Reasons That Most Personal Injury Cases End With Settlement

A claimant can save time and money by agreeing to settle, instead of pursuing a lawsuit. In addition, the act of negotiating for a settlement invites a lower level of risk than going after a possible high award from a jury.

By the same token, claimants reduce the level of other undesirable aspects of a personal injury case.

The level of uncertainty is less during negotiations for a settlement. There is no chance for the introduction of new evidence. No witness could become nervous, while on the witness stand, and blurt out some unfavorable phrase or sentence.

A claimant’s need to do any traveling should stay small, during the negotiations. It could increase, if there was no settlement, and the case’s proceedings continued in a courtroom setting. The court might be a fair distance from the plaintiff’s home.

Stress is definitely an undesirable aspect of a personal injury case. Claimants’ level of stress remains rather small, when involvement with the negotiating process has provided each claimant with greater control over the case’s outcome.

Two unwanted aspects of a personal injury case have no place in the pre-settlement negotiations.

When negotiations end, the disputing parties agree to settle. The defendant’s insurance company agrees to deliver the promised compensation to the claimant. There is no mention of an appeal.

Even if the same 2 parties had chosen mediation, over settling, there would have been no means for filing an appeal. On the other hand, either party has the right to appeal a court decision. If exercised, that right can prolong the amount of time before resolution of the plaintiff’s case.

Personal injury lawyers in Waterloo have a lot more work, when a client has chosen to pursue a lawsuit. Their pre-trial workload includes that of finding expert witnesses, creating exhibits and preparing an opening and closing statement. Moreover, the trial does not start until after completion of the discovery session, a place where lawyers from both sides must ask questions at a deposition.

Claimants enjoy maintenance of a certain right while negotiating, but lose it during the litigation process.

That is the right to privacy. A claimant does not get hit with lots of questions during the negotiations. The conversation between the claimant and the adjuster usually takes place over the phone. The claimant’s lawyer can insist on privacy, whenever the disputing parties negotiate.

Even mediation is a private affair. No one can listen to what the mediator says, or what has been said to the mediator. That element of privacy disappears in a courtroom. If the plaintiff must spend time on the witness stand, he or she might be asked some very probing questions. Everyone in the same courtroom would hear the plaintiff’s answers.