We settled a very substantial personal injury claim last week. Our case was in the very early stages and we had only very recently submitted an application to the Injuries Board on behalf of our client. The Injuries Board had not yet commenced their assessment of the claim and we were a long way off issuing any formal legal proceedings. The insurance company however proposed a settlement meeting and we attended with our client. We negotiated a substantial settlement for our client to compensate him for the damage arising from the incident.
People often believe that it is in a solicitor’s interest to allow cases proceed to full hearing for costs reasons. That is not our approach. In our view, the best way for personal injury cases to settle is for them to settle quickly, provided the client’s injuries have settled, the sum on offer is reasonable and the client is happy with the sum. Early resolution is good for the client because it means that this legal issue is resolved without lengthy delays and considerable uncertainty. Early resolution is good for the solicitor because it means that a solicitor gets a fair fee for the work completed in a relatively short period.
Our client is very pleased to have this matter behind him and is also relieved to be able to move on with his life having been substantially compensated for the injury he suffered.
