A common bit of wisdom we personal injury attorney's hear is that in the case of most large personal injury settlements the client has spent all of their money within 6 months of receipt. While I know of no
personal injury attorney who has actually seen statistics verifying this claim, I can attest from personal experience with my own clients in
San Diego that this claim, if not actually true, is not too far wide of the mark either.
Especially in the case of the large net settlement to the client, the temptation is to buy things, make poor investment decisions, or loan money to friends or relatives who suddenly see the personal injury victim flush with cash. Remember, your net settlement is compensation for life changing injuries and expenditures should be made with great caution. While I do not give specific investment advice to my clients, in each situation wherein a large personal injury settlement is received I take great pains to urge my clients to speak with a structured settlement specialist.
A structured settlement takes the clients net monetary award and gives the personal injury victim a guaranteed return on their personal injury settlement. The client can take whatever amount he desires now and put the balance in the structured settlement. The amount can be paid out on virtually any schedule the client wants. Obviously, the longer the money is not drawn upon the greater the amount received over time. Interest rates on structures can vary from day to day. The structured settlement expert can get the best rate available on the market for our client. In that light I have found it to be preferable to deal with structured settlement companies that deal with plaintiff personal injury attorneys exclusively.
I would urge any personal injury client, especially those who are to receive a significant amount of money, to discuss the pros and cons of a structured settlement with both your personal injury attorney as well as a
structured settlement specialist to determine if placement of all or part of your personal injury settlement in such a vehicle is the right thing for you.
