By Dan Noll on May 21st, 2024 in Articles, Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Lawyers Explain How Long Does it Take to Obtain Settlement of Pressure Sore Cases in Illinois
Nursing home abuse, neglect, and negligence could cause many different types of serious personal injuries for residents. One type of potentially life-threatening injury is a pressure sore, which is an injury caused by a combination of excessive pressure and friction that breaks down tissue and causes an injury. Also known as a bedsore or pressure ulcer, a pressure sore can cause extreme pain and suffering, even when it is at an early stage. However, later stage pressure sores can result in permanent injuries or the wrongful death of a resident. Indeed, statistics reveal that pressure sores cause injury to over 2.5 million people and result in over 60,000 deaths each year in the United States. Victims who suffer a devastating pressure ulcer, or families who lose a loved one due to a pressure sore, may be entitled to compensation for their damages with the help of an experienced pressure sore lawyer. Many times, this compensation is obtained through a settlement. As a result, many victims and their families ask how long does it take to obtain settlement of pressure sore cases in Illinois.
Here at the Noll Law Office, their compassionate and experienced legal team knows that over 90% of all civil cases settle before trial, with some figures estimating that figure to actually be more than 95%. This means that many victims and their families who have suffered a pressure sore in a nursing home, long-term care facility, hospital, or another type of facility will have their case end in a settlement. However, when a settlement occurs and how fast victims are paid can depend on many different factors related to their case and the process. If you or a loved one were seriously injured due to a bedsore or pressure sore in Illinois, the experienced pressure sore lawyers in Springfield at the Noll Law Office can help answer your questions regarding your case and the potential settlement that you may be entitled to by dialing (217) 414-8889.
What is a Settlement?
In a civil action such as a personal injury case, a settlement is an agreement between the parties that resolves their contentions and claims – both now and in the future. In a pressure sore case, a settlement generally involves the victim offering a release of liability to the defendant(s) for monetary compensation. If a pressure sore lawsuit has already been commenced, a victim will also execute a voluntary discontinuance of the lawsuit.
Examples of what victims and their families may be compensated for include the following:
- Past pain and suffering
- Future pain and suffering
- Medical bills
- Lost wages (if any applicable, which is not often)
- Cost of increased nursing care, treatment, and assistance
- Reimbursement of legal costs and disbursements
- Punitive damages in rare cases of gross negligence or egregious conduct
- Legal fees in certain instances
- Wrongful death costs, including burial costs and funeral expenses, and
- Other damages related to the nursing home abuse, neglect, or negligence case in Illinois.
How Long Does it Take to Obtain Settlement of Pressure Sore Cases in Illinois?
Generally, a settlement can occur at any point. That includes right after a resident has sustained a pressure sore and before a lawsuit has been commenced. This is known as a pre-action or pre-commencement settlement, and it allows victims and their families to quickly recover compensation. The risk with a quick settlement is that it often means that a victim cannot add additional damages that occur in the future unless they were negotiated in that settlement. This means that a victim who later discovers injuries or develops new injuries in the future cannot seek compensation for them. As a result, it is critically important for victims and their families to have an experienced pressure sore lawyer in Springfield represent them for cases – especially ones that might settle right away – to ensure victims and their families obtain the maximum compensation that they may be entitled to under Illinois law.
However, some cases do not settle until a lawsuit is commenced. Once a case is commenced, a settlement can occur at virtually any time in the life of a lawsuit. This includes before discovery (or the exchange of evidence), after discovery, after motion practice, right before a trial during pre-trial conferences, during a trial, after a trial, or even when a case is being appealed. Although this means that victims and their families do not get compensation as quickly as a pre-commencement settlement, it does allow for a more thorough examination of the injuries and for slower developing injuries to be included.
Once a Nursing Home Case Settles, How Long Does it Take to Get Payment?
After the parties agree to a settlement, the time it takes to obtain compensation varies on certain factors. Generally, 735 ILCS 5/2-2301 provides that settlements in Illinois must be paid within 30 days of a victim tendering the executed release of liability to the defendant(s). Although many cases comply with this timeframe, sometimes there are some unavoidable issues that may delay the submission of compensation.
For instance, many nursing home cases involve medical liens. The most common type of medical lien that could delay a settlement is a CMS lien, which is from the United States Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. This type of lien must be reimbursed by either the victim or the defendant, and usually the onus of resolving this lien is on the victim. In order to satisfy this lien, there is often a process of receiving a list of services and bills from CMS, striking them out, and resubmitting them to get an accurate lien amount.
Once there is an accurate amount of the lien, a victim’s attorney will then negotiate with CMS to reduce the total lien amount. Sometimes this is by what the attorney fee would have been to obtain this compensation for CMS (i.e., if they had to hire a lawyer to recover it from the defendant). Other times the lien amount could be reduced based on what services were rendered to the victim and what were causally related to the pressure sore. Meaning that services which were not directly related to the treatment of the pressure sore could be excluded from the lien. This is often a painstaking process that requires attention to detail and patience, something that an experienced pressure sore lawyer at the Noll Law Office can do for you.
Still Unsure? Ask the Experienced Pressure Sore Lawyers at the Noll Law Office How Long Does it Take to Obtain Settlement of Pressure Sore in Your Case
After you or a loved one suffered a painful and damaging pressure sore, or if a loved one was wrongfully killed by a pressure sore in Illinois, call the experienced pressure sore lawyers at the Noll Law Office for help with your case. They offer free case evaluations and can handle complicated medical, legal, and lien-related issues that are common in all nursing home cases. To learn more about how they can help you and your family, contact them today to schedule our free appointment and consultation.