Personal Injury Settlements

After a major car accident, it’s understandable to feel hopeless. Increasing medical costs, replacing damaged property, stress from missing work, and now contemplating how to pursue a personal injury settlement can leave victims overwhelmed.

When you’re more knowledgeable of the advantages that can arise from filing a personal injury claim, you can then go into the process with hope and confidence. 

To provide some encouragement, here’s a look at the three biggest personal injury settlements in the United States. In each of these cases, the at-fault parties were held accountable for the claimants’ suffering in a major way. Provided is an overview of the outcome from each case.

What is a Settlement?

What is a personal injury settlement, though? It’s when a case reaches a formal monetary resolution before going to trial, where a judge or jury decides the outcome. Ideally, the settlement will fall somewhere between the victim’s original request and the liable party’s original counteroffer.

At any point during the litigation process, your lawyer and the at-fault party can settle. This is not necessarily in opposition to going to trial. But reaching a settlement before going to trial can turn out to be a plus since the process is more predictable, less challenging, and more likely to result in a solid payout.

So many factors can make affect a claim’s amount, both for the better or worse. One of the biggest is hiring an attorney. Did you know that people who pursue injury claims with representation at the helm earn 340% more than those who don’t?

Aside from more compensation, there are other advantageous benefits to working with a personal injury attorney. It can greatly reduce stress, save time and money, and establish a better sense of certainty.

Landmark Personal Injury Cases

The kinds of personal injury settlements that have received the biggest payouts are more than likely cases you’ve heard about before. High-profile and catastrophic, each of the injured parties certainly had experienced personal injury attorneys representing them.

These three cases were about far more than money. But when the numbers represent justice for a devastated client, it’s a result that’s nothing less than gratifying. Here are the details of the biggest personal injury settlements in United States history:

1. The Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement

In 1998, 46 states banded together to seek damages in a lawsuit against Big Tobacco. This was not only to cover the astronomical costs of caring for lifelong smokers with health problems but also to seek punitive damages for their unethical advertising and business practices.

The settlement turned out to cost Big Tobacco over $206 million, meant to be paid out over the following 25 years. This monetary award was meant to be applied to helping hospitals care for terminally ill smokers and to developing a nationwide anti-smoking organization.

2. The Robert Middleton Settlement

In this horrific 1998 case, eight-year-old Robert Middleton was sexually assaulted and set on fire by 13-year-old Don Collins. Over 98 percent of Middleton’s body was burned, which was shocking enough. But when he died of skin cancer in 2010, Middleton’s family sought justice from Collins.

Collins was ultimately tried as an adult and charged with Middleton’s wrongful death. Middleton’s family was awarded $150 billion in damages.

3. General Motors and the Anderson Family

In this 1993 case, several members of the Anderson family were in a Chevy Malibu that a drunk driver hit. Upon impact, the fuel tank caught fire and exploded, severely burning all of the passengers in the car. Four of those passengers were children.

When the Andersons pursued compensatory damages with General Motors, the case went to trial. The family was eventually awarded $4.9 billion in the end. This is thanks largely to the Andersons’ lawyer discovering that the company had known for several years that its vehicles’  gas tanks were not safe but had not been willing to undergo the costs of performing a recall.

Later, General Motors did end up appealing and reducing the payout to $1.2 billion.

How to Approach Your Personal Injury Settlement

From the severity of your car accident and an estimate of how much you think your case is worth, you’re probably wondering where to begin or if hiring a lawyer will make that big of a difference. You may also have doubts about successfully recovering damages.

Some people do decide to file personal injury claims on their own. However, the complexities of the personal injury claims process are complicated. This is why victims should seek legal counseling. An experienced attorney will provide the best first steps of how to approach your case.

You don’t have to commit to a contract. However, exploring your options with a professional in the field is a good place to start. Claimants who hire personal injury attorneys are also more likely to win their cases. In addition, they are three times higher than those who do not.

That’s because a lawyer can use their years of experience to cover the bases of your case, especially when you’re on the road to recovery. They can gather evidence, work with claims adjusters, and navigate the negotiation of your settlement. The results, as you can see, can be invaluable.

Finding the Right Personal Injury Lawyer

You don’t want to deal with the stress the comes with filing a claim after an accident. The Law Offices of Daniel Kim is aware of this and more than ready to deal with any and all personal injury settlements.

To get in touch and schedule your free consultation, contact us today.