Get Ahead in Your Personal Injury Case

Have A Personal Financial Plan In Place Before You File A Personal Injury Lawsuit

19 December 2014 by Kenneth Pierce

If you have been injured due to the negligence of someone else, you are within your rights to file a personal injury lawsuit against the offending party. If you win the lawsuit, you will receive financial compensation for your injuries. However, personal injury lawsuits can take months and sometimes years to make it through the legal system. 

You Need To Think Ahead Before You Go Forward With Your Suit

Before you even contact a lawyer, you need to have a financial plan in place. Your are going to have to pay your lawyer for the time they put into your case. You are also going to need to take care of yourself while your case makes its way through the court system. If you are unable to work due to the injuries you sustained due to the negligence of the party you are suing in court, you need a plan on how to take care of yourself until your case is settled. 

To start with, you need to be able to take care of yourself while your lawsuit goes through the legal system. Sometimes, personal injury lawsuits are settled before a court date is even set. Other times, a personal injury lawsuit can take months or years to go through the legal process if the other side fights your claims. You need to have a finical plan in place for either situation.

Ask your attorney how long they expect your case to last. Use the information that they give you as a starting point toward planning your budget. 

Develop A Monthly Budget

Sit down and look at how much money you spend every month. If you do not already have a monthly budget, now is the time to start one. Figure out how much you need for bills each month, as well as food, gas, and other personal expenses. This is how much you will need to survive each month your case is going through the court system.

Remember to add in legal fees into your monthly budget. Even if your lawyer has agreed to be paid upon a contingency fee basis, you may still have to pay for other legal expenses. You will have to pay the legal fees associated with filing your lawsuit. You will also have to pay for items that support your defense outside of your attorney's fees, such as expert witnesses. Be sure to budget for these expenses. Your lawyer may be able to give you an estimate on how much you can expect to pay out of pocket for your case. 

Figure Out How Long Your Money Will Last

Take the amount you need each month and divide it by how much money you already have saved. This will allow you to see how many months you can afford to live on your current savings without working while your case goes through court. If you have enough to make it through the length of time your lawyer thinks your case will take, you are set. 

Take Out A Loan If Necessary 

However, if your savings will not sustain you for the amount of time your lawyer thinks your case will take, you need to look into obtaining a personal loan. If you have good credit, you can take out a personal loan while you are pursuing your case. You can use your monthly budget times the expected amount of months your lawyer thinks your case will take to come up with the size of loan you need. Be sure to add a few extra months into your estimated loan amount to allow yourself some wiggle room.

If you have good credit, taking out a loan is preferable over maxing out your credit cards because a personal loan carries a much lower interest rate than your credit cards will. It also allows you to keep your credit cards handy if any unexpected expenses, outside of your monthly budget, come up. 

Before you file a lawsuit with the help of a personal injury attorney, make sure you have a financial plan in place. If you cannot work due to your injuries, take some time to figure out how you will be able to take care of yourself during the course of your lawsuit. Remember to budget some money in for legal filing fees and additional expenses. 

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