Arbitration

Why We No Longer Agree to Arbitrate Personal Injury Cases

Read why we are no longer agreeing to personal Injury Arbitration in New York.

If We Don’t Agree to Arbitrate, What Do We Do Now?

Of course, if you insist on arbitrating your case, we will do whatever you want. However, if you agree with us, we will now take every case to trial if the case cannot be settled. Insurance companies are known to make substantially higher settlement offers on the day of the trial just before it starts. We have declined every settlement offer made on the day of the trial.

Additionally, insurance companies only agree to arbitration with a high low parameter which means that there is a cap on how much you can’t get at an arbitration, even if the arbitrator awards more than that. Many lawyers agreed to a high low parameter at trial. When we take a case to trial, we will not agree to a high-low parameter.

This Is What We Used to Think of Personal Injury Arbitration

When possible, we like to arbitrate or mediate personal injury cases instead of going to trial. Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution. If your accident case is arbitrated, a final decision will be issued by an arbitrator instead of a jury at trial. The insurance company has to agree to arbitrate and if they do not agree, we just continue with the lawsuit and will take your case to trial.

There are many advantages to both us and the insurance company by resolving your claim through arbitration instead of a trial. Some of the advantages of arbitration are as follows:

  • Arbitration can shorten your case by years.
  • Arbitration usually takes two hours while a trial usually takes two weeks. After experiencing two weeks of stress at trial, clients usually say they never want to do that again.
  • Arbitration can save you $15,000-$25,000 in trial expenses which are paid back from the money you receive.
  • We only arbitrate using retired Supreme Court judges who know accident cases and their values better than anyone. You will be awarded what your personal injury case is really worth.
  • After a trial, juries often award too much or too little. When they award too much, the amount is usually reduced by the trial judge, reduced on appeal, or settled for much less after appealing. If your case goes to appeal, it will be decided by three judges instead of a jury and your legal fees can go to 50%.
  • Arbitration is binding and final. Arbitration decisions are generally not appealable while a jury verdict will most likely be appealed which can substantially increase your legal expenses and substantially decrease the jury’s verdict.

Often, High/Low parameters are negotiated prior to the arbitration hearing to set a specific range for the award. Both sides will then agree to the maximum and minimum amount to be awarded.

Many personal injury attorneys like the ability to appeal to the emotions of people on the jury. The problem is that high jury verdicts get reduced. But large jury verdicts look good on the lawyer’s wall when they make the newspaper.

The Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics bears out the fact that plaintiffs actually do a little better when the decision is rendered by a judge instead of a jury. However, each case needs to be considered separately because some cases are better suited for trial by a jury.

When proceeding with arbitration, the defense attorneys will still have the insurance company doctor examine you and you need to be properly represented at your medical examination.

You may have already completed depositions prior to your arbitration but if not, the insurance company will decide whether or not they want depositions done before arbitration. If you have to appear for a deposition, you need to be properly prepared for your deposition.

We can write a book about the advantages of arbitration but those are the more important ones. We have never yet had an arbitration decision by a retired Supreme Court judge which we were unhappy with.

Another form of alternative dispute resolution which is an alternative to arbitration is mediation. While arbitration is binding, mediation is nonbinding.

Arbitration is appropriate even for large catastrophic injury cases. We usually use one of the retired Supreme Court judges at National Arbitration and Mediation which has many cases seeing seven-figure awards and some as much as $18 million.

Phil Franckel is a well-known personal injury lawyer in New York since 1989. He is a Founding Partner of 1-800-HURT-911, LLP®, the Personal Injury Dream Team™, and a former Member of the Board of Directors of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association. He has an Avvo Top 10  Rating, Avvo Client’s Choice Award with all 5-star reviews, Avvo Top Contributor Award, Multi-Million Dollar Trial Lawyers Award, and others. See Mr. Franckel’s bio for areas of expertise.

divider line gold - thick

1-800-HURT-911® Personal Injury Lawyers "As Seen On TV" ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, , WOR, WPIX logos

Get the 1-800-HUR-T911® Dream Team™ on your side and become a member of our family!
We’ll immediately protect you from the insurance companies!

“Knowing I had a team of great lawyers on my side gave me a sense of power and peace of mind. They took care of everything for me. When a settlement was negotiated, I saw the difference a team of lawyers makes.”
—Lia Fisse

No Win — No Fee — No Expenses — Guaranteed!

Personal Injury Lawyer Screened by Google

Attorneys who can get you the most amount of money AND provide personal service!

Free Personal Injury Consultation call button  Chat to get your free Personal Injury consultation right now button

Please take a look at some of our:

What will happen when I call 1-800-HURT-911 or chat?

  1. Our call center operators and chat operators are available 24/7.
  2. Just give your contact info to our operator and Founding Partner Rob Plevy, Esq. will call you within 5-10 minutes for your free, no-obligation consultation during the hours of 8 am – 10 pm. After hours, Rob will call you in the morning or at the time you want.
  3. Then just text or call us any time you want during your case!

Because any delay could cause you to lose viable rights and benefits, please call HURT-911® Founding Partner Rob Plevy, Esq. right now for a free consultation to find out your rights days/nights/weekends.
1-800-HURT-911
1-800-487-8911

You can speak, text, or email with us whenever you want throughout your case and afterward, days/nights/weekends, and experience our famous personal service. You’ll even get our personal phone numbers so you can call or text anytime!

Watch Founding Partner Phil Franckel, Esq. talk about New York Serious Injury Attorneys.com, difficult cases, and the 1-800-HURT-911® Dream Team™


Philip L. Franckel, Esq. is one of the HURT911® Dream Team™ Founding Partners at 1-800-HURT-911® New York; He has a 10 Avvo rating; Avvo Client’s Choice with all 5-star reviews; Avvo Top Contributor; and a former Member of the Board of Directors of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association.

1-800-HURT-911® Founding Partner and Personal Injury Lawyer Rob Plevy, Esq.

Founding Partner Rob Plevy, Esq.

Robert Plevy, Esq. is one of the HURT911® Dream Team™ Founding Partners at 1-800-HURT-911® New York. Rob began his legal career in 1993 as an Assistant Corporation Counsel defending The City of New York against personal injury lawsuits.

Get the HURT911® Dream Team on your side!
Call Attorneys Rob Plevy & Phil Franckel days/nights/weekends for a free consultation
1-800-HURT-911

1-800-487-8911

New York Serious Injury Lawyer logo

divider line gold - thick