Insurance Needs for Large Law Firms

Summary

This practice note will discuss insurance considerations for large law firms, including the impact that a large law firm's structure has on the firm's insurance needs. The difference in a firm's structure and insurance considerations between a smaller-sized law firm consisting of three or four lawyers sharing space, or even practicing as partners, and a larger group of lawyers and its insurance needs may be significant. Moreover, a large law firm's structure, operation, risk profile, and consequent insurance needs may be different from that of a small firm and may include sophisticated uses of insurance such as life insurance for succession planning and buy-outs between and among partners. Additionally, the large firm's organizational structure and its members' willingness for their firm, and themselves, to retain elements of risk will make a difference.