Bernstein & Maryanoff

Florida Auto Accident Attorneys
When and When Not to Settle a Claim

Auto accidents occur every day in Florida, and when they arise, the majority of them lead to at least one injury. When these injuries occur, they often give rise to legal claims for personal injury, and when this process starts, the goal for the person who has been harmed is to obtain justifiable compensation for the damages he or she has suffered.

One of the manners in which this compensation is obtained is by way of a legal settlement out of court. However, obtaining a settlement and deciding when a settlement is fair can be a complicated matter of legal and financial analysis. Below you'll find the steps that the Florida auto accident attorneys will take in order to decipher when a settlement is advisable and when cases need to be advanced to trial in order to make sure that justice is served.

Step One - Attempt to Quantify the Client's Damages

When a client comes to our firm who has been injured in a Florida auto accident, one of the first steps we take is to review all of the available evidence. This includes police reports, witness statements and any other relevant information that helps to assign fault. The firm will also look at the costs incurred by the client as a result of this accident, including medical costs, property damage to the vehicle, lost income if the client is unable to work and any other loss that can be explained. Coming to an approximate figure of damages allows the firm to decide in the future whether a settlement offer is fair to all parties.

Step Two - Find Out if a Fair Settlement is Possible

After the damages suffered by a client have been quantified as much as possible, the Florida auto accident attorneys at the firm will contact the other parties involved in the situation to discuss the possibility of negotiating a settlement. If the other driver has been found to be at-fault by the authorities involved, it tends to strengthen that position. In certain cases, the other party will acknowledge this fault and be willing to settle a case if it's likely to be successful in court anyway. However, not every adverse party will be amenable to such a step even when the result of a trial is all but obvious.

It is in this situation that you need to work with Florida auto accident lawyers who understand how to approach the possibility of a settlement, how to negotiate the intricate terms of a settlement if one is possible and how to proceed to trial if a fair settlement is not possible. The law firm of Bernstein & Maryanoff is known throughout Florida as a team of Florida auto accident attorneys who negotiate settlements fairly but who will not hesitate to take a matter to court in order to properly enforce the rights of clients. Contact the firm today to schedule a free initial consultation if you or someone you love has been injured in an auto accident in Florida.