Let's Talk About Life-Related Lawsuits
After conducting asset protection training to a group of doctors at a local association meeting, one doctor approached us and asked, “Do I still need asset protection when I’m retired?”
We get this question all the time and we know what this doctor is really asking. She is asking, “Why do I need asset protection when the risk of lawsuits go away because I’m no longer actively practicing?”
OK…let’s talk about it…
Without a doubt, your risk of getting sued goes way up while you are actively practicing. According to a study by Kraft Elder Law, healthcare is the number one most targeted industry with non contract-based lawsuits. In addition, the Division of Economic and Health Policy Research of the American Medical Association reports that 34% of all doctors had a medical liability lawsuit filed against them.
But what if you are retired from actively practicing? Do you still need asset protection? The answer is NO…unless you have assets! Tens of millions of civil lawsuits are filed each year in the United States and only a small percentage of those pertain to medical liability. That means the majority of all lawsuits fall under the category of just plain living. We call those life-related lawsuits.
You can be sued at any time for any reason…yes…even while you are retired. For example:
You or your spouse drive into the Walgreens parking lot, hit a shopping cart, which then hits a young mother with her baby.
You are boating on the lake with your family over the Memorial Day weekend. Your son or grandson causes a boating accident with injuries.
Your lawn mower kicks a rock out that hits a neighbor.
You cause an accident with your RV while visiting a national park.
You or your family or your family’s friend causes an injury on the slopes in Park City, Utah over the Christmas break.
Someone gets injured on your trampoline or your pool in the backyard.
The list goes on and on. The potential threats of lawsuits by just living life are innumerable, and that is true whether you are actively practicing or not. As a result, you ALWAYS want your assets protected. You especially want them protected in retirement for two simple reasons: First, it’s typically at the end of your career when you have accumulated the vast majority of your assets. The greater the assets that are unprotected, the greater the motivation to pursue a lawsuit against you. Second, if you lose your assets in a lawsuit while in retirement, you no longer have the time or active practice to recover those lost assets. So when it comes to asset protection, it’s not about where you are in the lifecycle of your career that determines the need, it’s whether you have assets or not.
“Do I really need asset protection when I’m retired?” The answer is NO…unless you have assets!