Process For Settling Lawsuit

If negotiations have failed to end with an agreement between the 2 opposing parties, the plaintiff’s lawyer could choose a formal or informal process for settling a lawsuit. The chosen process could affect the time required for ultimate achievement of a settlement.

Characteristics of informal process

Settlement talks proceed after submission of personal injury claim, and after submission of a complaint to the court. The serious level of the talk’s increases following the termination of the discovery session. At that point each side has learned enough about the evidence to allow for evaluation of the strength behind each side’s argument.

The personal injury lawyer in Hamilton for the plaintiff must inform that same client of any settlement offer that has been made by the defendant. The plaintiff decides whether or not to accept any given offer.

Characteristics of formal process

During a formal process, the pursuit of a settlement normally takes place at one of 3 specific times, during the pre-trial proceedings.

—The point that represents the termination of the deposition and interrogation, both of which have taken place during the discovery process.
—The point at which either side could make a move to settle, following presentation of the defendant’s motion for a summary judgment. This is one of 2 final opportunities that are provided to those defendants that would like to avoid a trial.
—Settlement made after court has ruled on motion in judgment. That ruling determines what evidence can be used during the trial. This is the second of the 2 chances that a defendant has for avoiding a trial.

Steps that follow formal process are the same as those that follow informal proceedings.

Are You Partly at Fault For the Accident?

It’s important to know whether or not your claim is partially/completely dependent on who was at fault for the accident. If it isn’t, then there is no reason why you should worry about this issue. However, if it is partially or completely dependent on who caused the accident (if both parties had contributed to their own injuries), then it becomes more complicated—and important.

The steps that finalize the proceedings (formal or informal)

Both sides seek confirmation of the settlement’s terms. The confirmation should be provided in a written document, such as a letter or email. Both sides prepare a document that contains details on the agreed-upon terms.The document prepared by both sides gets sent to the court. The court issues the court-ordered judgment. If the defendant has not appealed the court’s decision, he/she delivers the requested funds to the plaintiff. A good personal injury attorney will know how to give you advice on how best to proceed with your claim so that it won’t get lost in the legal system or dismissed altogether because of mistakes made by other parties involved in this process such as insurance companies.