How Having a Great Trial Lawyer Increases Your Settlement 

courtroom

You may be wondering, “if my case is likely to settle, does it really matter if I have a great trial lawyer on my case?” While it’s true that most lawsuits settle, the amount of the settlement is as much about the lawyer working on your case as it is the facts of your case. 

There are 3 types of nursing home abuse lawyers. First, there are those lawyers who settle all their cases and never go to trial. Second, there are those lawyers who only rarely go to trial and only do so when they are unable to settle their cases. Third, there are those lawyers who intend to take their cases to trial and only settle their cases when the nursing offers a settlement deal that rivals what could be achieved at trial. 

What Are The Different Types of Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers? 

Lawyers Who Never Go Trial 

The vast majority of lawyers who handle nursing home abuse and neglect cases almost never go to trial. These lawyers haven’t been to trial in years. Although they may not use the term “trial layer” when marketing their services, these are what we would refer to as “settlement lawyers” or even “settlement mills.”

Their main goal is to have a steady crop of cases that they can settle frequently and with little effort. They are able to keep a steady stream of revenue by quickly “churning” cases. These lawyers may take a case that has a value of $500,000 and settle it with little to no work for $100,000. Although they are leaving a lot of money on the table, they are able to keep a steady stream of cash flow because they are not required to pay the high costs that are involved in fully working up a case. 

These lawyers and law firms do not have to pay expert witnesses to review documents and testify at deposition or trial. They do not have to put in the time, effort, and money that are required for a full investigation of the case. They do not have to pay their lawyers and staff to devote hundreds or even thousands of hours working on the case. 

This is a win-win for the law firm. They are able to generate revenue without having to take on any risk. The person who suffers in this situation is the client. The law firm wins by getting money with minimal work, effort, or risk. The nursing home wins by disposing of the case for nuisance value. The only party that loses is the client. 

Lawyer Who Only Go To Trial When Forced To

Many good lawyers call themselves “trial lawyers,” and they have every intention to be trial lawyers. However, the reality is that they rarely if ever go to trial. Many people are surprised to learn that their “trial lawyer” has never taken a nursing home abuse case to trial. 

These are not the “settlement mill” lawyers who want to dispose of cases quickly to increase revenue at the expense of their client’s case. These are lawyers who are well intentioned but always find a reason to settle their cases before trial. These tend to be lawyers who are willing to put in the work to learn about a case, take depositions, pay for experts, and mostly do the right thing. Despite this, these lawyers always manage to settle their cases and lack experience in the courtroom. 

Real Trial Lawyers 

Real trial lawyers look at the overall objective of their cases differently. These are lawyers who begin thinking about trial from the first time they meet a client. These are lawyers who have significant experience in the courtroom trying these types of cases. These are lawyers who thrive under the pressure of the courtroom. These are lawyers who desire to be in front of a jury and are unafraid to lose. These are lawyers who believe that they are going to take your case to trial unless the nursing home convinces them not to. Rather than convincing the nursing home to settle the case, the nursing home must convince them to settle the case. 

Why Having A Real Trial Lawyer Improves Your Settlement

Until you get to trial and the jury gets to decide the fate of your case, the nursing home and insurance companies hold the money. They find this to be a position of power and control because they believe they can dictate how much a case will settle for and also what the terms of the settlement will be. 

Nursing homes and insurance companies are evaluating the credibility of the lawyer on the case as much as they are evaluating the case itself. 

Settlement lawyers have no credibility. The nursing homes, their lawyers, and their insurance companies know that they will accept whatever they offer whenever they offer it. They know that there will be no fight and that the lawyers will convince their clients to settle the case whenever they offer some paltry amount of money. 

The lawyers who rarely if ever go to trial have more credibility, but the insurance company also knows that they can stretch the case out as long as they want and eventually the lawyer will accept the last offer before trial. 

The real trial lawyers are different. These are lawyers who the nursing home and their insurance companies know have a track record of going to trial and are unafraid to lose at trial. A jury is the nursing home’s worst enemy and the only thing they really fear. They know that once the jury is seated and has the case, their power is removed. Lawyers who are not only willing but excited to go to trial hold the cards. No lawyer will win every case. Michael Jordan did not win every game and Tom Brady did not win every superbowl he was in, but they are widely considered to be the greatest players of all time in their respective sports. That is because they enjoyed the moment and had no fear of losing. 

A lawyer with a strong record of trial success, even when that includes a fair number of losses, causes fear in the eyes of nursing homes in their lawyers. That is because rather than settle the case for a few hundred thousand dollars, they are always willing to risk everything for a large win. The nursing homes know that these lawyers have their client’s trust and that the client will follow their lawyer’s lead. This results in much larger settlements for the client because the nursing homes know that to avoid a potentially large loss and maintain any level of certainty over the situation, they must pay the full and fair value of the case. 

Michael Hill Trial Law

At Michael Hill Trial Law, we have a solid reputation of pursuing every case diligently, taking our strongest cases to trial instead of accepting easy settlements, and making a stand even on our difficult cases. We are true real trial lawyers who walk the walk. And the nursing homes, their lawyers, and their insurance adjusters know it. 

That adds value to every single one of our clients’ cases. Because of our reputation as Trial Lawyers, we’ve started to get large settlement offers before filing a lawsuit from nursing homes – without even making a settlement demand. That means that just by the client contacting us, the nursing home and insurance companies are already trying to convince us to settle the case, rather than us trying to convince them to settle it. 

That is a rare occurrence. Settling a case without filing a lawsuit saves injured residents and their families time, mental and emotional strain, and the expense of prolonged litigation. 

We also receive settlement offers well above the average value most attorneys accept as a “good settlement.” Nursing homes know we have a reputation for achieving substantial jury verdicts against them. That increased risk of having a jury force the defendants to pay millions of dollars means that nursing homes are more likely to pay larger sums in settlement. 

Every case is different, and no results are guaranteed, but having a real trial lawyer with a reputation for results in the courtroom can make a substantial difference in every case – even cases that don’t go to trial. While we can’t make any promises about the results in any particular case, the trial lawyers of Michael Hill Trial Law can assure you that the nursing homes, their defense attorneys, and their insurers know and respect our reputation. 

Questions About a Potential Lawsuit Against a Nursing Home or Assisted Living Facility? 

Michael Hill is a nationally recognized attorney who handles exclusively cases against long term care facilities. Michael and his firm, Michael Hill Trial Law, are headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio but handle cases across the country.

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only. Nothing in this article should be construed as providing legal advice or the creation of an attorney client relationship. Laws are updated frequently and change from state to state. If you desire legal advice, you can contact Michael Hill Trial Law at www.protectseniors.com, send an email to info@protectseniors.com, call (800) 659-2712 to begin an investigation, or contact another attorney.