An Open Letter on Free Enterprise

Founded in 1972, Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. has enjoyed a remarkable 37 year success. Built by Harland Stonecipher, who to this day, at 71 years of age, serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of this New York Stock Exchange listed 0000company.

Pre-Paid Legal employs 725 full-time Oklahomans, and counts over 1.5 million families as members across North America.

The company’s legal service membership is unique. Pre-Paid Legal Services provides its members affordable access to legal services from a network of qualified independent law firms.

We are personally familiar with many of the outstanding lawyers responsible for providing these services. Each of us have toured the company’s home office and witnessed first-hand the operations. We all know the executive management team, most of whom have served the company for a decade or more. They are responsive, honest and ethical in their leadership.

We understand the business opportunity that exists and applaud those who take advantage of it.

Pre-Paid Legal Services not only represents the free enterprise system as a corporation. The company offers motivated individuals with an opportunity to create their own business based on this free market system.

We’ve personally witnessed the integrity of the company’s executive team. Over the years, Pre-Paid Legal Services has been recognized for its leadership by national business publications, like Fortune, Forbes USA Today and others. Just this year, DeMarche Associates, an independent investment research firm recognized Pre-Paid as one of the 100 best in the U.S. for its corporate investment strategy. Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. is a solid public company.

As part of its commitment to free enterprise, we think it’s important to highlight a few facts:

Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. has not asked for a government bailout.
To the contrary, the company pays its corporate taxes,
and, as long-time sales associate John Hail said, “never missed a commission payment in 37 years.”

Famous Oklahoma humorist/philosopher Will Rogers said, “Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”

Harland Stonecipher's vision and charge, has always been to make equal justice for all the standard, not merely an ideal, Through a free enterprise opportunity Stonecipher and his team built a passionate and capable sales force to meet this charge. In short, we think Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. is a company that leads by its own example.

There are beacons of hope in today’s business world. There are companies that do things right. There are true American-made success stories. Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. fits the bill! We are proud to count the company and Harland Stonecipher as a friend