Change of View: Attorney Now Finds Value in Legal Funding
February 26, 2010
I want to share a story with the attorneys that are still ambivalent about legal funding. Yesterday I had a conversation with an attorney in Florida, about his client that was in desperate need of money or her house was going into foreclosure. The attorney told me that his client, a nurse of 20 years, could not continue to work in the same capacity after her fusion back surgery. The surgery was required as a result of injuries she suffered in a major car accident. In fact, she may never again be able to bear weight on her feet for an extended period of time.
The attorney continued to say that his client is the bread winner in her home and is raising three children. The attorney mentioned that she has nowhere else to turn for money. She has no living parents and her credit cards are all at there limits! The attorney told her to call Oasis Legal Finance and they will be able to help her get the financial aid she needed.
This is not an atypical case for legal funding. What is new is the change in view from the attorney. Two years ago this same attorney told me he would NEVER refer a client for legal funding.
I called him to thank him for the referral and asked him what had changed his mind. He told me that he lost two clients last year because he wouldn’t let them get legal funding, even though they needed the money. However, he only found out the reason he lost those two clients later, after they had switched attorneys. He also found out that each of their cases settled for over 100k. He told me he would never make that mistake again. He would use legal funding and would refer his cases to me as long as I listen to him about the funding amount because he knows the case the best. He continued that if I could work in that capacity that we would have a long happy relationship.
I assured the attorney as I do all my attorneys all over the country that Oasis Legal finance is the largest legal funding company for a reason and I would never over fund his cases. We now have a great working relationship and he only calls me when his clients are in a financial bind and need money quick.
- Ila Mellul Sr. Legal Director
Legal Funding Makes A Positive Impact!
February 23, 2010
One of the benefits of working in legal funding at Oasis Legal Finance is that we get the chance to help people all over the country. The individual stories of the people we help through legal funding are varied and the scope of their situations often helps us realize the positive impact that legal funding truly has to improve their lives.
We have heard from truck drivers, waitresses, school teachers and construction workers. While their individual circumstances differ, the reason they come to Oasis looking for pre settlement legal funding is the same. These people were living their lives, playing by the rules, and doing their best to take care of their families. They worked hard, and then, through no fault of their own, a negligent driver intervened and upset the careful order of their lives.
No one plans to be in an automobile accident, and no settlement can truly make a plaintiff whole. No one compensates the plaintiff for missing their kids’ baseball games because they had to go to therapy. And nothing can compensate the plaintiff for the heartbreaking conversations around the dinner table when the parent, unable to work, wonders where they can cut back in order to put food on the table and buy clothes for their kids.
One of the joys of working in the legal funding industry is being able to call a plaintiff who thought that they had nowhere to go to tell them that Oasis has approved their legal funding request, and that the plaintiff would be able to pay the rent, or the mortgage, or for groceries.
At Oasis Legal Finance, we realize that we can help people get through these tough times, and give the plaintiffs a hand up when no one else will.
When is Legal Funding a Good Solution – Part 3, Options
February 5, 2010
If you’ve determined that your expenses are going to be greater than your income as you wait for your lawsuit to settle, what options do you have to get the cash you need to pay your bills? As we mentioned in Part 2 of this series, there are several options to obtain financial help and we’re going to briefly go through each to help you determine which might be the best solution for you. With any option it is critical that you weigh the risks, costs, and benefits associated with each.
There are three main avenues to investigate to get the cash you’ll need to help you pay your bills.
1. Family and Friends. Hopefully your family, and sometimes your friends, can be a source to borrow the funds you need. On occasion however this can lead to a sensitive situation and a damaged relationship if you’re unable to pay them back.
2. Credit / loans. This option may not be such a good idea as both credit cards or equity loans require a minimum monthly re-payment. Another monthly payment is usually the last thing you need if you’re already in (or going to be in the future) financial need. As well, this option often takes weeks to obtain the actual cash, and a loan requires something of value that the lender can hold as collateral (i.e house, car, jewelry, etc.) . If your situation ends up where you can’t repay the loan, the lender can take your collateral and your credit score can be damaged.
3. Legal funding. A legal funding is perhaps the easiest and least risky out of all the options. A legal funding is non-recourse, which simply means that if you lose your case then you do not pay back the amount funded to you. Also, unlike a cash advance or a loan, you do not have begin repaying the loan or cash advance in the form of make monthly payments. Legal funding is also quick, from the time you apply, we speak to your attorney, and approve your funding, you can get the cash that very same day.
To help reviewing each of these options, talk to your family and/or a trusted advisor. It is best to get several opinions prior to making a final decision. Also, make sure your attorney knows of your financial situation. Your attorney’s experience may shed some light on the pros and cons of these options. If you choose a legal funding as your solution your attorney will have to be involved, so it would make sense to make them aware of what you’re thinking sooner than later.
The bottom line is, first understand what to expect out of the legal process – more specifically your case. The best person to help here is your attorney. Don’t be afraid to ask them questions about your case and what to expect , not only in the beginning but even as your case is progressing toward resolution. Second, determine if you will need financial help during your lawsuit, and third, if you do need help carefully weigh all your options.
Obviously, we think that a legal funding is most often the best solution as it offers fast cash with the least amount of risk. If you have questions and want to investigate how a legal funding may benefit your situation, feel free to click though to our website link here – oasis.
