Your Albuquerque NM injury attorney can explain that the majority of personal injury cases do settle. However, your Albuquerque NM injury lawyer may explain that defense attorneys may have a variety of incentives not to settle your case, including the following:
More Money
Insurance defense attorneys usually make more money by litigating cases than by settling them early in the process. Many Albuquerque NM injury attorneys that work for defendants charge at an hourly rate, so the more the work, the more they get paid. Unlike your Albuquerque NM injury lawyer, defense attorneys do not receive a portion of the settlement amount. Therefore, even if the defense attorney who is handling the case may realize that you or your attorney will settle the case for far less than you first requested, he or she may have no incentive to convince the client to take this action because it will affect the defense attorney’s bottom line. In some cases, a defense attorney might offer a particularly low settlement offer, such as when a soft tissue injury was suffered. In these types of cases, defense attorneys may believe that a client must simply either take it or leave it. In this way, they look like they are representing the insurance company’s best interests by offering a settlement amount. However, this settlement amount is really not acceptable so it is just a facade.
Policy
Your Albuquerque NM injury attorney can explain that some insurance companies have policies in which they do not settle small-range or medium-range claims for a certain amount unless litigation is threatened or pending. Your personal injury attorney may know specific insurance companies that have such policies in place. These insurance companies include national and other large insurance companies that have particularly conservative policies. If they do offer to settle, the amount may be very low. These companies know that many personal injury attorneys prefer to settle the case and get out before investing too much time and energy in the case.
If you would like to learn about the potential to settle your case or why a defense attorney might not have an incentive not to settle, contact personal injury attorney Ryan McKelvey by calling (505)254-9090.
