How is a Calgary Personal Injury Settlement Paid Out?
If you’re involved in a personal injury lawsuit or are about to be, it’s natural to worry about how the money will get to you.
After all, personal injury cases wouldn’t exist if accidents weren’t expensive. You need the money from the suit to cover your losses.
Here’s everything you need to know about how you’ll receive your personal injury money.
How much money will you receive?
Let’s get the important question out of the way first.
While we’d have to know the details of your case to tell you the exact award amount, we can tell you where some of that money will go.
- To medical and dental providers to whom you owe bills.
- A percentage will cover your attorney’s contingency fees and legal fees associated with filing and investigating the case.
- The rest is yours to keep.
While it can be disappointing to win a big sum and then take home only a portion of the money, you must remember you’re far more likely to take home money with an attorney’s help than without one. The attorney also takes on all the risk and expense upfront.
Even after attorney’s and legal fees are accounted for, most clients come out ahead.
Types of Personal Injury Payouts
Lump Sum Payments
A lump sum payment is a single large check meant to cover all your losses. It goes straight to your bank account, and you can spend it how you please.
Once it is spent, it is spent, so you’ll need to manage those funds carefully.
Structured Settlements
In a structured settlement, you receive payments over a period of time. Often, this settlement replaces your paycheck and starts to function in the same way.
Annuities
An annuity is a type of insurance policy, but the function will be similar to a structured settlement: you’ll receive a check every month that you can put towards your ongoing expenses.
Personal Injury Trusts
You can ask that the money be deposited into a personal injury trust. The trustee will disburse money for specific expenses related to your injuries, such as paying for prosthetics, ongoing medical treatments, or medical assistance devices.
Allowing the money to go into a trust can often preserve other disability benefits, like AISH payments.
Making Decisions About Your Settlement
It’s not always easy to figure out which payout type will work well for you. Your personal injury attorney can help with these decisions as well, basing them off your financial situation, your future employment prospects, and your need to rely on public disability or other services.
Of course, before you can get paid you have to win your case. If you have been injured in an accident and you haven’t chosen a lawyer yet, contact the team at Merchant Law. Take advantage of our decades of experience and our track record for helping our clients maximize their awards.
