What happens to insurance when a lawyer leaves a firm to go solo?

The transition from firm attorney to solo practitioner is one of the most important insurance planning moments in an attorney's career. Getting it wrong can leave you with serious coverage gaps.

The firm's existing malpractice policy covers claims arising from work you performed while employed at the firm, provided the firm maintains its policy in force. When a claim from your firm-era work surfaces after you have left, the firm's carrier handles it — you are not personally responsible (assuming you were a covered attorney under the firm's policy).

However, this protection depends entirely on the firm maintaining its malpractice coverage. If the firm later dissolves, changes carriers, or allows its policy to lapse without purchasing tail coverage, claims from your firm-era work could become uninsured. You have no control over the firm's insurance decisions after you leave.

For your solo practice, you need your own individual malpractice policy. This policy should have an inception date that matches the start of your solo practice — there should be no gap between your last day of coverage under the firm's policy and the first day of your solo policy.

A common mistake is assuming that your new solo policy's retroactive date should extend back to cover your firm-era work. In most cases, it should not. The firm's policy covers that period. Setting your retroactive date to your solo practice start date keeps your premium lower.

However, if you are taking client files from the firm to your solo practice (with proper consent), the transition creates a gray area. Work you begin completing on transferred matters may be considered solo practice work, even if the client relationship began at the firm. Discuss this specifically with your new carrier to ensure proper coverage.

Before leaving the firm, request a written confirmation of your coverage dates under the firm's policy and the firm's plans for maintaining or tailing its coverage. This documentation protects you if a coverage dispute arises later.