Personal injury cases have different phases. The first is getting a lawyer to help you with your case. The next is gathering every piece of evidence that will help you. 

Then you have your day in court, or, as it happens in most cases, you settle out of court. Lastly, after your case has gone to trial or you have agreed to an out-of-court settlement, there is the phase of getting your money.

If you have exercised patience through the entire legal process, you may want to get all jumpy and expect your money to come to you immediately. After the court has ruled for a particular amount as compensation, it is perfectly normal for you to expect your money immediately. After all, you have gone through many emotional and physical challenges to get to that stage.

However, you need to know it doesn’t work that way. Your money will not reach your account immediately after the court has made a ruling or you have an agreement in place for an out-of-court settlement.

Refrain from panic if you do not receive your money immediately. Personal injury settlements follow a strict procedure, which may take time,” says personal injury lawyer Alexander Safarin of Block LLP Injury Law Firm. 

What Are the Disbursement Procedures?

Your Legal Representative Firm Receives the Money: After the entire legal tussle to get you a deserved compensation, the defendant’s insurance company disburses the settlement into the account of your attorney’s law firm to hold it in trust. However, this does not happen immediately. It may take three weeks for the insurance company to pay the money.

Your Attorney Prepares a Settlement Statement: A settlement statement typically contains the details of the account for receiving the funds and the client’s permission to receive them and deploy them appropriately.

Payment of Existing Bills: Following the accident, you required the help of medical and other professionals to treat your injuries. Thus, after the insurance company disburses the settlement funds, your law firm will help you settle the bills that were incurred.

Legal Fees: Remember that most law firms do not charge you during the entire lawsuit process. This is because most lawyers agree only to charge after they have successfully helped you receive a personal injury settlement claim. Thus, after the insurance company disburses your settlement fund, the law firm will duly remove the agreed-upon legal charge.

Settlement of All Other Creditors: It is possible that during the lawsuit, you acquired debt due to your loss of job or in seeking some form of professional help to help you overcome your challenges. The law firm ensures that all creditors receive what you owe them. This will prevent creditors from taking advantage of you and increasing their bills.

Disbursement of Funds: After the law firm has settled every other bill and debt you may have incurred during the lawsuit, you will receive your settlement. 

Payment Structure Plan

You should know that there are different payment structures for personal injury settlement claims.

One type of payment structure is structured payment. This occurs when the settlement claim is more than $100,000. In such cases, the insurance company or the defendant agrees to a payment plan where you receive an agreed amount at an agreed interval, such as $10,000 every three months.

Another payment structure type is the lump-sum plan. In this plan, the insurance company or defendant pays the claimant the settlement claim all at once.

The procedure may be different for minors. The firm may not pay the entire settlement fee into the minor’s account if it exceeds $10,000. In such cases, the firm will set up a payment plan to ensure that the money is available for use in milestone moments for the minor. 

Other times, the firm may structure the payment for the minor to receive monthly or yearly in a manner that benefits that minor.