Insurance companies in the US must operate under a duty of good faith and fair dealing with policyholders. When this duty is breached, policyholders can file a lawsuit with the help of a bad faith insurance attorney. To become one, a person must complete an undergraduate degree, three years of law school, gain practical work experience, and pass the bar exam and MPRE.
Insurance companies in the United States are generally required to operate under a duty of good faith and fair dealing with the policyholders they insure. When a company breaches this duty, the insured can file a lawsuit against the company with the help of a lawyer. An attorney who plans to become a bad faith insurance attorney must complete an undergraduate degree and three years of law school. An attorney aspiring to become a bad faith insurance attorney should also try to gain practical work experience in the field, either during or after law school.
An insurance policy is a contract between the insurance company and the policyholder. In addition to the duty to uphold the terms of the contract, most jurisdictions in the United States hold the insurance provider to a higher standard of “good faith and fair dealing”. Basically, this means that the insurance company must be honest and straightforward with policyholders and provide the coverage that the policyholder pays for in the event of a loss. In addition, the insurer must inform the insured of the limitations of his or her policy and the realistic chance that he or she will incur additional liability if a lawsuit is filed, among other things. Unfortunately, not all companies uphold the good faith duty and a policyholder may find themselves in a position where they need to file a claim against the company.
An individual planning to become a bad faith insurance attorney must first complete a four-year undergraduate degree in the major of his or her choice. Contrary to popular belief, there is no important “pre-law”. Common majors for a student planning to apply to law school, however, include business, political science, and philosophy. For a student hoping to become a bad faith insurance attorney, a business degree may be a wise choice.
The next step for anyone on the path to becoming a bad faith insurance attorney is to take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and apply to law school. In law school, a student should look for internship opportunities or part-time employment opportunities with local insurance companies, if possible. Even if the student intends to represent plaintiffs or injured victims, understanding how insurance companies defend bad faith claims will be extremely helpful in the future. Upon completion of law school, the attorney must still pass the bar exam and the multistate professional responsibility exam (MPRE) in the state in which he or she plans to practice law. Once licensed, a bad faith attorney must seek employment with a plaintiff’s law firm or an insurance company as an in-house attorney.
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