Talk:LegalShield

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COI edit requests
Hi! I'm posting here on behalf of LegalShield with some requests. (I've also mocked up all my requests here, if it's helpful while reviewing.)

Lead

 * This one is tough to source well, but I think it makes sense to replace "Multi-level marketing" with "Identity theft protection" in the "Industry" field of the infobox. Since LegalShield is a private company, I can't point to any public statements on this, but it's been a while since MLM has been the core of LegalShield's business model, and the contemporary coverage of the company in WP:RS reflects that. (More info on this is in the subsequent requests; just wanted to order these edits in the order in which they appear in the article.)
 * ✅ I went back-and-forth on this, but ultimately decided to accept this. There is sufficient evidence that the company did operate as an MLM company but sources have been provided that state the company has changed its business model away from this. I would be in favour of adding it back in if sources confirm it is still an MLM. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Delete Rip Mason, James Rosseau, John Long, and Dave Coffey as "Key people" in the infobox, since none of them are with the company anymore. ✅ Blablubbs (talk • contribs) 16:39, 5 November 2020 (UTC)
 * Add UK and other sales methods to first sentence:
 * ✅ but did not include the reference as ledes are supposed to be summaries of the article and thus avoid using references. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)

Company description

 * I would change the section title to, perhaps, "Services".
 * ❌ not needed. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Update
 * The company also markets an identity theft monitoring and restoration service through its partnership with Kroll Inc.
 * (LegalShield no longer has a relationship with Kroll, and this product has evolved) to
 * The company also markets IDShield, a privacy and reputation management service that also provides identity theft monitoring and restoration.
 * ✅ Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Update
 * The company's membership plans are sold as employee benefits and directly through its multi-level marketing division.
 * (dead source link) to
 * The company's membership plans are sold as employee benefits and directly to consumers.
 * ✅ The link is not dead for me, but the CBC article is from 2000. ABAJournal is more up-to-date.Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Side note: I moved the company description to under the history section, as this is usually how articles are structured. I was also concerned about the removal of the CBC reference so I used the reference in the History section. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)

Pre-Paid Legal Services

 * Update
 * Pre-Paid Legal began using "network marketing" (multi-level marketing or MLM) in 1983. The next year, the company went public.
 * to
 * Pre-Paid Legal went public in 1984.
 * (The first sentence in the current article isn't backed up by the source, nor could I find another source for it.)
 * ✅ the adanews source did not support the statement. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Add:
 * ❌ This product is not notable and doesn't require mention in the article. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)
 * ❌ This product is not notable and doesn't require mention in the article. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)

Controversies

 * In first paragraph, in second sentence, update
 * to
 * (The Deseret News source doesn't contain information beyond "For example, a Wyoming attorney general investigation in 2001 led to fines for Pre-Paid Legal Services for its multilevel marketing system." I swapped in a more detailed source and additional information from it.)
 * ✅ Done Pelagic ( messages ) – (07:36 Thu 03, AEDT) 20:36, 2 December 2020 (UTC)
 * (The Deseret News source doesn't contain information beyond "For example, a Wyoming attorney general investigation in 2001 led to fines for Pre-Paid Legal Services for its multilevel marketing system." I swapped in a more detailed source and additional information from it.)
 * ✅ Done Pelagic ( messages ) – (07:36 Thu 03, AEDT) 20:36, 2 December 2020 (UTC)


 * In first paragraph, right before "Pre-Paid did not file...", add:
 * ❌ too much detail, this is not needed. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)
 * ❌ too much detail, this is not needed. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Update
 * to
 * I changed it to "As a result, Pre-Paid amended its reporting and filed its 2000 financial statements in February 2002." Someone with access to WSJ might like to add the extra detail. Pelagic ( messages ) – (07:36 Thu 03, AEDT) 20:36, 2 December 2020 (UTC)
 * I changed it to "As a result, Pre-Paid amended its reporting and filed its 2000 financial statements in February 2002." Someone with access to WSJ might like to add the extra detail. Pelagic ( messages ) – (07:36 Thu 03, AEDT) 20:36, 2 December 2020 (UTC)
 * I changed it to "As a result, Pre-Paid amended its reporting and filed its 2000 financial statements in February 2002." Someone with access to WSJ might like to add the extra detail. Pelagic ( messages ) – (07:36 Thu 03, AEDT) 20:36, 2 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Add to beginning of second paragraph:
 * ❌ This award is not notable. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * In second paragraph, updated "In 2004, approximately 250 plaintiffs..." to " By 2004, approximately 250 plaintiffs..." (which is more accurate, per source).
 * ❌ Not done, the Times says "In 2004, over 29 separate lawsuits involving more than 250 plaintiffs were filed against the company in Alabama". Pelagic ( messages ) – (17:47 Thu 03, AEDT) 06:47, 3 December 2020 (UTC)


 * In second paragraph, update "Oklahoma Chamber of Commerce" to "U.S. Chamber of Commerce", per the sources.
 * ✅ Done. Pelagic ( messages ) – (17:47 Thu 03, AEDT) 06:47, 3 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Add to end of second paragraph:
 * ❌ This seems to be going into too much detail about the company's operations and I'm not sure why this belongs here. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)


 * In third paragraph, add after :
 * ✅ Done, but wonder whether a two-week delay is that notable, except that it leads in to the following sentence about changed FTC rules. Perhaps other editors could consider restructuring or removing the paragraph. Pelagic ( messages ) – (07:58 Thu 03, AEDT) 20:58, 2 December 2020 (UTC)
 * ✅ Done, but wonder whether a two-week delay is that notable, except that it leads in to the following sentence about changed FTC rules. Perhaps other editors could consider restructuring or removing the paragraph. Pelagic ( messages ) – (07:58 Thu 03, AEDT) 20:58, 2 December 2020 (UTC)


 * Finally, I think it could make sense to break out "Changes to accounting practices" into a separate subsection, with the related stories from 2001 and 2004. I've mocked up how that could look here.
 * What would people think about making Controversies and Changes to accounting practices into sub-subsections under History – Pre-Paid Legal Services, since they apply to that phase of the company’s history? Pelagic ( messages ) – (17:28 Thu 03, AEDT) 06:28, 3 December 2020 (UTC)
 * I would be fine with that. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)

LegalShield

 * Add to end of subsection:
 * ✅ Done, but with different wording re. UK, and left out the part about new product offerings in Canada (a statement about when they started operating in Canada would be better, if a source can be found). Pelagic ( messages ) – (17:11 Thu 03, AEDT) 06:11, 3 December 2020 (UTC)
 * ✅ Done, but with different wording re. UK, and left out the part about new product offerings in Canada (a statement about when they started operating in Canada would be better, if a source can be found). Pelagic ( messages ) – (17:11 Thu 03, AEDT) 06:11, 3 December 2020 (UTC)

Due to my COI, I won't be editing directly. I appreciate any help/feedback. Thanks! Mary Gaulke (talk) 02:52, 3 September 2020 (UTC)
 * I think, and I have addressed all parts of this request. If we missed something, please post below. I am going to mark this ticket as "answered". Thanks everyone for your help. Z1720 (talk) 03:49, 5 December 2020 (UTC)

2021 COI edit requests
Hi! As noted above, I have a COI: LegalShield is a client of mine. I have some new edit requests for this article.

Lead

 * ✅ In infobox, under "Key people", update  to


 * ✅ Also in infobox, update:
 * owner = MidOcean Partners
 * to
 * owners = MidOcean Partners Stone Point Capital Further Global
 * Adding Stone Point per the article body and WSJ source cited there. I know sources aren't customary in the infobox, but here are some for Further Global's ownership:


 * ✅ In first paragraph, update:
 * It briefly ran in the United Kingdom,
 * to
 * It was available in the United Kingdom from 2019 to 2021.


 * Add to end:
 * The company's services covered 141,000 businesses and more than 4.4 million people.

History

 * In "Pre-Paid Legal Services" subsection, add:
 * Equities magazine named Pre-Paid Legal the fastest-growing company listed on the NASDAQ in 1998.


 * In "Pre-Paid Legal Services" subsection, add:
 * In 1999, the company began providing a "Legal Shield" card that offered the holder access to 24-hour legal services in the event of the holder's arrest or other interaction with law enforcement. Pre-Paid Legal expanded the Legal Shield offering in 2000 by extending it to customers in Illinois. The company marketed the service as particularly valuable to minorities and other people who experience frequent harassment during traffic stops.
 * N.B. I previously proposed this above, and rejected it on the grounds that the product is not notable. I'd like to request a second look on this, due to the pretty substantial Chicago Tribune coverage in addition to The Oklahoman.


 * Also in "Pre-Paid Legal Services" subsection, add:
 * By 2003, the company provided services to approximately 1.4 million members.


 * In "LegalShield" subsection, update:
 * But the venture in the UK was a failure and in February 2021 it was discontinued
 * (which is not cited to a WP:RS) to
 * The venture in the UK went into liquidation in May 2021.


 * Add to end of "LegalShield" subsection:
 * LegalShield also expanded its product offerings in Canada in 2019. In 2020, the company's memberships reached an all-time high of 1.8 million paid subscriptions. Direct-to-consumer online sales increased by 70 percent in 2020.

Company description

 * After
 * The company also markets IDShield, a privacy and reputation management service that also provides identity theft monitoring and restoration.
 * add:
 * LegalShield claims that more than one million people have IDShield coverage.


 * Update last sentence from:
 * The company's membership plans are sold as employee benefits and directly through its multi-level marketing division.
 * to
 * The company's membership plans are sold as employee benefits, through its multi-level marketing division, and direct to consumers.
 * Per the source: "It joins another company, LegalShield, that also sells legal insurance directly to consumers."


 * Add to end:
 * More than 34,000 companies offered LegalShield to employees as a voluntary benefit in 2015., LegalShield and IDShield covered employees at 141,000 businesses. At the end of 2020, the company's services covered more than 4.4 million people across 1.8 million paid subscriptions.

I appreciate any help or feedback. Thanks! Mary Gaulke (talk) 00:42, 22 September 2021 (UTC)


 * Partially done. One except all in the infobox and lede has been implemented. Almost all edit requests in History section seem promotional in nature. In the company section, it doesn't seem necessary to me to mention what product or services are availed by what number of customers. Though leaving these for someone who might find otherwise. Not closing the request. Chirota (talk) 01:20, 27 September 2021 (UTC)
 * Thanks for your help! Marked the completed items above. Mary Gaulke (talk) 23:55, 29 September 2021 (UTC)
 * One other thing! As best as I can tell, figures around the scope of a business (e.g. customers, employees, locations, offices) can be used in articles to provide context around the extent of an organization's reach or the history of its business. Cf. Cracker Barrel, Bridgewater Associates, Chuck E. Cheese, Cirque du Soleil. Just trying to infer best practices based on established featured and good articles. Mary Gaulke (talk) 00:20, 30 September 2021 (UTC)
 * I am partially implementing some of the above history text and closing out the request. (Namely, the addition of "and direct to consumers" based on the ABA Journal.) Broadly, the difference between the articles you mentioned and LegalShield is that their historical scope has been much more widely covered by independent, third-party sources, because they are much more significant companies. It is often difficult for us to distinguish genuine coverage from promotional or otherwise problematic coverage in more obscure third-party publications, because many of them tend to churn out content that is nearly indistinguishable from a press release and have minimal discernible editorial oversight. Global Legal Chronicle, for example, seems to tout the large volume of deals it covers yearly (8000, per this media kit), which strongly suggests a given article there is not necessarily useful. That's not to say it's totally unacceptable, but most editors are going to approach an obscure source like that with skepticism, especially if it is used in support of statements that, while true, are often hallmarks of the sort of obnoxious, undisclosed promotional editing that plagues Wikipedia (on that note, thank you for using the proper channels; I understand the delays can be frustrating). WhinyTheYounger (WtY) (talk, contribs)  19:07, 26 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I appreciate the feedback. Thanks much! Mary Gaulke (talk) 19:35, 27 March 2022 (UTC)

Cancel
It was a scan for the beginning I was not given the right directions told I couldn't use lawyers for 90 days this was a big scam Deborah revard wants to cancel!!!! 2601:40E:4101:1450:4856:68B:F828:BC83 (talk) 09:44, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

Big scam
I would like to from the beginning stored I could not use lawyers for 90 days the it's the presentation dude spent hardly any time with me the so called classes were only one class an hour 2601:40E:4101:1450:4856:68B:F828:BC83 (talk) 09:47, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

May 2022 COI Edit Requests
Hi there! I have a COI: LegalShield is a client of my employer, Porter Novelli. Requesting some edits to this article, which I've broken out by section below. Since LegalShield is an older organization, lots of these sources are archival and not available freely online; happy to provide PDFs if helpful. My goal is to help this article provide a more complete reflection of the company's history/offerings as depicted in independent, reliable sources over the years.

Pre-Paid Legal Services

 * After, add:
 * The company partnered with TVC Marketing Associates to grow sales in 1983. Within a few years, sales doubled from $4 million to $8 million, and Pre-Paid Legal acquired TVC in 1985. Between 1982 and 1986, the company grew rapidly, doubling its business every year with sales ultimately increasing from $2.5 million to $42.2 million. By 1987, Pre-Paid was the biggest provider of individual enrollment legal insurance in the United States, covering nearly 500,000 subscribers in 22 states. During this time, much of the company’s efforts focused on "preventive law" – providing clients with legal counsel to help prevent a matter from needing to go to court in the future.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:29, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * After, add:
 * From 1996 to 1999, the company's sales increased by almost 500%, to $155 million. From 1996 to 2001, the company quadrupled its customer base to 1.2 million people and repurchased $90 million of company stock without taking on debt.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:29, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * After, add:
 * That same year, Equities magazine ranked Pre-Paid Legal as the #1 fastest-growing AMEX company in America. The company began offering plans in Canada in 1999, with some modifications to suit the Canadian legal system. By 2009, it covered 28,000 Canadian families across four provinces.


 * ✅ Partially Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:29, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * Before, add:
 * In 2003, the company moved into a new corporate headquarters in Ada, Oklahoma.


 * ✅ Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:29, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * Add to end of section:
 * Stonecipher stepped down as president and CEO in 2010. Randy Harp and Mark Brown became co-CEOs, while Harp also became company president. Stonecipher continued to be the chairman of the company’s board.


 * ✅ Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:29, 10 December 2022 (UTC)

LegalShield

 * Update
 * The venture was a failure, and was discontinued in February 2021.
 * to
 * The venture in the UK went into liquidation in May 2021.
 * Using the "Rose 2021" ref name already in use in the lead.


 * ✅ Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:38, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * Add to end of section:
 * In 2020, the company began releasing market research insights. The LegalShield Law Index shares the company’s own analysis of indicators of the financial health of American households and small business. The company’s Housing Activity Index is part of the Law Index; the Real Estate Index is a similar but separate offering. Another research product, the Economic Stress Index, gauges consumers' most pressing financial and legal concerns.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:38, 10 December 2022 (UTC)

IDShield
Add a new subsection of History to cover the history of this separate product offering:
 * In 2003, PPLSI introduced its Identity Theft Shield product (later rebranded as IDShield), initially provided in partnership with Kroll Inc. By January 2022, IDShield had more than one million members.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:40, 10 December 2022 (UTC)

Controversies

 * Above, Pelagic proposed that this section be shifted to fall under the "Pre-Paid Legal Services" subsection of "History" and split into two parts: "Controversies" and "Changes to accounting practices" (covering the related stories from 2001 and 2004). Z1720 was aligned with the recommendation. Resurfacing this as a request, since all the content in this section pertains to that period of the company's history.


 * ✅ Moved the entire Controversy section to History as a sub-section under Pre-Paid Legal Services. It seems to address the request without diminishing the attention this section has. Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:57, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * Add to end of first paragraph:
 * Throughout the process of updating its financial results per the SEC's direction, the company maintained that it stood by its accounting practices.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 14:57, 10 December 2022 (UTC)

Services

 * Break into two subsections, for LegalShield and IDShield. Consider renaming section to "Products".


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:00, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * Add to LegalShield subsection:
 * LegalShield's family plans typically cover unlimited phone consultations with its network of independent provider firms, some calls or letters, review of personal legal documents, and creation or updates to wills. LegalShield also provides some representation during Internal Revenue Service audits and for civil cases, motor vehicle conflicts, and more. For services not covered by the plan, members receive a reduced rate at the provider firm.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:00, 10 December 2022 (UTC)
 * Hi! Thank you so much for taking the time to review. Checking on this item in particular – the article currently contains no explanation of what LegalShield coverage actually is/does, which I would think would be relevant/notable given appropriate citations. Could you please clarify what determines whether a detail is unneeded? I want to make sure to incorporate that into future edit requests I work on, too. Thanks again. JZindler (talk) 14:52, 4 January 2023 (UTC)


 * Add to IDShield subsection:
 * The service connects customers with a licensed private investigator who interacts with creditors, financial institutions, and law enforcement on behalf of the customer. IDShield also offers a mobile app for communicating with the investigator and receiving status updates.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:00, 10 December 2022 (UTC)


 * In December 2021, U.S. News & World Report gave IDShield a rating of four out of five stars. The publication praised the service’s private investigator offering and family plans but noted that IDShield does not provide credit simulation to play out the impacts of different financial scenarios.


 * Add a new subsection, "LegalShield card" (using "Martin" ref name already in use in article):
 * In late 1999 the company rolled out a new product, a "Legal Shield" card that offered 24-hour access to legal representation at an additional cost of $1 per month to members of Pre-Paid’s family plan. The company developed the product in response to growing reports of police profiling during the summer of 1999.  By September 2000, more than 100,000 customers had purchased the card. The card was meant to reduce harassment against "minorities and other motorists" during traffic stops and other interactions with police. It sold particularly well among people of color. By 2014, the card was included in all LegalShield policies.
 * N.B. This has been mentioned in previous edit requests; we're resurfacing here because we've found additional sources and detail.


 * ❌ Un-needed detail and seems excessively promotional. Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:00, 10 December 2022 (UTC)

I appreciate any help or feedback. Thanks! JZindler (talk) 15:02, 17 May 2022 (UTC)


 * @JZindler Addressed every request with notes above. Implemented some exactly as requested, a few with changes, and several requests were denied as un-necessary detail or too promotional. Cheers. Duke Gilmore (talk) 15:04, 10 December 2022 (UTC)

2023 COI edit request
Hi! As noted above, I'm a COI editor for LegalShield. Two quick edit requests for this article:

1. Add to end of "History": "Former Dish Network and Sling TV executive Warren Schlichting became CEO in December 2022. "

2. In the "key people" parameter of the infobox, update "Jeff Bell (CEO)" to "Warren Schlichting (CEO)" and update "Scott Grissom (CFO) " to "Steve Williamson (CFO) ".

Thank you for your help! Mary Gaulke (talk) 14:38, 19 September 2023 (UTC)

Reply 20-SEP-2023
Regards, Spintendo  20:06, 20 September 2023 (UTC)
 * 1) ❌ The direction is to place this information at the end of the History. As the History section itself contains 4 subsections which all contain their own text, there is no "end of the History section".
 * 2) ✅ The infobox information pertaining to Schlichting and Grissom have been updated.


 * Thank you for the review! I was referring to the end of the "LegalShield" section of "History". Mary Gaulke (talk) 20:41, 20 September 2023 (UTC)
 * @MaryGaulke Thank you as always for your prompt clarification. I've implemented the text as you requested. Regards, Spintendo  22:49, 20 September 2023 (UTC)