A pending lawsuit can take time to reach resolution. While you’re waiting on a decision, you might struggle to pay medical bills, legal fees, and other expenses. All these costs can lead to financial stress and, in some cases, make you feel like you need to accept a lower settlement. Pre-settlement case funding can help ease financial stress so you can focus on your lawsuit.
At USClaims, we qualify many cases to support plaintiffs like yourself with cash advances while they wait for their settlement. Learn about how litigation funding works and what kind of financial support you may qualify for.
How Does Settlement Funding Work?
With pre-settlement funding, you receive a cash advance while waiting for your case to resolve. This financial support can help you manage medical bills, potentially lost income, or other expenses throughout the litigation process.
When you work with us, we’ll evaluate and qualify your claim based on a number of factors. If your case qualifies, your funds may be delivered within 24 business-day hours. Once you receive your money, you are free to spend it in any way you choose, and we will not ask for any receipts.
Payments on the funding aren’t necessary until you win your case. It’s also important to know that pre-settlement funding is typically nonrecourse, which means you don’t need to pay us back if you don’t win your case.
What Are the Approval Requirements?
When we qualify a claim, we don’t look at details like your credit score or income. Rather, your approval depends on the specific details and the strength of your case.
Basic approval requirements include:
- Legal representation: You must have legal representation by an attorney who’s working on a contingency fee basis.
- Case maturity: Your case must be an active lawsuit and show significant progress, key evidence, and defined legal arguments.
- Injuries or damages: You must have sustained compensable damages or injuries according to legal standards.[1]
- Case strength: Your eligibility and funding amount largely depends on the assessed merits and risks associated with your case.
Types of Cases That Qualify for Settlement Funding
A majority of our clients are personal injury plaintiffs, but we have worked with a number of plaintiffs and their lawyers on different lawsuit types. Below are some pre-settlement loan case types:
- Medical malpractice claims: If medical negligence leads to severe injuries or damages, you may have a valid legal claim. Common medical malpractice claims involve birth injuries, wrong-site surgeries, wrong medication, and incorrect or delayed diagnosis.
- Premises and slip and fall claims: Property owners, whether they’re public, private, or government entities, must take reasonable care to keep their property safe for visitors. If they fail to take proper action against hazards that result in injury, you may have a claim against them.
- Workplace injuries: Regardless of whether you work in an office or a construction site, your employer is responsible for ensuring a safe environment, reliable equipment, and adequate training. If you suffer an injury on the job, your employer or a third party may owe you compensation.
- Qui tam or whistleblower lawsuits: Whistleblowers, who file lawsuits against other parties on behalf of defrauded government agencies, may have a claim for lost wages or other compensation if they face retaliatory actions.
- Employment disputes: Wrongful termination, harassment, discrimination, and other employment issues may entitle you to legal compensation.
- Auto accidents: If you suffer damages in a motor vehicle accident involving cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, pedestrians, or bicycles, you may be entitled to compensation.
- Animal bites: Dog and other animal bites or injuries can result in pain, medical complications, and other damages. Your medical bills or other expenses may provide you with a valid claim.
What Case Types Are Not Eligible for Settlement?
The eligibility for pre-settlement cash advances varies among providers. Certain case types may not qualify for funding, such as:
- Criminal cases: Defendants or plaintiffs facing criminal charges may not qualify for funding, as these cases offer limited financial value and reliability.
- Bankruptcy: These proceedings are typically ineligible for funding, as the cases aim to restructure debts rather than gain financial compensation.
- Family law cases: Divorce, child custody, alimony, and other family law disputes seek to resolve domestic arrangements rather than claim damages.
- Administrative processes: Depending on the nature of the incident, work-related injuries, Social Security Disability Insurance claims, and other circumstances may go through an administrative process rather than litigation.[2]
How Does Case Type Affect the Pre-Settlement Funding Process and the Amount of Funding?
The case type may significantly influence pre-settlement funding agreements. For example, medical malpractice and product liability lawsuits tend to incur considerable damages and may result in large settlements.
Other cases, such as those with unclear liability, complex legal problems, or weak evidence may be too risky to qualify for funding. In comparison, low-risk cases with clear liability and a favorable outlook may receive a higher percentage of the expected settlement amount. Cases requiring long litigation periods may result in significant cash amounts to financially support the plaintiffs.
Find Out if Your Lawsuit Qualifies Today
These case types don’t represent an exhaustive list of claims eligible for funding — contact us to learn if your case qualifies. Instead of settling your claim for less than you deserve or worrying about how to make ends meet until your lawsuit settlement arrives, consider pre-settlement case funding to ease financial strain.
You only pay back your cash advance if you win your case. To find out if your claim qualifies, use our website to apply online, or call us at 1-877-USCLAIMS today.
The availability of pre-settlement funding varies by state. Contact USClaims for more information.
Sources
- “Damages.” LII / Legal Information Institute, www.law.cornell.edu/wex/damages.
- How You Qualify | Disability Benefits | SSA. www.ssa.gov/benefits/disability/qualify.html.