Assault and Battery Lawsuit Loans

Does my assault and battery claim qualify for pre-settlement funding?

General requirements for any lawsuit, including assault and battery claims, to qualify for pre-settlement funding include the following:

• You must have a lawsuit pending in court.
• You must be represented by a lawyer.
• The lawsuit must seek monetary damages.

The lawsuit funding company that you apply to for a lawsuit loan obtains information about the claim from your lawyer. It evaluates the case to determine the likelihood of it resulting in a settlement or judgment in your favor and its value. The cash advance that you receive is a percentage of the estimated value of the claim as determined by the funding company.

An assault and battery claim asks for money damages to compensate you for the harm inflicted upon you by the person who assaulted you. As a result, it would meet the requirement of being a claim for monetary damages.

Who is the defendant in an assault and battery claim?

The person who actually attacked and injured you may not be the only party named as a defendant in an assault and battery lawsuit. There may be others who may be at fault for making it possible for the incident to occur even though they did not physically attack you. Knowing who to hold responsible for what happened to you is as important to your claim as the decision about how much to ask for in a settlement.

For example, if you are the victim of an assault and battery, third parties who may be sued in addition to your attacker include:

• Your employer when the attack occurs at work.
• The employer of your attacker for having knowledge of the aggressive tendencies of their employee.
• Building owners, managers and security companies for negligent security for failing to provide safe premises when an attack occurs on their property.
• School administrators for failing to provide a safe environment.

Your personal injury attorney will review and investigate the facts and circumstances of the assault and battery to identify parties in addition to the attacker who can be held responsible for the injuries and damages sustained by you. Achieving agood settlement offer may prove easier when there are multiple parties and liability insurance companies sharing payment of it.

For example, if an attack takes place at night in the dark parking garage of an office building, the attacker would be a defendant. However, the building owner and management company also may be held responsible if there is evidence that they knew of a problem with the lights and their failure to repair it made it easier for the attacker to hide.

Why criminal assault and battery cases often must be resolved before civil cases start

Whether you must wait for the conclusion of the criminal case before filing a civil lawsuit for assault and battery depends on state law. Somestates allow an injured plaintiff to file a civil lawsuit before the criminal case is over. However, there are practical reasons for waiting, including the following:

• Defendants may be reluctant to testify in their own defense in a civil case for fear that what is said will be used against them in the criminal case by the prosecution.
• As a plaintiff, you may benefit from waiting for the conclusion of the criminal case because some states let your lawyeruse the conviction to prove the acts committed by the defendant.
• If your personal injury lawyer intends to use testimony of the defendant in your civil case, waiting until the criminal charges are resolved avoids a defendant citing constitutional rights against self-incrimination to avoid testifying.

Financial issues caused by a delay in pursuing a claim for damages for assault and battery awaiting the conclusion of proceedings against the defendant in criminal court may be resolved with a pre-settlement funding. Money received from the funding company can be used to pay for household expenses, school tuition, or other reasons except legal fees to your personal injury lawyer or litigation costs related to the claim.