Professional liability insurance—sometimes called malpractice insurance or errors and omissions insurance—is insurance that may be purchased by attorneys and law firms to pay the costs of defending legal malpractice claims, and the costs of settling such claims or paying the judgment awarded to a plaintiff on such a claim. Most states do not require attorneys to purchase professional liability insurance, but some states require attorneys who do not carry professional liability insurance to provide notice to their clients of that fact. Some states require attorneys to have their clients sign a written disclosure that the attorney does not have professional liability insurance.

In Iowa, attorneys are not mandated by state law to carry professional liability insurance, commonly known as malpractice insurance or errors and omissions insurance. However, the Iowa Rules of Professional Conduct do require attorneys who do not maintain professional liability insurance to inform their clients of this lack of coverage. Specifically, Rule 32:1.4(c) of the Iowa Court Rules states that a lawyer who does not have professional liability insurance must inform a client in writing at the time of the client's engagement of the lawyer, unless the lawyer has had a continuous professional liability insurance policy in effect for the past five years. This disclosure must be made to the client, who should acknowledge it, ensuring that the client is aware of the attorney's insurance status before proceeding with legal representation.