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(314) 500-HURTWe have a lot of success negotiating great settlements for our clients in mediation, so I wanted to take a moment to explain, generally, what mediation is, and share a recent mediation success story.
Mediation is a voluntary, out of court process where the plaintiff and defendant meet with a mutually agreed to impartial and neutral person – the mediator – who assists the parties in negotiating towards a settlement.
Usually the mediator is a retired judge or an experienced, well-respected litigation attorney. Mediation is not binding, meaning the parties are not required to settle.
At the beginning of the mediation process, the mediator meets with everyone involved. They usually explain the process and their role in helping to facilitate settlement negotiations. Sometimes the attorneys for both sides will make statements regarding the important aspects of the case, depending on the mediator’s preference.
Each side will then go to a physical or virtual “breakout” room, where it will be just the party and their attorney. The mediator then travels back and forth between the rooms to communicate settlement offers and other important information about the case.
At the start of the process, the discussions are more fact-involved and take longer, because we are discussing with the mediator and the other side the specific facts of the case, and the main disputed issues. As the mediation goes on, the discussions become more about settlement numbers and the mediator will move from room to room more quickly.
Sometimes mediations result in a great settlement, sometimes they do not. It comes down to whether the defendant offers enough money to settle. But regardless of whether the case settles or not, mediation is a great opportunity for us to present the favorable aspects of our client’s case to the mediator, the defense lawyer and the insurance adjuster, and to also get information from the defendant’s lawyer on how they value the case.
When the defendant does not make a good settlement offer, we advise our clients to walk away from the mediation without settling, and then we continue to prepare for trial to put pressure on the defendant to make a higher settlement offer. Even when the case does not settle in mediation, we often see cases settle a week or two after the mediation.
We recently had great success in mediation for our client, Robert. Robert was hit by a negligent driver and suffered a neck injury with pain radiating into his left shoulder and hand. He was experiencing numbness and tingling in his left hand and fingers, and was ultimately diagnosed with carpel tunnel syndrome.
He never had any numbness, tingling or symptoms in his left fingers before the car accident, nor had he ever been diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome in his left hand – but he was diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome in his right hand. Because of this, the defendant’s lawyer claimed that it was Robert’s former career as an airplane mechanic that actually caused the carpel tunnel in his left hand – not the car crash.
Robert’s doctor recommended carpal tunnel release surgery, which Robert had done. Unfortunately, the surgery did not completely resolve the numbness and tingling in his fingers, and his doctor determined that it was cervical radiculopathy contributing to the numbness and tingling in his fingers. He was prescribed physical therapy and received an injection in his neck, which improved his symptoms.
The defendant’s insurance company denied that Robert’s carpal tunnel symptoms were caused by the crash, therefore they made a top settlement offer of $14K. This offer was way too low and did not even cover all of Robert’s medical damages, so we filed a lawsuit and took the deposition of the defendant driver.
At mediation, we presented the favorable facts of the case to the mediator and the defense lawyer. We told them that even though the carpal tunnel surgery was disputed, we would secure deposition testimony from Robert’s doctor connecting the carpal tunnel symptoms to his injuries caused by the crash. The defendant’s lawyer slowly increased the settlement offers until they reached their highest offer of $55K.
This was still too low to fully compensate Robert for his injuries and damages, so we walked away from the mediation without settling. However, we asked the mediator to make a recommendation to both parties of what the case should settle for. The mediator recommended that the case settle for $97K – which was way closer to our final demand than the Defendant’s highest offer.
Both sides had one week to inform the mediator whether they would accept the mediator’s settlement recommendation. Fortunately, both sides agreed, and Robert’s case settled for nearly $100K. After all his medical bills were paid, Robert got about $60K in his pocket for his pain and suffering.
Robert was really happy with this settlement and it was a great outcome in a case involving disputed medical treatment. Robert’s case is also a great example of how mediation are a great way to facilitate settlements, even when the defendant does not offer enough money to settle in mediation.
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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