Lisa from Odenville, AL, asked:
Hi Julie,
We hope you had a Merry Christmas!
Our court date is quickly approaching and our attorney contacted us with an extremely low offer from the company we’re suing (plaintiff). Our attorney asked what would make us happy and we are supposed to communicate with him soon.
We have told the truth about everything. I could have been killed by this company being extremely negligent and I have had issues with terrible anxiety since the event happened (actually there were two events).
We’re not sure what anxiety and stress are worth and our attorney doesn’t believe they will offer anything over $60,000. The company we’re suing caused approximately $12,000-$15,000 in damage to our property in addition to the anxiety and stress this nightmare has created.
What are your thoughts and suggestions about our situation?
Thank you for your time and thank you for your podcast!
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for your sweet holiday wishes. My family and I had a wonderful time together.
Regarding your pending legal issue, I have a few thoughts I’ve gathered from personal experience and from your spirit guides.
First, when I asked your spirit guides if it was in your best interest to settle the case, I “got” a YES. When I asked if your current lawyer was competent and acting in your best interest, I also “got” a YES. I then asked if you would realize a higher amount of money settling the case than proceeding to trial, I also “got” a YES.
The American Bar Association says 97% of all civil cases are settled prior to going to trial. In your case, I imagine the plaintiff’s insurance company is the one offering a settlement. Every good negotiator will start with a low offer and go up from there if necessary. In addition, insurance companies will always do their best to avoid going to trial. It’s expensive and risky. They don’t want to pay attorney fees or risk a sympathetic jury siding with you and awarding some astronomical sum to you.
Now, here’s my take. As you may know, I am a businesswoman and entrepreneur. During my career over the past almost four decades, I’ve had a fair amount of experience dealing with attorneys and a variety of legal matters including trial experience. In January of 1990, I spent 10 days in Federal Court when I sued a multi-billion-dollar global corporation for breach of contract and won! I’ve also been involved in a couple of other lawsuits I initiated and settled those satisfactorily.
I suggest you settle your case for as much as you can without going to trial. Although there are settlement calculators available online, it’s hard to prove and put a monetary value on emotional suffering.
In addition, it’s very expensive to have your case be tried in a court. It’s a crap shoot because attorney fees and expenses quickly add up and the plaintiffs will normally have way more financial resources than you. They will stretch out the proceedings with delays, changes of venue, etc. as much as possible with the hope you’ll run out of money.
At the end of the day, your legal fees and expenses will be minimized by settling sooner rather than later and you’ll most likely end up with more money in your bank account.
Hope this information helps. Good luck!