How much longer after my lawsuit is settled do i get the money?

Accidents Lawyers
myevildog asked:


I was in a car accident, and I settled. The insurance company sent me a letter about a week and a half ago stating that they sent the check to my lawyer already. I spoke to the case manager (not my lawyer) and she claimed that they hadn’t received the check yet. She said any day now… what is the hold up? I think they got it. The check was sent from the same damn state… We got our letter saying that it the check was forwarded to the lawyer, how come they are saying they have not received it?

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October 19, 2009 | Filed Under Accidents & Personal Injuries Lawyers 
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Comments

4 Responses to “How much longer after my lawsuit is settled do i get the money?”

  1. phaysebook on October 23rd, 2009 1:36 am

    The check has to clear into the attorney’s account.

  2. Heather V on October 25th, 2009 10:54 am

    The check the insurance company sent has to clear in your attorneys bank account. You attorney will then cut you a check minus their fee. It should take about a week for your check to come once your attorney receives the check from the insurance company.

  3. Stephanie on October 25th, 2009 8:13 pm

    The delay can be caused by a number of things.
    1. If you are on a contingency fee basis, the lawyer has to compute how much you owe him, deduct the amount, and forward you the rest.
    2. If you have any outstanding legal obligations or judgments, the settlement may be subject to these legal holds. For example, if you owe child support, that would be taken out of the settlement before the funds were disbursed to you in some circumstances.
    3. The lawyer’s firm hasn’t gotten to disbursing the funds yet. The check must first be deposited in the correct account, then a new check is written from lawyer’s account to you.
    4. The check is still in the mail. (It could be true!)

    Good luck with your settlement. Just because an agreement is reached doesn’t mean that this is the end.

  4. verybizzy2000 on October 26th, 2009 11:06 pm

    Are you sure the insurance company didn’t send the check to their own lawyer first? Because that’s the way they usually do it.

    The other lawyer then doesn’t release the check until he/she has received a Stipulation Discontinuing Action from your attorney and/or a General Release.

    Then, when your attorney gets the check, they usually will need you to co-sign it before they deposit it. In some places, they make the checks payable only to the lawfirm, but the way I handle it, we have the checks made payable to both the lawfirm and the client.

    Your lawyer then needs to calculate, based on your retainer agreement, whether anything comes off the top (such as expert fees and disbursments), then calculate their fee, and then have you review their calculations and approve the final disbursment of the checks.

    If your lawyer got the check already as you surmise, then take the letter from the insurance company and go approach your lawyer and ask. If still not satisfied with the response, call the person at the insurance company and tell them your lawyer says the check has still not been received and could they check to see if it was cashed already.

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