Can a Kentucky lawyer provide services through, and promote, a prepaid legal services plan?

Plain-English summary

Several attorneys asked whether they could provide legal services through a prepaid legal services plan or promote and sell such plans to clients, and several prepaid-plan companies sought the Committee's "approval" of their products. The Committee answered "Qualified yes." It held that a member of the Kentucky Bar Association may furnish legal services to a prepaid-plan member only if the plan complies with the requirements of SCR 3.476, and that no promotional activities concerning the plan may be conducted except as permitted by SCR 3.476(d) and SCR 3.135 (then Rules 7.01 to 7.60).

The opinion also marked the limits of the Committee's role. It explained that the Ethics Committee is neither positioned nor authorized to give legal advice and drafting services to plan managers and owners about their compliance with SCR 3.476, that it is not the appropriate agency to comment on the quality of a plan's product or its compliance with SCR 3.135, and that it is not the body to which complaints about the restrictiveness of SCR 3.135 or proposals to amend the rule should be directed.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1986 under Kentucky's former Code of Professional Responsibility (in effect 1971 to 1990), before the Kentucky Bar Association's 1990 adoption of the Rules of Professional Conduct (SCR 3.130) and the substantial 2009 revisions to those rules. Subsequent rule amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against the current rules before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Can a Kentucky lawyer serve clients through a prepaid legal services plan?

A: Under this opinion, yes, but only if the plan complies with the requirements of SCR 3.476.

Q: Can the lawyer promote or sell the plan to clients?

A: The opinion concluded promotional activities are permitted only as allowed by SCR 3.476(d) and the advertising rules (then SCR 3.135 / Rules 7.01 to 7.60).

Q: Would the Committee approve a particular prepaid plan in advance?

A: No. The opinion stated the Committee is not authorized to advise plan owners on compliance or to comment on a plan's quality or its compliance with the advertising rules.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied SCR 3.476 (group and prepaid legal services arrangements) and the advertising rules then at SCR 3.135 (later Rules 7.01 to 7.60). The modern analogs are Model Rule 7.2 (a lawyer may participate in a prepaid or group legal service plan that uses permitted communications) and Model Rule 7.3 (solicitation through such plans). The analysis turned on the plan's compliance with the group-services rule and on keeping any promotion within the advertising rules.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• SCR 3.476 (group/prepaid legal services); SCR 3.135 / Rules 7.01-7.60 (advertising) (former regime)
• MR 7.2 (prepaid and group legal service plans); MR 7.3 (solicitation)

See also

• KBA Ethics Op. E-346: Participating in a For-Profit Prepaid Legal Services Plan
• KBA Ethics Op. E-296: Not-for-Profit Lawyer Referral Service

Source

• Landing page: https://kybar.org/For-Members/Rules-Ethics-Information/Ethics-Opinions
• Original PDF: https://kybar.org/Portals/0/Admin/Ethics%20Opinions/KBA_E-312.pdf

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

KENTUCKY BAR ASSOCIATION
Ethics Opinion KBA E-312
Issued: August 1986

This opinion was decided under the Code of Professional Responsibility, which
was in effect from 1971 to 1990. Lawyers should consult the current version of
the Rules of Professional Conduct and Comments, SCR 3.130 (available at
http://www.kybar.org), especially Rules 7.01-7.50 and the Attorneys' Advertising
Commission Regulations, before relying on this opinion.

Question:

May a Kentucky attorney participate in, and promote, a pre-paid legal services
plan?

Answer:

Qualified yes.

References:

SCR 3.476
OPINION

A number of attorneys have asked if they may provide legal services pursuant to a pre-paid
legal services plan, and/or promote or sell such plans and programs to their clients. In addition,
several pre-paid legal services companies have sought "approval" of their product from the
Committee.
A member of the Kentucky Bar Association may furnish legal services to a member of a
pre-paid legal services plan only if the plan complies with the requirements of SCR 3.476, and no
promotional activities concerning the plan may be conducted except as permitted by SCR 3.476(d)
and SCR 3.135 (now Rules 7.01-7.60).
The Ethics Committee is not in a position to, or authorized to, provide legal advice and
drafting services to managers and owners of such plans regarding their compliance with SCR
3.476, nor are we the appropriate agency to comment on the "quality" of their "product" or their
compliance with SCR 3.135. Nor are we the appropriate body to which to address complaints
regarding the restrictive nature of SCR 3.135 (now Rules 7.01-7.60) or proposals for amendment
of the rule.

Note to Reader
This ethics opinion has been formally adopted by the Board of Governors of the Kentucky
Bar Association under the provisions of Kentucky Supreme Court Rule 3.530 (or its predecessor
rule). The Rule provides that formal opinions are advisory only.