by Sean McManus
Staff Writer
With affordable legal services becoming the fastest growing employer-offered benefit in the country, one local company is hoping to capitalize on that trend.
U.S. Legal Services, which was founded in 1974 by former Florida state representative John Forbes and his wife Marie, already has a reach that extends throughout the Southeast. This year, the company has ambitions to expand nationwide.
It’s all part of a “controlled growth” business philosophy that John and Marie Forbes received from George Bajalia, who started out as a CPA with Peat Marwick, ran the professional services division at Modis (and many other companies) and now advises businesses large and small on growth strategies and investing.
“We put together a plan for controlled growth,” said Bajalia, who noticed that other companies with similar business models grew too quickly. “I saw a company that was in a fragmented industry that served a serious need and had a unique product offering that was relatively under-discovered. So it made a lot of sense.”
When the Business Journal published a list of the largest women-owned businesses in the city, U.S. Legal ranked eighth with $4.5 million in revenues, a number Bajalia and the Forbes’ think will increase dramatically as they continue to expand. With clients like the City, JEA, Landstar Logistics, Palm Beach County Schools, The Haskell Company, Shands Hospital, and a slew of local, state and regional unions, national aspirations don’t seem far fetched.
Bajalia said that providing legal services for small and medium-size businesses and their employees is commonplace in western Europe, so it’s a tested industry.
For about $20 a month, anyone who enrolls in the plan can have access to a number lawyers. Basically, U.S. Legal is for lawyers what health maintenance organizations are for doctors: clients can call for anything from speeding tickets to bankruptcy, whenever the situation arises.
While an HMO is one analogy, Amway is another. U.S. Legal has about 500 sales agents, signing up corporations, individuals and families. The company also has about 400 private attorneys who work on a retainer basis, collecting a percentage of the monthly fee.
“It’s called network marketing,” said John Forbes, who holds no title at U.S. Legal. His wife Marie is president of the company. Currently, there are nine levels of compensation among the sales agents, with those who enroll their friends making the most.
U.S. Legal is modeled — with a few exceptions — after Pre-Paid Legal Services, which is based in Ada, Okla. U.S. Legal focuses more on group plans rather than individuals, so that the payment method is more reliable. Also, the pep rally style corporate culture at Pre-Paid Legal Services that garnered the Amway analogy is also slightly less attractive to the conservative former state representative.
Forbes says there are several reasons why companies should offer the plan, but one stands out from the others.
“The reason why it makes sense for companies to offer this service to their employees is because if their lawyer takes care of their legal problems, then they don’t have to miss work,” said Forbes. “Absence is lessened.”
The person responsible for getting that message to the public is Jason Hulsey, U.S. Legal’s senior vice president of sales and training. He is also responsible for the training and oversight of all the sales executives and plan attorneys throughout the United States.
“The message is a complex one and one that needs to be told systematically face-to-face,” said Hulsey, adding the target audience is 25-50 years old and middle-class. The company does offer a platinum plan, which is targeted at the elderly who they say are often the victims of scams and often do not have the money for a lawyer.
Local attorney Rick Bateh is one of the lawyers who works on retainer for U.S. Legal Services, handling client’s probate law disputes, traffic tickets, family disputes, collection issues and even gives advice on the best way to buy a home.
“It’s been a positive experience for me,” said Bateh, who has worked with U.S. Legal since he began practicing law seven years ago. “It’s a steady source of income, and referral business is increased.”
The majority of the cases can be handled through phone, fax, and e-mail and once U.S. Legal has established the attorney-client relationship, it is out of the loop.
Keeping lawyers affiliated with U.S. Legal is not a problem, according to Marie Forbes.
“Usually the only time we lose lawyers if a federal case comes in and he or she just doesn’t have the time to handle something that big as well as their normal case load,” she said.
U.S. Legal offers different plans and services, including unlimited consultations by telephone or at the attorney’s office, letters and phone calls on client’s behalf, document review and preparation, mechanics and other liens, debt collection and worthless checks, garnishments or attachments, corporations, pension and salary deferment plans, civil rights, American with Disabilities Act issues, traffic violations, workers compensation, insurance law and even major litigation defense for criminal and civil cases.