South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog
In West Palm Beach personal injury cases, there is strong incentive for both sides to settle things out-of-court. Trials are expensive, time-consuming, and often emotionally-wrought. Florida statute also provides strong incentive: If either side rejects a reasonable settlement offer and the end result at trial is a judgment ends up being fairly close to that amount, the party who rejected the offer can be compelled to pay the other side’s attorney fees.
As the plaintiff, even if you win, an order to pay the defense’s attorney fees can significantly cut into the amount of compensation you ultimately receive. So the question becomes: How do I know if a settlement offer is reasonable?
The best way to have high confidence is to hire an experienced West Palm Beach injury lawyer with a track record of success in cases similar to yours. They are going to instinctively have a strong sense of what your case is worth — and how to properly verify the figure they’re thinking of.
As skilled Palm Beach injury lawyers, we have a number of specific methods we employ to help us pinpoint that number.
Consider Economic Factors
You’ve heard the saying, “time is money.” That is one of the most compelling arguments for avoiding trial in a personal injury case. Sometimes they’re necessary – but they’ll almost always cost more.
The longer a case drags on:
- The more work there is for attorneys, which translates to higher attorney fees for both sides.
- The less the same amount of money is worth, thanks to inflation.
- The more time the plaintiff will lose at work or spend traveling for court dates, depositions, etc.
Settling sooner rather than later is usually in your best interests – but only if the settlement offer is fair. It’s not uncommon for insurers to lowball plaintiffs. It’s important to have an experienced attorney who can help you decipher whether an offer is fair or not.
