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Editor: Lauren Lipcon
Profession: IFN Program Director

Category: Pre-Settlement FAQs for Plaintiffs

We often are often contacted by injury victims for a pre settlment advance on their case, yet the client has not yet hired an attorney. In order to receive an advance from Injury Funds Now or most any lawsuit funding company, the applicant must be represented by a lawyer.

The reasons are two-fold:
1) If a personal injury attorney hasn't taken the case, then there probably isn't a case there to begin with. Unless the accident just happened and the client contacts a funding company before contacting a lawyer, but that is doubtful. If you're hurt due to someone else's negligence, most people would hire a lawyer before anything else.

2) Once a case is funded, the attorney must be in receipt of the contract and aware as to the agreement his or her client has entered into. A lawsuit advance works just like a medical lien or any other lien for that matter. A right to a portion of the anticipated proceeds are purchased, and for that lien to be satisfied, the client's attorney pays the funding company out of the proceeds along with attorney's fees and expenses, medical liens and other costs. The balance of those recovered funds are what the client nets.

When we get a call from an injured party, that has not hired counsel of yet, we are often asked for the name of a lawyer that can help. While our practice is not to refer clients to specific attorneys, we recommend that the injured person contact their bar association or state lawyer organization.

Here is Florida, where Injury Funds Now is based, if the accident occurred in the state of Florida we will give out contact information for the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers or if in Miami-Dade, for the Dade County Trial Lawyers. Every state has similar organizations that can help an injury victim select the best attorney for the job.

If you have been injured and need representation, call upon one of these organizations, or your states sister organization to find a lawyer suited to meet your needs.