One common question we receive from personal injury attorneys is: “Do we still need to call a settlement planner if the client in the case is not receiving government benefits?”

Most personal injury clients fall into this category. They are not receiving government benefits like SSI and Medicaid, and soon, they will be getting some lump sum of cash from the settlement.

Most of the time, attorneys send that money directly to the client and hope they make the right decision with it — and most people generally will. However, what we found is that in a lot of cases, if you will refer them to a settlement or financial planner, then the client gets all the help they can get to make the right decisions with those funds.

The same goes for financially sophisticated clients. If they do not have a financial planner, they are still vulnerable to making poor decisions with the funds. In other cases, people around these clients who know that they received a lump sum of cash from the settlement will come to ask them for loans, which is another potential problem.

A financial planning firm can help a client make wise decisions with their money that are in their best interest — and ultimately make the most out of the settlement money. We can almost act as a de facto trustee in some regards to help them manage the funds and guide them towards the right financial decisions.

If you are settling a case for a client who is not receiving any government benefits, give us a call. We can analyze the client’s current financial status and discuss options that will maximize the value of their settlement.