Can Lawsuit Funding Help Me When I File An Appeal?

Mar 16, 2010

Sometimes a lawsuit does not go as planned. You were assured by your attorney that you would be successful and that would you be seeing a big payday sometime soon. Then you get the verdict and the jury sides against you; or the jury sides with you, but does not give the amount of damages that you are sure you deserve. In those cases, you may want to file an appeal.

While winning a case on appeal can be difficult, it is not impossible. Sometimes juries, and judges, just get things wrong. Everyone makes mistakes and courtrooms are not immune to human failures. Sometimes it may have been something your attorney did, but often it is just a matter of the ruling being wrong, either legally or factually.
If you thought that it took a long time to get a ruling in your case, you need to realize that the appellate process can take just as long, if not longer. This could mean a few more years before you see any money that you feel should be coming to you. You should not be without hope, however, because lawsuit funding may be available to help you.
Lawsuit funding is a process by which you enter into a contract with a funding company in which they give you money in advance of your settlement or courtroom victory, based on your chances of being successful, and you pay them back when you get the actual award. In order to determine whether you are eligible for funding while your appeal is pending, you need to speak with the company directly, because each case is different.
They will need to research the laws carefully in your area and determine how likely you are to win your case on appeal. A lot goes into appellate courts’ decisions and just simply having a compelling case is not enough. There is a higher standard that you will need to show on appeal versus what you had to prove at court, so it is actually a trickier procedure. Since you already lost once, you have to come from behind and prove that much more to get a win.
If the lawsuit funding company determines that you are a good gamble for them, they will advance you money that you can use for living expenses, medical bills, and other similar things that you hoped to use your lawsuit award to pay off. Then if you win on appeal, you will be able to pay the company back what you were advanced.

In the event you lose an appeal, you may not have to pay all the money back.While each company is different, many of them will have a provision in the contract where you are only liable to them if you win your lawsuit. It is very important that you read your contract carefully before signing in order to fully understand the circumstances that you are agreeing to. Most companies are very reputable, but you can never be too careful. Visit www.lawcapital.com to learn more.

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