Injury Law: Will You Get More Money if You Settle By Yourself?

 

I am a board certified personal injury specialist. I have devoted my entire legal career to representing individuals and families who have suffered a tragic loss, either a life-changing injury or the death of a loved one, because of the negligence of someone else. After trying numerous cases in front of juries and judges, and being entrusted with hundreds of my clients’ caes over the years, I feel confident in answering this: no.

Why?

The insurance companies representing people and businesses that have been careless, reckless and/or negligent have been trained in negotiation, claims handling, and how to get the best deal that he/she can for the insurance company. In other words, adjusters are paid to save the insurance company money, not to take care of you or your family. They do this very well, and the insurance companies’ profits are proof of this. The bottom line is that insurance companies are billion dollar companies, and they got there by making the best deals for themselves, not for you, the injured person. Insurance companies and their employees are specifically trained to know how get away with paying as little as possible to take care of you and your family, why not have someone in your corner who knows how to make sure that the insurance companies are covering all of your harms and losses? Why not have someone who will present evidence and proof of all of your harms and losses, with the goal of making you 100% whole again? Read More

Check out this news story from Houston news KHOU-TV. Cops allegedly cheat the system

A Houston police officer handed another man a speeding ticket and probably didn’t realize that the offender he was citing was also a cop. What this ticket-receiving officer noticed on his paper slip though has led to a department-wide investigation.

“I immediately [knew] that something’s hinky with the ticket,” the man KHOU-TV only identified as Jerry said. “There was no other officer, he was the only officer there.”

The ticket, however, listed another officer as an additional witness.

KHOU launched an investigation into Jerry’s claims and uncovered an alleged “ticket-rigging scheme,” where cops listed on tickets who were not actually present at the time of the offense were cashing in on overtime when they appeared in court later.

The Houston Police Department is conducting its own internal investigation into the issue, putting three officers — Gregory Rosa, Robert Manzanales and John Garcia — on desk jobs during this time.

KHOU reported that a fourth officer identified as Rudolph Farias, who was also being investigated, committed suicide earlier this week in a police parking garage. The 51-year-old was on the force for 21 years and, according to KHOU, made $158,000 in overtime within the past three years. How much of that could be due to falsely reported tickets is unknown at this time. Read More