Your lawyer can hold your settlement for as long as it takes to resolve any outstanding liens or expenses. In most personal injury cases, it will take a few weeks before you receive your settlement. Yet, in some cases, months pass before plaintiffs get their checks.
If you received personal injury pre-settlement funding, your lawyer will hold your settlement check until your non-recourse cash advance balance is paid in full. Of course, if you are not compensated in your personal injury case, you don’t have to pay back your lawsuit cash advance at all.
How Long Is a Lawyer Allowed to Hold Your Settlement Check for Your Personal Injury Case?
There is no national rule regarding how long a lawyer can hold your settlement check. Generally, lawyers act in the best interests of their clients. Thus, if you receive a personal injury settlement, your attorney will likely do everything they can to get your money to you promptly.
Speak with your attorney if you settle your personal injury case and are worried about your lawyer holding your settlement check for a long time.
Ideally, your lawyer will keep you updated about your settlement and give you a timeline for receiving your compensation. However, if this doesn’t happen, you can file a complaint against your lawyer with your state bar association.
Keep in mind that those who have received car accident pre-settlement funding or other lawsuit cash advances will have to wait until their lawsuit funding balance is paid before they get their settlement check. Typically, a lawyer will deduct what their client owes a pre-settlement funding company from their settlement. Then, they’ll send them a check for the remaining amount.
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Why Will Your Lawyer Hold Your Settlement Check?
The defendant in your personal injury lawsuit or an insurance company can make it tough to receive your settlement check. For instance, you reach a settlement with an at-fault party’s insurance company in your auto accident case. Regardless, this insurer is slow to process your settlement. Therefore, you won’t get your settlement check until the insurer issues a payment.
Your lawyer will put a hold on your settlement check if you have a federal tax lien. The IRS has the right to place a lien on a personal injury settlement to collect outstanding federal tax debt. In this situation, what you owe the federal government must be paid before any remaining proceeds of your settlement can be disbursed to you.
Lawyers often handle personal injury cases on contingency. At these times, attorneys don’t charge their clients any upfront costs for legal services and support.
Instead, they will deduct their legal fees from their clients’ settlements. If you signed a contingency fee agreement, your attorney will take what you owe them from your settlement and give you the remainder.
Factors That Can Determine How Long It Will Take to Get Your Settlement Check
In a perfect world, you will agree to a personal injury case settlement and get your money days later. Unfortunately, the timeline for receiving a settlement check varies from case to case. This timeline is dependent on many factors, including:
Complexity of Your Case
Your lawyer may go back and forth with a liable party or their insurance company in the hopes of getting you a settlement offer that matches your expectations. If multiple parties are involved in your case and there is a dispute over liability, it could be a long time before your litigation is resolved and you get a fair settlement.
Settlement Paperwork
All of the parties involved in your settlement must sign off on the agreement before you get your money. If any of these parties miss settlement paperwork or make mistakes when they submit it, it may take longer than expected for you to receive compensation.
Insurance Company Processing
The size and internal procedures of an at-fault party’s insurance company can affect the timeline for your settlement. As soon as you sign your settlement agreement, this insurer will review your paperwork and obtain internal approvals. Because of this, it can take an insurance company months from the date you sign your settlement agreement to send you a check.
If you received medical malpractice pre-settlement funding or another type of non-recourse cash advance, you will have money at your disposal before you get your settlement.
Once your case is resolved, your lawyer will use your settlement amount to cover your lawsuit funding. After your legal funding is paid, you will get the remainder of your settlement.
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The Bottom Line on How Long a Lawyer Is Able to Hold Your Settlement Check
You and your personal injury lawyer share the goal of settling your case as quickly as possible. If you approve a settlement offer, your attorney wants you to get your money without delay. Before your lawyer provides you with your settlement, they will use the money you get to cover liens and expenses you owe. Finally, you will receive your settlement, closing your case.
For those worried about when they will get their personal injury settlement, Pegasus Legal Capital is here for you. As your trusted legal funding partner, we offer lawsuit settlement cash advances to the plaintiffs in personal injury cases.
With us, you could get a non-recourse cash advance between $500 and $6 million. Contact us for more information about our legal funding.
Your pre-settlement funding consultation is free — contact us today!