Lawsuit Loans: Does Your Case Have What it Takes to Qualify? Part I

By Dr. Tom Rhudy

Why do we even refer to it as a lawsuit loan? It is clearly not a loan in any sense of the word! To be precise, we should refer to it as settlement funding, a form of funding provided in advance of your settling your claim. One may even go so far as to refer to it as venture-capital.

Settlement loans have an advantage, in that they carry no risk for the applicant, hence, the term, "non-recourse."

To commence this process, the lender and applicant enter into an agreement. You are not required to repay any of the lawsuit-loan, as identified in the agreement, if you lose your case. Thus, during pendency of a lawsuit, settlement funding is often viewed, and rightly so, as a no-risk source of financial assistance.

Settlement loans come in a variety of guises. An understanding of the types of cases for which lawsuit loans are issued will prove useful.

Automobile Accident Lawsuit: This is a very common personal injury lawsuit case. They often include medical bills that are difficult to pay. It is not uncommon for these cases to drag on for several years.


Cases involving injuries to children: Pre-settlement loans are often difficult to procure in these cases. As a result of many guardians attempting to settle these claims to satisfy their own interests, often at the expense of the injured child, the Court will occasionally appoint an attorney ad litem. The attorney ad litem is charged with representing the child's interests, even when those interests are out-of-synch with the guardian's.

Slip-and-Fall: This mechanism of injury is the most common type of personal injury. Due to their prevalence, many retailers are extremely aggressive, frequently unreasonably so, in fighting such claims. In many instances, it will be found that video-surveillance of the incident is available, and must be procured. Furthermore, it is very important clearly describe the surface on which the slip occurred, items that created obstacles in your path that produced your fall, etc. If witnesses observed the incident, elicit testimony from them if necessary to support the claim made. Details regarding the mechanism of injury should never be left to chance!

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