Monday, March 29, 2010

Are You In Need Of Legal Funding? How Do You Know Which Offer Is Best For You?

Have you been injured due to another's actions, currently in a lawsuit, and watching your finances fly out the window? Unfortunately, this situation occurs almost daily across the United States to individuals who sustain injuries as a result of car accidents, work-related incidents, breach of contract, and other incidents in which personal injuries are sustained. It is for this reason that many go in search of legal funding.

If you find yourself in such a financial predicament, this article was written to assist you. Hopefully, this information will guide you in navigating the lawsuit loan process. Many applicants are relieved to find that, once documentation is obtained, notification of either approval or denial is available within 24 to 72 hours.

The first step that you need to take once you've applied for a legal funding is to contact your attorney. Notify your attorney of your desire to obtain a lawsuit loan to proceed with your case.

Applicants should be aware of the fact that legal funding experts will be required to contact your attorney to obtain documentation regarding pending-litigation. If you have already notified your attorney of your desire to obtain such financial assistance and of the need for the funding-expert to contact your attorney to discuss this process, this will greatly expedite receipt of required documentation. This will also give you an opportunity to complete requisite documentation for the attorney prior to release of the requested information.

The second step you must take is to identify a reputable legal funding expert. Search engines can be extremely helpful in proceeding with this step.

Google has far-and-away the largest search engine. The information obtained on Google will provide multiple resources with which to begin your investigation. Thus, when initiating your research, you are advised to begin with Google. The simplest way to approach this research is to simply enter applicable search terms such as "settlement loan," "settlement loans," "legal funding," "pre-settlement loans," etc.

Once you've done your preliminary research for this information, it would be wise to spend a little bit of time navigating the sites. Take a few minutes to review the information contained on the website and determine whether that entity appears to be appropriate for your legal funding needs.

Irrespective of the temptation, it is important for the applicant to realize that customarily it is a bad idea to submit the same application to multiple sites. Most applicants are unaware of the fact that although there are many brokers to which applications may be submitted, there is a relatively small number of funding-entities to which these applications will be submitted. When one individual submits multiple applications, funding-entities will raise a "red-flag." Multiple applications suggest that there is little benefit in expending a great deal of time and energy in assessing the strengths and weaknesses of that particular application.

When you begin seriously considering submitting an application for legal funding, it is likely that you will want to speak to someone directly. It is disappointing to note that many of these entities provide essentially no contact information on their site. As you navigate the sites, you'll often notice that there are no telephone numbers, no fax numbers, and there is no way to contact anyone on that site directly. In fact, many of these sites intentionally obscure contact information to preclude having individuals contact them if problems arise. Rest-assured, if you have difficulty contacting someone prior to submitting your application, it will be almost impossible to contact someone once the application is submitted it you have questions.

It is wise to work only with those entities that have staff committed to assist you with questions as they arise. Competent legal funding experts realize these are extremely difficult decisions to make. Furthermore, they realize that settlement loans are often very difficult for individuals to obtain if they are inexperienced with this process.

You're encouraged to consider working only with those individuals who are willing to provide staff committed to assist you with your legal funding needs. Competent lawsuit loan specialists realize that this is a very trying time for you and this is a very important decision. They also realize that it is really important to you that you be able to contact someone if you have questions/concerns.

It is also important for you to thoroughly discuss your case with both your attorney and the legal funding expert. Mistakenly, applicants often want to know what the interest rates are on such funding. However, interest rates are not permitted with legal funding. Fees assessed against the particular lawsuit are contingent on the inherent-risk of the case. Remember, if the case is too risky, it is unlikely you will be able to obtain a settlement loan. However, if the case has some inherent-risk, but a pre-settlement loan is extended, it is likely that the "risk-fees" associated with the funding will be higher than with those cases that have little inherent-risk.

Want to find out more about legal funding? Then visit our site on how to choose the best lawsuit loans for your needs.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

What Is The True Cost Of Obtaining Legal Funding?

The cost of legal funding is the question most applicants ask when they visit our site. The problem with the question is that it doesn't really make sense! It is the wrong question to ask for those individuals seeking a settlement loan.

It should be borne in mind that you will not be negotiating your lawsuit in a void. In fact, it is very unlikely that the defendant is going to readily admit liability. Yes, I'm quite certain that the defendant readily admitted liability at the time the incident occurred. This is a frequent occurrence. However, as an expert witness in more than 100 personal injury cases, I've never encountered this in a case that actually went to trial. At trial, you're likely to encounter a reticent defendant. This reticence is what forces plaintiffs to seek legal funding.

Remember that individual you encountered at the time the incident occurred? Remember, the individual who readily admitted liability. You may be surprised to see how adamantly that individual now denies any liability whatsoever when you begin to pursue that individual for compensation to recover for injuries/damages you sustained. In fact, according to the defendant, it is you, not he/she, who is responsible for the entire incident! (This is why we called it an adversarial system and why legal funding is oftentimes essential.)

You are advised to retain a knowledgeable personal injury legal representative to represent your interests if the case does go to trial. Make no mistake, the defendant, in almost all cases, will be represented by a legal representative who obtains most of his/her revenue from insurance companies. In fact, in many instances, the defense legal representative meets the client for the first time at the courthouse.

Key to understanding the defense attorney's motive is that you realize that the attorney represents the insurance carrier, not the defendant. It is true that the defendant is formally identified as the defense attorney's client. However, this is a ruse designed to avoid notifying jurors that the defendant has "deep-pockets." It is because of those "deep-pockets" that the carrier can continue to drag its feet, placing obstacles in your path and forcing you to seek legal funding to keep your head above water!

Insurance carriers are viewed with such contempt by many that neither you nor your attorney will be permitted to even acknowledge that it is the insurance carrier that is, in reality, denying your claim. Merely mentioning that fact may serve as a basis for mistrial!

This article is intended to dispel any notion that you may have had that the insurance carrier is interested in seeing to it that you as the plaintiff obtain a fair-and-equitable settlement and it certainly wants to keep you from obtaining legal funding. In fact, the insurance carrier doesn't want to pay you a dime on your claim! If it weren't for this fact, no suit would have been filed. If it weren't for this fact, your case would not be dragging on, in many cases, for years. It is at this point that the plaintiff's options are customarily limited to either accepting an unreasonable settlement offer the insurance carrier makes, or obtaining legal funding that would allow the plaintiff to pursue the action to an appropriate conclusion.

You see, the question really isn't, "How much does legal funding cost?" The real question is, "Does legal funding cost or pay?" You decide!

Learn more about obtaining legal funding. Stop by our site where you can find out all about the benefits of obtaining lawsuit loans and what they can do for you.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Here Are The Keys That Will Unlock The Doors To Settlement Loans. (Part 2)

In a previous article, we talked about ways in which the plaintiff may go about satisfying certain elements in a "negligence" lawsuit. The issues on which we primarily focused dealt with the "reasonable person" standard and the "duty" the defendant owed to the plaintiff at the time the injury occurred. Prior to proceeding in a "negligence" lawsuit, it is necessary that the plaintiff establish both of these elements.

However, when pursuing either lawsuit funding or lawsuit loans, it is absolutely essential that damages be clearly established. In this particular article, we will discuss elements required to establish damages, as well as additional features that will be required when pursuing pre-settlement loans.

It is amazing to see how frequently individuals who apply for lawsuit settlement loans fail to specifically identify the damages that serve as the predicate for obtaining either the lawsuit loan or lawsuit funding. It is essential that the plaintiff understand that when attempting to obtain legal settlement loans, the funding that may be advanced will be determined, at least to a large extent, by the damages that are clearly demonstrated, as well as the satisfaction of other elements in the lawsuit. If the plaintiff is not going to go to the trouble to identify the damages sustained, the plaintiff is, for the most part, wasting his/her time in even filing an application to obtain settlement funding.

It is quite reasonable to ask, "If damages are so important, how do I determine what damages I've sustained? Additionally, how do I go about assessing the economic loss of those damages?" The damages may come in numerous forms. However, some of the more frequent forms of damages that serve as the basis of "negligence" actions are injury sustained as a result of a car wreck, injuries sustained as a result of discriminatory practices (e.g., employment discrimination), losses resulting from a breach of contract, losses resulting from a failure to maintain a safe and habitable environment (e.g., premises liability), injury sustained as a result of a dog bite, and wrongful termination of employment.

What are the damages the plaintiff may plead when pursuing civil litigation? A few examples of the damages that may be pled are medical expenses, vehicle repair, loss of consortium, loss of opportunity, loss of income, and loss of enjoyment of habitability. The plaintiff's duty in establishing damages will be to demonstrate the approximate economic loss resulting from defendant's actions.

Let's take a look for a moment of medical expenses. Some factors that may need to be taken into consideration are fees related to emergency medical personnel called to the scene. Additionally, there may be expenses relating to having an ambulance arrive at the scene and transport the plaintiff to either an emergency room or a medical facility. Once admitted to an emergency room, there'll be separate expenses related to not only be emergency room visit, but the emergency room physicians as well. If the plaintiff is admitted to the hospital, there will be obvious expenses related to that hospital stay. Additionally, if the patient is admitted for observation in an outpatient medical facility, such expenses must also be taken into consideration. If surgery is necessary, the plaintiff will have not only the fees related to the surgery, but also fees related to anesthesiology, surgical-equipment/supplies, post-op rehab, etc. Each and every one of these expenses must be carefully identified and reported if the plaintiff wishes to be compensated for those damages.

For those plaintiffs who seek pre-settlement loans, it is essential that they clearly establish damages sustained. All damages sustained should be carefully considered. Furthermore, it will be essential for the plaintiff to carefully calculate the value of each one of those damages. It will be necessary for the plaintiff to translate the damages sustained into an economic loss that either the Court or jury may appreciate. Remember, if the plaintiff fails to identify damages prior to settling his/her claim, the plaintiff will be forever barred from being able to receive compensation for those damages.

In almost every instance, the plaintiff will be required to release the defendant from all future expenses (i.e., "hold-harmless" agreement). The agreement into which the plaintiff and defendant will enter precludes the defendant from being responsible for any additional expenses related to the incident that served as the basis for the plaintiff's claim. The sole basis on which the funding-entity's determination will be made with respect to the lawsuit settlement loan sought would be the plaintiff's ability to clearly establish the link between the damages sustained in the underlying claim. Remember, to prevail in the underlying lawsuit, the plaintiff must establish the following: (1) the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty; (2) the defendant failed to exercise that duty as would a "reasonable person;" and (3) the plaintiff suffered damages as a results of defendant's actions.

Do you think a lawsuit settlement loan is right for you? Would you like to learn more about lawsuit funding? Please visit us today and you may apply online for lawsuit funding and learn more about the benefits of litigation funding.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Do You Have The Keys To Obtain Funding For Settlement Loans? (Part 1)

When considering settlement loans, it will first be necessary that you establish that you have sustained an injury. There are many factors that must be addressed in establishing such a claim. However, first and foremost you must show that you have suffered some harm/injury. This may come in the form of physical, emotional, monetary, etc. damages. It is important to realize that when discussing such cases we are not limiting "damages" merely to physical harm/insult.

Although there are numerous classifications of claims that may be submitted to obtain settlement loans, this series of articles will focus on "negligence" cases. In our discussion of "negligence," our focus will be on the manner in which "negligence" is established in Courts of Law. It is important to realize that most cases dealing with "negligence" are civil. However, there are numerous causes of action that may arise with respect to "criminal negligence." It is important to realize that in most civil cases the plaintiff seeks to obtain money (i.e., "damages") for physical and/or mental injuries resulting from the harm defendant caused. In criminal cases, it is the State that seeks to prosecute the defendant for harm to which society is subjected.

A "negligence" claim is predicated solely on the fact that the defendant purportedly neglected to conduct himself/herself in a manner consistent with duties society imposed upon that individual. The standard on which the Court will rely is referred to as the "reasonable person" standard. If an individual fails to comport with the "reasonable person" standard, that individual may be liable for damages others incur as a result of the negligence in which that individual engaged.

In the words of Lord Blackburn, a 19th Century Scottish jurist, "Those who go personally or bring property where they know that they or it may come into collision with the persons or property of others have by law a duty cast upon them to use reasonable care and skill to avoid such a collision."

When attempting to determine whether a case justifies the settlement loan you seek, it will first be necessary to establish that the negligence has taken place. Additionally, it will be necessary to demonstrate that the individual owed a duty to you and that individual failed to exercise that duty, thus resulting in the damages incurred. Additionally, it will be necessary to clearly establish that the compensation you seek is consistent with the damages sustained.

When calculating damages, it is essential that the plaintiff realize that the defendant may be liable for injuries sustained to the body, emotions, family members, real property, personal property, etc. It is vital that the plaintiff realize that these cases are fact-specific. In such cases, the Court will grant tremendous latitude when assessing the amount of damages sustained. The Court will exercise the same discretion in determining the amount of compensation to which the plaintiff may be entitled.

If an individual sustains injury and seeks to obtain either lawsuit funding or a lawsuit loan, that individual will be called upon to establish many elements of the case. One must recall that although it is necessary that both negligence and damages are clearly demonstrated prior to recovery, it is neither the nature nor the extent of those damages that will determine the principal direction of your case.

There are tremendous advantages to working with a settlement loan broker, an individual who will assist you in obtaining requisite documentation to submit for funding. Many applicants are denied funding simply because they fail to gather the information required and fail to provide an adequate level of communication when pursuing the funding they seek.

Are you in need of information regarding the best deal on lawsuit settlement loans? If so, we encourage you to visit us to obtain information regarding the benefits of alawsuit loan today.