How Do I Get My Settlement Check?
After everything has settled with your lawsuit you’re going have some questions. Among those questions you will ask yourself “when will I get paid and how long will I have to wait?” Especially being that you may have expenses adding up after months, or years the case took to be settled. Nonetheless, your lawyer still has to do some things before the defendant will provide them your settlement payment. Additionally, they do have other duties to complete before giving you your final amount.
What Can Effect My Settlement Payment?
The specifics on a case is different from person to person. Which can also effect the timeframe that someone can get their settlement payment. It can take up to six weeks for a settlement to be finalized, but sometimes it can take months for a final amount. We will now discuss what can effect your payment in processing stage.
1. Release Documents
Before being able to receive your settlement check, you must sign a release document. This document is a legal obligating accordance confirming that you do not want to go further with legal action against the accused person for your case. The insurance companies of the accused person will not provide a settlement if this document is not signed. On the other hand, if you have other lawsuits against the accused person you can still continue with legal claims for those cases.
Your release documents must include the claims you want to release the insurance company, or accused person from. Most times your lawyer will review over the documents before you sign them to make sure the agreement is just. The more parties involved in your case, the more release documents you will have to sign. For instance, if the accused person’s insurance company is managing your claim, most times you will have to sign two release documents. This would include one document signed to the insurance company and then one document signed to the accused person.
Lastly, it is possible that the accused person could not like the arrangement of the release documents. Additionally, this will cause the release documents to be revised. Ultimately, this revision process would cause a delay in your settlement payment.
2. Delays In Processing
The timeframe for an accused person to deliver a settlement payment can vary from state to state after you’ve signed the release documents. The accused party can abuse this law to where they use the maximum timeframe to withhold your payment. For example, if you reside in a state that allows a 60 day timeframe for processing, then the accused person may use all that time before giving you a settlement after getting your release form.
3. Paying Bills & Legal Claims After Check Clears
As soon as your case settles you have a lawful duty to pay any legal claims, or medical bills associated with it. If your lawyer receives your settlement payment, they usually pay these things for you after your check clears. This will include things such as medical tests, legal claims from the government, and many more. Your lawyer will not provide your settlement payment until they have finished honoring these duties. After fulfilling these lawful duties, your lawyer will either mail a check, or wire transfer the funds.
4. Is it a structured settlement?
A structured settlement is different from a normal settlement arrangement. The accused party schedules a partial cash advance to the victim for a fixed time. This arrangement provides funds for medical bills while the case is ongoing. Make sure to review a structured payment agreement before agreeing to it because if this not done it can add more delays.
Can I Speed Up The Process Of Getting My Settlement?
Yes, you can speed up the delivery of your settlement in a couple of ways. To start, you can draft your release documents once you get close to your settlement arrangement. Also, have your lawyer get all the legal claims and bills that you will have to pay while the accused party reviews the release documents. Furthermore, make sure to honor all requests from your lawyer to speed up the process. Additionally, you do have the option to ask your lawyer for a cash advance for a portion of the settlement payment if needed.
What If My Lawyer Can’t Give Me A Cash Advance?
In cases where your lawyer can not give you a cash advance on your lawsuit, you should consider pre-settlement funding from Thrivest Link. Pre-settlement funding is a lawsuit advance provided to you for a portion of your settlement. This process seems like a traditional loan, but it is quite different. Lawsuit funding does not require a credit check and you only repay it after you win your case. Feel free to contact us to get settlement money now and pay your bills!