Fighting for a settlement in a car accident lawsuit is often only half the battle. In fact, if the court or jury awarded you damages, you are the winning party, and have the right to collect your damages. Unfortunately, once a judgment, the money isn't always automatic.
Just because you won a lawsuit doesn't mean you'll be presented with a check within the hour. Sometimes, it is a struggle to get the payment that you justly deserve from a defending party that is reluctant to let go of their finances. Winning a lawsuit can be only half the battle in some cases, and collecting it can be another very difficult process.
When collecting the money in your case, you will want to ask yourself whether the money is coming from a settlement or a verdict. A settlement is an amount arrived at after negotiations with the offending party. A verdict is an amount that is granted to you by a judge or jury in a court of law.
Depending on how you determined the damages, you will need to approach collection from a certain angle. In a settlement agreement, you may have never even filed a lawsuit. Most of the time, settlements are reached without stepping foot inside a courtroom. While this saves on legal costs and time, it can also make it difficult to enforce the payment of your settlement, as the court is less involved.
When an injury settlement is reached, there is normally a time period that will be set. During this time period, the defendants are required to pay the plaintiff the amount agreed upon in full. In most states, this time period ranges from 20 to 30 days. In most cases, if the paying party fails to present the winning party with finances during that window, then interest will be affixed to the settlement or verdict value.
This is an excellent incentive to motivate the defendant to give the plaintiff his or her money on time. In some cases, if the party doesn't pay, then the plaintiff may have the right to back out of a settlement that was reached and pursue a lawsuit in court. This is another effective threat that helps individuals to pay up before the time limit passes.
In judgment cases, it may take longer to achieve your verdict. This is because the losing party in a lawsuit normally has 10 to 15 days to request a retrial after an unsatisfactory outcome. Also, there may be other post-trial deadlines that need to be met before the verdict can be paid. If the losing party foregoes the right to file for a new trial, then the party can still file an appeal.
They will not want to ay the judgment until the appeal is resolved, and they probably won't be required to do so. This means that it can be months before your see your money, as the appeals can last for up to two years. Normally, winning parties won't receive the settlement unless the court rules in their favor in the appeal.
If your judgment involves an insurance claim, and the other driver is listed as a defendant, this typically means that collecting the judgment will be pretty basic. Insurance companies are normally responsible for writing the check in insurance claim situations, and they are well aware of the penalties that come with failing to pay a judgment promptly.
This is why you can normally expect a check within 15 to 45 days of your settlement or verdict if the insurance company is involved. This is assuming that the insurance company does not file a motion for a new trial or an appeal. If you want more information about collecting your settlement, or if you need help after a defendant is ignoring your request for payment, call a local car accident attorney today!