Legal Malpractice Insurance FAQ

Most lawyers’ professional liability insurance policies, including WILMIC’s, are claims made policies. With claims made policies, coverage is only provided for claims that are first made against the lawyer/law firm and reported in writing to the insurance carrier during the policy period. In order to trigger coverage, you must report a claim or claim incident to WILMIC during the policy period when you first become aware of it.

You need to complete a supplemental application. The application requests basic information about the lawyer joining your firm – previous firm affiliations, claim history and so on. If you request prior acts coverage for the new lawyer, you will be charged an additional pro rata premium. Some lawyers may need prior acts coverage, while others may not. Also, some lawyers may not be eligible for prior acts coverage. When a lawyer joins your firm after leaving another firm, that lawyer may want prior acts coverage even if the lawyer is currently covered under the former firm’s policy. For example, the lawyer may be apprehensive about the continuation of coverage under the former firm’s policy or may have questions about the adequacy of the former firm’s limits. Questions often arise about the size of the former firm’s deductible and who is responsible for paying the deductible.