Will My Personal Injury Case Go to Trial or Settle Out of Court?

Will my personal injury case go to trial? Or will it settle out of court? Most people who are injured through no fault of their own have never had to deal with making an injury claim before. A multitude of questions naturally arise, including: Will I have to go to court to be compensated for my injuries? The vast majority of injury claims settle out of court, but it’s good to be prepared for your case unexpectedly going to trial.

If you were injured through the negligence of another, let Burger Law handle the legal aspect for you while you focus on healing. We’ll give you everything you need to know to make the best decisions for you and your family and get maximum compensation. With offices in St. Louis, Chicago and elsewhere, our personal injury attorneys serve the injured through Missouri and Illinois. Read on to see if your personal injury claim may go to trial, or call us today at or contact us online for a free consultation.

Settlement vs. Verdict in a Personal Injury Case: What’s the Difference?

There are two ways to resolve a personal injury claim: a settlement out of court and a verdict at trial:

1. A settlement is an agreement between you and the at-fault party. In a settlement, you accept a certain amount of money in exchange for releasing the other party from further liability. Smaller settlements in less damaging accidents are often agreed to solely between you and the insurance adjuster. In accidents with higher medical bills and lost wages and/or legal complications, an attorney will usually negotiate with the adjuster on your behalf. Settlements are achieved through negotiation and other dispute resolution tactics like mediation. Once you sign a settlement agreement, the case is closed, and you cannot pursue any further legal action related to the incident.
2. A verdict is the result of a trial. Like a settlement, it’s the result of an agreement, but this time between the 12 (or less) people that make up the jury. The judge and jury will hear evidence and arguments from both sides and make a decision about who is responsible for your injuries and what damages you incurred. If the other party is found liable, the judge or jury will determine the amount of compensation you are owed.

In any personal injury case, your attorney will initially try to settle the claim with the at-fault party’s insurance company. In a perfect world, they’d recognize the damage their policyholder caused you and compensate you fairly and quickly. Unfortunately, that rarely happens. Most settlements require several rounds of negotiation. If the insurance company still won’t be fair, you need a personal injury lawyer who’s not afraid to see the case all the way through to a verdict.

How Often Do Personal Injury Cases Go to Trial?

Not often. Statistics about civil claims are often hard to come by because of the confidential nature of many settlements, but we do know it’s rare. The Bureau of Justice Statistics reported in 2005 that 96 percent of personal injury claims are settled out-of-court. Plaintiffs (the injured party) won about half of the personal injury claims that were heard by a jury.

Why Parties in Personal Injury Cases Are Motivated to Settle

The reason settling is more common is because, in most situations, it benefits both the injured and the liable party. Here are some of the main reasons your case is likely to be settled out of court:

• Certainty — In a settlement, the outcome of the case is certain for both sides. You and your personal injury lawyer may strongly believe in the merits of your claim, but at trial there’s no guarantee the jury will see things the same way or award you all of the damages you seek. For the insurance company, agreeing to a settlement prevents the possibility of a jury awarding you much more than seek.
• Time and expense — To go to trial, you’ll have to wait until the court has time to hear your case. The trial itself takes several days or weeks, depending on the complexity of the case. Going to trial also creates additional fees for both sides. Settling allows the claim to be resolved more quickly and without added expense.
• Privacy — Settlements are usually private, whereas court proceedings and verdicts are part of public record. Settling allows both parties to keep information that they don’t want to reach the public hidden.
• Emotional toll — This is from the point of view of the injured party. Injuries are scary, unexpected and, when combined with the stress of lost work and medical bills, can significantly damage your mental and emotional well-being. Like any trauma, we need closure to move on. Settling allows you to close one chapter of your life, and offers the financial boost you need to help write your next chapter.

Because of the benefits of settling, negotiations in personal injury cases often continue to take place all the way up to trial or even while the trial is taking place. We’ve found that defendants and their insurance companies often wait until the eve of trial to offer a fair settlement.

When Do Personal Injury Claims Go to Trial?

Even though most personal injury cases settle and both sides are typically motivated to avoid trial, there are a few factors that occasionally bring cases in front of a jury:

• Severe injuries — The amount of damages awarded in both settlements and verdicts depends a good deal on the severity of your injuries and the extent of your medical bills. With more severe injuries, insurance companies question the extent of the injuries, how they were caused and whether or not treatment was necessary. Severe injuries cost a lot of money. The insurance company may want a jury to say they’re not liable for most of your damages, while you may want a jury to tell the insurance company they have to pay for all of it.
• Unwillingness to negotiate — In order to come to an agreement, both sides have to come to the table and “play nice.” If an insurance company acts in bad faith and refuses to consider their responsibility or the extent of your damages, you may be forced to file a lawsuit and go to trial to get fair compensation.
• Strength of the evidence — In any legal claim, every party must present evidence that supports their claim. Personal injury claims happen in a variety of circumstances. A car accident can happen at a packed intersection with tons of witnesses and cameras, or in a small alley where the only accounts are yours and the other driver’s. A slip and fall can happen in a fully seated restaurant or in a lone grocery aisle. Depending on the circumstances surrounding your injuries, the evidence in your case may be overwhelming or may be minimal. In cases with little evidence, the court determines what happened. In law, this is what’s known as a “question of fact” – did this-and-that happen in the way so-and-so claims it did? This is essentially what we ask juries to decide.
• Questions of law — A “question of law” is decided by a judge instead of a jury. In these cases, neither side doubts what exactly happened. Instead, the disagreement is over how the law can be interpreted to apply to your specific case. For example, say you are making a premises liability claim because you injured yourself at someone else’s home. Everyone might agree about how you were injured, but the insurance company may say the law does not make the homeowner liable for your injuries.
• Precedent-setting issues — In some cases, the legal issues involved in the case may have broader implications beyond you, the liable party and their insurance company. These cases may go to trial to set a legal precedent for how similar cases should be handled in the future.

Remember, if your case does go to trial, not every personal injury law firm in Missouri and Illinois is well-equipped to fight for you. Communicating with an insurance adjuster is one thing; putting in the work to go to trial and convincing a jury of the merits of your case is another matter entirely. At Burger Law, we are experienced and award-winning injury trial attorneys who can take your case all the way through to the end – from initial consultation to you getting maximum compensation.

Missouri and Illinois Injury Trial Attorneys | Burger Law

To date, our St. Louis-based personal injury law firm has recovered over $200 million for our clients throughout Missouri and Illinois, both through settlements and through fighting on our clients’ behalf at trial. You should not have to accept anything less than full compensation, and our team will ensure you get it. We’ll use our experience and expertise to advise you on settling or going to trial, but we’ll always leave the final decision up to you and your family. If you or a loved one were injured through another’s negligence, call Burger Law today at or fill out our online contact form.

Gary Burger

Founder | Injury Attorney
Gary Burger has dedicated his career to standing up against bullies. The founder and principal attorney of Burger Law | St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyer has helped hundreds of Missouri and Illinois individuals and families recover th …
Years of experience: 30 years
Location: St. Louis, MO

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