ANDOVER, MA--(Marketwire - July 27, 2010) - Disability insurance is crucial for lawyers because the practice of law is a personal service industry, and when an attorney is disabled, it assures a significant loss of income, Jim Edholm of Business Benefits Insurance writes in the July 12 issue of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.
Unfortunately, the firm's long-term disability plan is often poorly structured and doesn't protect each class of law-firm employee most appropriately. Ironically, among the oversights is the improper understanding of the contract language, he points out.
What constitutes a disability for a trial attorney might not be considered disabling to an estate-planning attorney or an intellectual property attorney. And what constitutes a disability for virtually any kind of attorney is different from what constitutes a disability for the receptionist or the administrative assistant, Edholm writes.
Here are the key questions:
- Under what circumstances will the employee be able to collect benefits?
- What risk is there of the employee losing his or her benefit while still "disabled?"
- How will the LTD plan impact other aspects of an employee's life, such as his or her retirement plans and healthcare costs?
If the firm's policy includes "own occupation" language, being unable to perform the main duties of your occupation and losing 20% of your income means you're considered disabled, Edholm notes.
However, if the attorney were subject to a more restrictive definition of disability, the attorney might -- despite suffering a 40, 50 or 60 percent cut in income -- be deemed to NOT be disabled.
"In fact, that traditional contract language quoted above dramatically shortchanges a large portion of attorneys in several ways," he concludes. "But there are good answers to that dilemma."
Business Benefits Insurance (www.bbibenefits.com) is an employee benefits planning firm in Andover, Mass. Edholm's benefits blog can be read at http://bbibenefits.wordpress.com. More information about HSAs and other plan options is available by contacting Edholm at JimEd@bbibenefits.com or calling 978-474-4730.
Contact Information:
Contact:
Henry Stimpson
Stimpson Communications
508-647-0705
Henry@StimpsonCommunications.com
Jim Edholm
Business Benefits Insurance
978-474-4730
jedholm@bbibenefits.com