What is Arbitration in a Personal Injury Case?

The majority of personal injury cases are resolved before they ever get to the trial phase and arbitration is one of the methods used for alternative dispute resolution.

What is arbitration in a personal injury case?

Arbitration is a way to resolve a dispute between a plaintiff and a defendant that uses an impartial arbitrator who otherwise has no interest or involvement in the case. In a personal injury case, the arbitrator decides the outcome of the dispute and the amount of the award, which is the dollar amount that the insurance company must pay the injured person.

When is arbitration chosen for a personal injury case?

While arbitration can be a good way to settle a personal injury case, it is not always the appropriate choice. The client and his or her personal injury lawyer will make the decision about whether to pursue arbitration and then start the process of agreeing to arbitrate with the defendant. In order to move forward, both parties must:

• agree to arbitrate;
• on the restrictions and conditions associated with the arbitration;
• on who will be the neutral arbitrator;
• on who will pay the arbitrator’s fees;
• on how evidence will be/what kind of evidence will be presented to the arbitrator,
• and on whether the decision will be binding or non-binding.

In some cases, the parties decide beforehand what the maximum and minimum award should be to the plaintiff without telling the arbitrator. This means that for example, if the arbitrator decides that the plaintiff should be awarded $25,000 but the minimum award agreed to by the parties is $35,000 the plaintiff would receive $35,000.

What happens during the arbitration process?

The arbitration process is somewhat like an informal trial when the process is done in person rather than on paper. In most of these cases the plaintiff’s attorney and the defense attorney each make a brief “opening statement”, call witnesses live or by video to testify, and then submit documents before making their “closing arguments.” Like a judge, the arbitrator hears or reviews the evidence of the case and may ask questions of the parties and witnesses. After telling the parties when they should expect a final decision, he or she then decides whether the plaintiff is entitled to recover and, if so, how much the plaintiff will recover. Most often, the arbitrator will write and send the decision with supporting reasons to the parties or their attorneys.

Is arbitration better than a personal injury trial?

Arbitration can be very beneficial for both parties because the arbitration process is almost always faster than setting a trial date and costs the parties less to litigate. Usually litigation expenses are less for arbitration than for a trial because you do not have to pay for jury research, hiring doctors and other expert witnesses to attend trial, and subpoenaing other witnesses to trial. Note that the timing of the decision to arbitrate affects the amount of litigation expenses that may be incurred for arbitration. If the parties don’t agree to arbitration until after the discovery process is complete then the cost of arbitration is considerably higher.

The Seattle personal injury attorneys at Morrow Kidman Tinker Macey-Cushman, PLLC have years of experience representing families harmed by medical malpractice and other types of negligence. We seek justice for patients who have been harmed by preventable medical errors including birth injuries, hospital-acquired infections and wrongful death in Seattle and across Washington State. There are no fees or expenses to file a personal injury case as we only receive payment if we recover damages on your behalf. Do not delay; personal injury claims come with a Statute of Limitations, which means they must be filed within a certain time frame of the injury.

Call us now at (206) 752-4366 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation with one of our compassionate, experienced attorneys.