What if you had a lawyer you could call any time to get advice about any legal problem and you didn't have to worry about the cost. The lawyer could draft a will for you, look over a purchase contract on a home, represent your teenager in traffic court, negotiate a "life contract" for nursing home care, and even get you a divorce!

Great, but who can afford the hundreds of dollars it would take to put a law firm on retainer for all this - especially when you probably won't need all these services every year. A legal plan may be the answer for you as it is for millions of people in the United States. With many legal plans, these services could be yours for $9 to $25 per month charged to your credit card, taken as a payroll deduction, or even "free" if your employer provides legal services as an employer-paid fringe benefit.

The basic service provided under most plans in generally legal advice and consultation by telephone and may also include brief office consultations, review of simple legal documents, preparation of a simple will, and short letters written or phone calls made by a lawyer to an adverse party. Other plans offer more comprehensive coverage for trials, marital problems, bankruptcy, real estate matters and the like.

Most legal service plans in operation today rely on a panel of lawyers in private practice to provide covered services. This panel may consist of one lawyer or firm which services a small group under a direct contract or a nationwide network of law firms all of whom have signed a participation agreement with the plan administrator.

The ABA’s American Prepaid Legal Services Institute has compiled a partial listing of legal service plans. In addition ask your employer, union, credit union or other organization whether a plan is available to you. You may already be a member of a legal service plan.