Legal Malpractice Insurance for Solo and Small Firms
Solo attorneys and small law firms can get legal malpractice insurance through Law Firm Insurance. We review your current policy or a new application, then place lawyers professional liability, plus cyber, EPLI and a business owners policy if you need them, through a licensed insurance agency that works with specialty legal malpractice markets. The review is free and there is no obligation.
Who is this for?
- Solo practitioners buying a first policy or wondering whether their current one still fits their practice. See also insurance for solo practitioners.
- New firms opening their doors, including attorneys leaving a larger firm to start their own. See what insurance you need to start a law firm.
- Firms of 2 to 20 attorneys that need one firm policy covering every lawyer, of-counsel and contract attorney. See insurance for small firms.
- Firms at renewal that want a second look at limits, deductible, defense cost treatment and exclusions before they renew.
- Attorneys changing firms who need to sort out tail coverage from the old firm or prior acts coverage on the new policy. See tail coverage when leaving a law firm.
What do we place?
- Lawyers professional liability (legal malpractice), including prior acts coverage, extended reporting period (tail) options and disciplinary defense where available.
- Cyber liability for breach response, ransomware and funds transfer fraud exposures that a malpractice policy may not cover.
- Employment practices liability (EPLI) for firms with staff.
- Business owners policy (BOP) for office property and general liability.
How does this compare to your other options?
There is no single best place to buy legal malpractice insurance. The right channel depends on your state, practice areas, claims history and how much flexibility you need in the policy terms. Here is a neutral look at the main options.
Bar-endorsed programs
Where it works well: Often built around a specific state's lawyers, sometimes with member pricing or risk management resources tied to bar membership.
Tradeoffs: Usually one market. Policy terms and appetite for certain practice areas are set by that one program, so a firm that does not fit its appetite has nowhere else to go inside the program.
Lawyer-owned mutual insurers
Where it works well: Insure only attorneys, so underwriting and claims teams know law practice well. Some return surplus to policyholders.
Tradeoffs: Usually one market, and many operate in a limited set of states. Multi-state firms or firms with practice areas outside their appetite may need to look elsewhere.
Online small-business insurers
Where it works well: Fast online applications and quick bindable quotes for straightforward, low-risk practices.
Tradeoffs: Built for speed and standard risks. Less room for prior claims, higher-risk practice areas, unusual prior acts situations or negotiated policy terms.
Specialist legal malpractice agencies (this service)
Where it works well: One application can be presented to several specialty legal malpractice markets, so your firm sees more than one set of terms, and prior acts, tail and practice area questions are handled before you bind.
Tradeoffs: Takes a little more information up front, and timing depends on underwriters responding, so it works best when you start before your renewal date.
Whichever route you take, compare the same things across every quote: limits, deductible, whether defense costs are inside or outside the limit, the retroactive date, consent to settle and the major exclusions. Our guide to comparing malpractice quotes walks through each one.
Get your malpractice policy reviewed
Send us your firm name and email. We will follow up for your current declarations page or application and review it at no cost.
What do we need from you?
- Your current declarations page and most recent application, or a new application if you have never been insured.
- A practice area breakdown, showing roughly how your work splits across areas.
- The number of attorneys, including of-counsel and contract attorneys, and the states where they are licensed.
- Your claims history, including any matters or circumstances that could become a claim.
- The limits and deductible you want, or the ones a client, lease or engagement requires.
What happens next?
- Send your policy or application. Use the form on this page or the coverage review page.
- We review it against your practice. Limits, deductible, retroactive date, defense cost treatment and exclusions are checked against your practice areas and firm size.
- We present your firm to specialty markets. Your submission goes to specialty legal malpractice markets with appetite for your practice, through a licensed insurance agency.
- You compare options side by side. We explain the differences, including any change to your prior acts coverage, and you choose. Nothing changes unless you decide it should.
Changing insurers at renewal? Read the guide to switching malpractice carriers to see how prior acts coverage carries over.
Frequently asked questions
Where can a solo attorney or small law firm get legal malpractice insurance?
Solo attorneys and small firms generally buy legal malpractice insurance from one of four places: a bar-endorsed program, a lawyer-owned mutual insurer, an online small-business insurer, or a specialist legal malpractice agency that can approach several markets. Law Firm Insurance works the last way. We review your current policy or application and place lawyers professional liability through a licensed insurance agency with access to specialty legal malpractice markets.
Is legal malpractice insurance required for lawyers?
Only Oregon and Idaho require lawyers in private practice to carry malpractice insurance. Idaho has required it under Idaho Bar Commission Rule 302 since 2018. Many other states require lawyers to disclose whether they carry coverage, and some clients, lenders and referral sources ask for proof of coverage as a condition of the engagement.
Does it cost anything to have my malpractice policy reviewed?
No. There is no cost for the review and no obligation to change your coverage. If we find options that fit your practice better, we walk you through them side by side and you decide.
I am leaving a firm. Can you help with tail or prior acts coverage?
Yes. When you change firms or go solo, the key questions are whether your old firm's policy will keep responding to claims from your work there, whether you need an extended reporting period (tail), and whether your new policy can include prior acts coverage back to an earlier retroactive date. We review the old and new policy terms together so there is no gap between them.
Can you place cyber, EPLI and a business owners policy along with malpractice?
Yes. Alongside lawyers professional liability we place cyber liability, employment practices liability (EPLI) and business owners policies (BOP) for law firms, so the whole program is reviewed together instead of one policy at a time.
When should I start if my malpractice policy is up for renewal?
Start well before the renewal date. Specialty underwriters often come back with follow-up questions about practice areas, claims or prior acts, and you want time to compare options and answer those questions without risking a lapse. A lapse in a claims-made policy can create a gap in prior acts coverage that is hard to fix later.
More detail: Is malpractice insurance required for attorneys? and the complete guide to tail coverage.
Related reading
Get a free coverage review
Tell us about your firm and we'll compare your current program against best practices -- no cost, no obligation.