, P.O. Box 25908 , Raleigh , NC 27611. The initial registration form can be found by clicking here.

2. The plan's initial registration will be reviewed by the Authorized Practice Committee at the first quarterly meeting (January, April, July, and October) following the State Bar's receipt of the plan's complete initial registration information.

3. The deadlines for submitting the initial registration form and $100.00 initial registration fee are November 15 for the January quarterly meeting, February 15 for the April quarterly meeting, May 15 for the July quarterly meeting, and August 15 for the October quarterly meeting. If all initial registration information is not received at the State Bar's office by the deadline for a quarterly meeting, the plan's initial registration will be considered at the next scheduled quarterly meeting of the Authorized Practiced Committee.

4. The plan must submit attorney certifications for each participating attorney in its plan. An attorney certification is attached to the initial registration form.

5. The plan's initial registration information is considered incomplete if all attorney certifications are not submitted at the time the plan files its initial registration form.

6. The Authorized Practice Committee and its subcommittee will consider only complete initial registration packages.

7. The initial registration materials are submitted to a subcommittee of the Authorized Practice Committee. The subcommittee reviews the material and makes a recommendation to the full Authorized Practice Committee as to whether the plan meets the definition of a prepaid legal services plan, as set out in 27 North Carolina Administrative Code, Subchapter 1E, Section .0310 of the North Carolina State Bar's Rules Concerning Prepaid Legal Services, and should be registered as a prepaid plan in North Carolina.

8. The plan will be notified of the subcommittee's recommendation with respect to whether the plan is a prepaid plan pursuant to the State Bar's definition. If the subcommittee's recommendation is that the plan is not a prepaid plan pursuant to the State Bar's definition, the plan will be allowed to present its position as to whether it is a prepaid plan pursuant to the State Bar's definition, either in writing, or by a representative of the plan who may appear before the Authorized Practice Committee for a brief presentation.

9. The Authorized Practice Committee considers the subcommittee's recommendation and decides whether the plan is a prepaid plan under the State Bar's definition, and whether the plan should be registered as a prepaid plan. The Authorized Practice Committee's decision is communicated to the plan after the quarterly meeting.

10. The Authorized Practice Committee may determine that the plan is not a prepaid plan pursuant to the State Bar's definition. The plan will be given one opportunity to make revisions to meet the State Bar's definition of a prepaid plan. If after reviewing the revised plan, the Authorized Practice Committee again denies the plan's request for registration, that decision will be communicated to the plan. Any additional requests to register the plan with the North Carolina State Bar shall require the submission of a new initial registration form and payment of an additional initial registration fee.

11. The initial registration fee will be refunded if the Authorized Practice Committee determines the plan is not a prepaid plan, or if the plan fails to comply with any of the State Bar's rules and procedures regarding the initial registration of prepaid plans.

12. North Carolina General Statute Section 84-23.1 requires all prepaid plans that are registered with the North Carolina State Bar to submit its plan information to the North Carolina Department of Insurance for a determination of whether the prepaid plan should be regulated by the North Carolina Department of Insurance.

ANNUAL RENEWAL of REGISTRATION

The annual registration process for prepaid plans is as follows:

1. Annual registration forms are mailed to registered prepaid plans in early to mid-December of each year.

2. The annual registration form and an annual registration fee of $100.00 are due on or before January 31.

3. The Prepaid Plans Counsel will review the prepaid plan's annual registration material to determine whether all annual registration information and the annual registration fee have been received.

4. The prepaid plan will be notified of its compliance with the annual registration procedures.

5. The prepaid plan will be notified of its failure to comply with the annual registration procedures and given one additional opportunity to comply. If the State Bar does not receive the requested information, the State Bar will notify the prepaid plan and its participating attorneys that the participating attorneys can no longer provide legal services in the prepaid plan.

6. The State Bar will publish on its website and in its official publication the names of the prepaid plans that did not comply with the annual registration requirements.