Real Estate Issues Tops 2009 List of 2.3 Million Requests for Legal Services

During calendar year 2009, Pre-Paid Legal Services provider law firms in the U.S. and Canada received an estimated 2.3 million requests for legal services. Not surprisingly, real estate-related issues topped the list of these requests. This morning we issued a news release on the top five legal service requests for the year. See the entire press release below.

Real Estate Issues Tops 2009 List of 2.3 Million Requests for Legal Services

Pre-Paid Legal’s Top Five Legal Service Requests Highlight Need for Affordable Legal Counsel

ADA, Okla., Feb. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Real estate-related issues was the leading legal service request among members (customers) of Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. (NYSE: PPD) during 2009 followed by 2) consumer finance, 3) family law, 4) collections and 5) estate planning. The top five legal service requests for 2009 is based on the total volume of 2.3 million member requests for legal services to the 40 independent provider law firms that assisted Pre-Paid Legal members throughout the U.S. and four provinces of Canada for calendar year 2009.

“The PPD legal service request list offers a unique perspective on the legal issues that Americans and Canadians face on a daily basis,” said Pre-Paid Legal’s Founder and CEO Harland C. Stonecipher. ”Because these members have a Pre-Paid Legal plan, they have access to affordable legal service to help them manage issues such as foreclosure, credit issues, collections and other life events,” he said.

Of the total 2009 requests for legal services, the top five requests account for approximately 45 percent or approximately 1.1 million of the total requests. The remaining 1.2 million requests were for a variety of other legal services such as traffic-related matters, employment issues and civil litigation.

By category, the top five legal service requests include:

Real Estate, Landlord/Tenant Issues and Foreclosure – Approximately 358,000 requests for legal services that include residential and commercial real estate transactions, landlord and tenant issues and legal counsel related to foreclosure and short sales

Consumer Finance – Approximately 195,000 requests for legal services related to retail transactions for warranties, guarantees and other contracts

Family Law – Approximately 193,000 requests for legal services related to divorce, child support, child custody and child visitation

Collections – Approximately 162,000 requests for legal assistance to support members against other parties and to defend members from third-party debt collectors

Estate Planning – Approximately 160,000 requests for legal services for preparation of wills and other counsel related to final estates