Financial Standing of Personal Injury Plaintiffs

Brien Roche

In the course of personal injury litigation, there may arise issues of the financial status of the plaintiff.

In particular the plaintiff may claim that because of financial status, they cannot get medical treatment. 

Also they may claim that because of the injury, they were forced to file bankruptcy. In the alternative they may claim that because of the injury, they lost their home and are now homeless.

All of those situations need to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. 

Financial Standing Personal Injury Plaintiffs-Opening the Door

The danger in making any such claim is that by doing so, you open up the plaintiff’s entire financial history to examination by an aggressive defense lawyer.

Therefore that is a very slippery slope. It is one that needs to be fully examined before allowing a plaintiff to go down it. In particular you need to know all of the facts as to the plaintiff’s financial status for the last several years.

If the plaintiff claims that they couldn’t get medical treatment because of their financial status, you need to look at whether they would have qualified for Medicare, Medicaid or any other governmental or non-governmental programs. These might have provided such care.

In addition you need to look at how they are otherwise spending their money. If they have funds to live in a nice home, then why don’t they have the funds to pay for quality healthcare? Have they received any financial gifts from relatives over the years? If so, why can’t that be continued in order to help out with medical care.

Financial Standing Personal Injury Plaintiffs-Tread Cautiously

If the plaintiff claims that they had to file bankruptcy because of the injury, you need to look at all of the schedules filed in the bankruptcy court. Review the matter thoroughly with the bankruptcy lawyer. Look at whether or not the plaintiff meets the “means test” for a bankruptcy filing.

In addition if the plaintiff is claiming that they were made homeless because of the injury, you need to review their residential status for the last several years. Do they have any prior foreclosures or defaults on a mortgage? Do they have any prior bankruptcies? Are there governmental assistance programs that might provide housing for them? 

The point to be made is that by injecting into a lawsuit the plaintiff’s financial standing, you are potentially opening the door to an aggressive defense lawyer to drive a Mack truck through it. 

Reach Out To A Skilled Personal Injury Lawyer in Northern VA

Call, or contact us for a free consult. Also for more info on personal injury see the Wikipedia pages. Also see the post on this site dealing with personal injury issues.