Your lawyer will tell you a well-known fact – most personal injury cases (95%) settle out of court. There are two main reasons for this and they are the subject of this article.
As mentioned earlier, personal injury lawyers are well aware of the fact that the overwhelming majority of personal injury cases never make it to trial. This true for civil, criminal, divorce, probate, or other types of cases. There are two main reasons for this.
Going to trial has many risks
Personal injury lawyers in Yorba Linda know that going to trial is very risky. After all, there is no guarantee that you will win. If you are like most people involved in a personal injury accident, you’ve already suffered substantial losses in terms of property damage and bodily injuries. Additionally, you’ve likely spent a small fortune on medical bills and related expenses and will continue to do so. You have probably had to take time off of work recovering and have incurred lost wages/income. This is often combined with the fact that you have your regular expenses and bills which are ‘piling up’. You’re desperate for cash and are willing to accept a quick settlement. The average case takes about a year to go to trial.
Insurance companies are also keen to settle out of court as quickly as possible to avoid ‘runaway verdicts.’ These are judgments that obligate them to pay exceptionally huge amounts of money to the plaintiff in the form of a settlement. Depending on their frequency, they can bankrupt even the largest of insurance companies. That is why most of the insurance companies try to deny the claim or offer a very low payment than what the accident victim deserves. This is one of the reasons that you need to hire the services if a good lawyer so that they can handle the dealings with the insurance adjuster and fight for your rights.
Home on the Range
Believe it or not, most personal injury lawyers can only ‘guestimate’ the real settlement amount that their clients could potentially win if the case went to trial. The insurer will do the same with its client. Once the two parties know the ‘ballpark’ range of the settlement amount, it’s often easier and faster for them to reach an out-of-court settlement. This saves both parties time and money.
You can win a settlement even if your case never goes to trial. You can indeed win a settlement even if you settle out of court with the defendant. This is very possible, especially, if you hire a good personal injury lawyer.