There are a number of different approaches that personal injury law firms may take when it comes to how they choose to handle individual cases. Some consumers may be attracted to the larger law firms due to the appearance of success and availability of financial resources, but there are plenty of drawbacks to hiring a personal injury lawyer at a large firm.
Perhaps the most significant difference between a small personal injury law firm and a large one is the level of attention and communication that you are likely to experience. At a large firm, there is a good chance that you may never even meet the attorney who is technically representing your legal interests.
These firms are sometimes referred to as "settlement mills." A settlement mill is a type of large law firm that focuses on building a large client base – sometimes without properly evaluating the actual merits of the case – and closes those cases as quickly as possible.
Because these sorts of law firms most likely do not believe in the cases they're taking, they are unwilling to spend time and resources getting the best result for their clients. Their ultimate goal is to recover a settlement for the client as quickly as possible in order to minimize the cost of handling the claim.
Insurance Companies Love Settlement Mills
Insurance companies are particularly fond of the settlement mill approach because they know the primary objective for these types of law firms is to close an auto accident case and collect on the settlement as quickly as possible. These firms survive by handling claims that insurance companies would most likely have paid to their customers already, and taking a portion of it.
This sort of practice survives by the firm's efficiency (how quickly can he get and say "yes" to a number sent out by an insurance agent) and a breadth of clients with inconvenient but not life-altering injuries. The ultimate disservice done by these firms is that they are being paid to recover a settlement that the victim likely could have recovered on their own, without paying for a lawyer.
Contact Us For A Free Consultation
Davis Law Group is nothing like a settlement mill. We are considered more of a "boutique" law firm, which means we only handle cases in which we believe that we would be able to maximize the overall value for our clients. We want the best outcome for you whether you become our client or not, and will advise you about whether your insurance company seems to be acting in good faith.
This also means that our goal is to do whatever it takes to get the best possible result for our clients, including taking cases all the way to trial if insurance companies do not offer fair settlements to compensate our clients for their injuries and other damages. Many large law firms will avoid trial at all costs and accept settlements that may be lower than what the client deserves in order to quickly resolve the case.
If you want to learn more about how Davis Law Group can help you get the best possible result for your case, call our office in Seattle at (206) 727-4000 or use the confidential contact form on this page. If we believe we can help, we'll schedule you for a free legal consultation with our award-winning team of Seattle personal injury attorneys.