Legal Question in Personal Injury in California

Re: injury

Like Mr. Hoffman, please express condolences to your brother.

Also, like Mr. Hoffman, I agree with his assessment. If life were fair, there would not be wheelchairs (I know, as I am in one). He and the family need to accept this accident and your brother;s losses, and move on.

Re: injury

I'm so sorry to hear what happened to your brother. Unfortunately there is a big difference between what he deserves and what the defendant and his insurer can pay.

If the defendant bought $100,000 of insurance than that is the most the insurer will pay out, period. Insurers couldn't operate if the had to give out more in benefits than their customers paid for.

Most individuals can't afford to pay the type of damages it would take to reasonably compensate your brother, so even a multi-million dollar judgment might not result in a substantial payment -- especially since such judgments can often be discharged in bankruptcy. If your brother's lawyer has investigated the defendant's wealth and determined that he can't pay a large award then she's probably right to recomment settling.

Additionally, most drivers have less than $100,000 of insurance. In this sense, at least, your brother was relatively lucky; if the driver had only $15,000 of coverage the situation would be even worse.