LegalShield: Difference between revisions
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{{COI|date=November 2009}} |
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{{Cleanup-afd|date=July 2009}} |
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{{Infobox company |
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| company_name = Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. & Subsidiaries |
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| company_logo = [[Image:PrePaidLegal logo.jpg]] |
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| company_type = [[Public company|Public]] ({{NYSE|PPD}}) |
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| foundation = 1972 |
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| location = [[Ada, Oklahoma|Ada]], [[Oklahoma]] |
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| key_people = Harland Stonecipher (founder, CEO, chairman) |
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| industry = [[pre-paid legal services|legal insurance]] |
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| products = Legal services, Identity theft restoration |
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| revenue = $461M |
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| operating_income = |
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| net_income = |
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| num_employees = 813 Full Time |
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| homepage = http://www.prepaidlegal.com |
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}} |
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'''Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.''' ({{nyse|PPD}}) is a corporation that offers specialized insurance and legal service products in the United States and Canada. The firm was founded on August 8, 1972, it made its [[initial public offering]] in 1984. Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. is a member of the [[S&P 600]] SmallCap index and the [[S&P 1500]] Super Comp index. |
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==Company description== |
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Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. develops, underwrites and markets [[pre-paid legal services]] plans through a network of more than 50 independent law firms across the U.S. and Canada. The Company also markets an [[identity theft]] monitoring and restoration services through its partnership with [[Kroll Inc.]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kroll.com/news/releases/index.aspx?id=80 |title=Pre-Paid Legal Services To Add Identity Theft Benefits Provided By Kroll Background America |publisher=kroll.com |accessdate=2010-03-07}}</ref> Currently most of the company's products are sold through [[multi-level marketing]]. Products are also sold as an employee benefit through payroll deduction. |
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==Subsidiaries== |
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Today, Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. has its headquarters in [[Ada, Oklahoma]], in the same town that the Founder, Harland C. Stonecipher was born. The company owns several subsidiaries. Pre-Paid Legal Casualty, Inc. operates in [[Alabama]], [[Arizona]], [[Arkansas]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], [[Illinois]], [[Montana]], [[Nebraska]], [[Tennessee]], & [[Wisconsin]]. There are 3 subsidiaries that serve individual states: Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. of Florida, National Pre-Paid Legal Services of Mississippi,Inc. and Legal Service Plans of Virginia, Inc. PPL Legal Care of Canada Corporation operates in the Country of [[Canada]]. |
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==History== |
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On July 11, 1969, CEO and founder Harland C. Stonecipher was involved in a motor vehicle accident and was hospitalized. Although the other party was cited for fault, they had filed a suit against him for the accident.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.prepaidlegal.com/newCorp2/press_room/executive_bios.html |title=Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. | Executive Bios |publisher=prepaidlegal.com |accessdate=2010-03-07}}</ref> He hired a lawyer to defend himself in court, but in doing so, depleted his life savings. After researching the industry of European legal expense plans, Stonecipher created Pre-Paid Legal’s predecessor, The Sportsman’s Motor Club, on August 8, 1972. The club offered legal expense reimbursement to its members. Pre-Paid Legal began utilizing network marketing in 1983. Pre-Paid Legal went public on the [[NASDAQ]] National Market System in 1984, and two years later moved to the [[American Stock Exchange]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.prepaidlegal.com/newCorp2/about_us/70-79.html |title=Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. | The Pre-Paid Legal Story |publisher=prepaidlegal.com |accessdate=2010-03-07}}</ref> |
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In 1997, after a US [[Federal Trade Commission]] (FTC) investigation, Pre-Paid Legal admitted misleading customers and suspended sales of living trusts.<ref name="crashparty"/> |
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In 2001, the Wyoming Attorney General issued a press release announcing "When we discovered that Pre-Paid was using prohibited income representations to promote their multilevel marketing program, we warned them that the representations were prohibited by |
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Wyoming law”. Pre-Paid paid $4000 in lieu of civil penalties, reimbursed the state for $1000 in costs, and refunded $2000 to participants who claimed to have been misled.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20081030/ai_n30951143 |title=Shurtleff's fundraising trounces Hill's | Deseret News (Salt Lake City) Newspaper | Find Articles at BNET |publisher=Findarticles.com |date=2008-10-30 |accessdate=2009-10-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://attorneygeneral.state.wy.us/CPU1PR113001.pdf |title=newell letter |format=PDF |date= |accessdate=2009-10-23}}</ref> |
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Pre-Paid Legal has faced ongoing troubles in Missouri. After the company settled complaints in 2001, a number of similar suits arose. The company won in a jury trial against two plaintiffs,<ref>{{cite web|author=By Melissa Davis |url=http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/stocks/melissadavid/10189148.html |title=Pre-Paid Prevails in Mississippi Case | Melissa Davis | Financial Articles & Investing News |publisher=TheStreet.com |date=2004-10-20 |accessdate=2009-10-23}}</ref> but later settled with more than 400 others, including one customer who was awarded $9.9 million. The company, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce of which Pre-Paid Legal CEO Harland Stonecipher is a director,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uschamber.com/press/releases/2005/june/05-109.htm |title=U.S. Chamber of Commerce - June 27 - U.S Chamber Reappoints Harland Stonecipher, CEO of Pre-Paid Legal Services, to Board of Directors |publisher=Uschamber.com |date=2005-06-27 |accessdate=2009-10-23}}</ref> have described the lawsuits against the company as "frivolous" and "abusive".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uschamber.com/press/releases/2004/november/04-152.htm |title=U.S. Chamber of Commerce - Nov 24 - Chamber Joins Miss. Case against Frivolous Lawsuits Pre-Paid Legal Services Targeted Improperly |publisher=Uschamber.com |date=2004-11-24 |accessdate=2009-10-23}}</ref> |
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Pre-Paid Legal reported to the SEC that under 25% of its sales representatives sold more than one insurance plan in 2005, but avoids reporting such information to prospective sales representatives.<ref name="crashparty">{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/13/business/13short.html|title=Why Short Sellers Want to Crash the Tupperware Party|last=DUHIGG|first=CHARLES|date=November 13, 2006|publisher=[[The New York Times]]|accessdate=2009-10-24}}</ref> In the same article, from the [[New York Times]] the Times reported that in 2005 a Mississippi jury awarded a Pre-Paid customer $9.9 million over claims of deceptive marketing. |
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In October 2009, [[Tulsa World]] reported that Pre-Paid Legal have been subpoenaed by the SEC for various documents including those pertaining to a stock repurchase program that Pre-Paid has had since April 1999. (In 2006, the company said it would repurchase $27.4 million of shares owned by executives.)<ref name=crashparty/> The SEC reported that thus far it is a "fact finding" mission.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=46&articleid=20091007_46_E1_PrePai498116 |title=SEC asks Pre-Paid Legal for documents |publisher=Tulsa World |date= |accessdate=2009-10-23}}</ref> |
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On November 19, 2009, Pre-Paid Legal announced that it received a complaint from the [[Federal Trade Commission]]. The proposed draft complaint alleged that Pre-Paid's "ADRS program and related materials violate Section 5(a) of the FTC Act regarding asserted misleading representations, express or implied."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://finance.yahoo.com/news/PrePaid-Legal-Services-prnews-1844384941.html?x=0&.v=1 |title=Pre-Paid Legal Services Announces FTC Developments |publisher=Pre-Paid Legal Services date= |accessdate=2009-11-19}}{{Dead link|date=March 2010}}</ref><ref>http://www.streetinsider.com/Corporate+News/Pre-Paid+Legal+%28PPD%29+Received+Draft+Complaint+from+FTC+Relating+to+ITSADRS+Program/5127084.html</ref> |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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==External links== |
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*[http://www.prepaidlegal.com/ Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. — Official site] |
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*[http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/pre-2007/files/money/prepaidlegal/ CBC News Report on PPL] |
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*[http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Harland-Stonecipher-prnews-3567212903.html?x=0&.v=2 Harland Stonecipher Designated One of Oklahoma's 'Most Admired CEOs'] |
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*[http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/stocks/melissadavid/10209942.html?cm_ven=YAHOO&cm_cat=FREE&cm_ite=NA Pre-Paid Weathers Guilty Verdict] |
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*[http://attorneygeneral.state.wy.us/CPU1PR113001.pdf Attorney General’s Office Nets Refunds From Multi-Level Marketer] |
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*[http://www.forbes.com/lists/2007/23/biz_07200best_Pre-Paid-Legal-Services_OPJR.html Forbes 2007 Best 200 Companies in America] |
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*[http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/lists/2008/23/biz_200smalls08_Pre-Paid-Legal-Services_OPJR.html Forbes 2008 Best 200 Companies in America] |
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[[Category:Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange]] |
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[[Category:Companies based in Oklahoma]] |
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[[Category:Companies established in 1972]] |
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[[Category:Multi-level marketing]] |
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[[Category:Insurance companies of the United States]] |
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[[Category:Publicly traded companies]] |
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Revision as of 23:40, 15 July 2010
is lame