After the holidays, I'm here to keep your motor running through January.

January has always been a worrisome month for plaintiff's personal injury attorneys. The year end push by carriers is done, you have settled many of your best cases, you have adjourned all "the bad trials" and summary judgment motions, spent a fortune on year end obligations and it's near impossible to get a carrier on the phone; let alone settle a case. And you wonder" how will I make it, how will I pay office rent, payroll, payroll taxes, medical insurance...filing fees, experts..etc... What cases "are coming up"?

Well, all I can say is thank God for litigation funding.

Call me; You can discuss any situation confidentially with me.

Happy and healthy new year.

Happy, Healthy and Prosperous NewYear to All!

On behalf of my family, my investors and myself I want to take this opportunity to wish all my customers a happy, healthy and prosperous new year!

May you get your funding wishes in the new year...At low rates of course!



Happy new year/Feliz ano nuevo!

My opinion; At least $50 million being funded monthly in the U.S.

Despite what you may hear, think, believe or surmise, the funding business is no longer 10 or so large companies and some small " mom and pop " shops. There are large funding concerns, hedge funds, private equity, wealthy individuals, insurance companies and hundreds of small entities pounding out deals (advances) daily.
I am quite confident that more than $50 million is being funded monthly[probably closer to a$100 million] and well over $500 million annually.

I guess litigation funding is no longer the world's best kept secret.

Funding has become a twelve(12) month a year business.

The personal injury world used to be very cyclical. Dead January and February. Cranking in March , April, May and June. Slow in July and August...and crazy from September thru December. Likewise, funding would have it's peeks and valleys.

Now , I find the business is steady, constant ..with no real downturns.

I attribute it to the economy, general ongoing cash-flow needs and the sophistication of both attorneys and clients in how to use funding to their benefit. In turn, we're busy 12 months a year....Tough to even squeeze in a vacation!

Litigation Funding: Power of the Internet.

So what was Monday like in the Northeast; Blizzard, snow drifts, day after Christmas Weekend, schools-businesses closed...you got it! A dead day right ?

Well 5 years ago it would have been a dead day...But with everyone working from home and no " major internet crashes " to speak of , I was able to process 20 funding deals for attorneys and clients today. Just read, download and review....and away we go...

Woops see ya...gotta go shovel now..

Personal injury, Alive, Well and Thriving in 2010.

I try as best as I can to keep my finger on the pulse of the personal injury industry; keeping up on trends, verdicts, new statutes, reading the Law Journal, Verdict Reports , speaking to attorneys , etc. While it is crystal clear that "the day of the quickie settlement" is long gone, there is no doubt in my mind that attorneys are still producing big results for clients and there has been a recent boom in mass tort and pharmaceutical settlements. Medical malpractice cases are still just as difficult to prosecute. But don't despair.

And you know what, at end of the day keep bringing me motor vehicle, hit in the rear cases with fractures and " we'll all be happy as clams"!

What do you think?

Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year to all.

As the year is coming to an end I want to take this opportunity to wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy new year to all.
Thank you for your confidence in me and allowing me to continue to serve your and your clients' funding needs.

Best regards!

Only another week and a half of craziness with the clients!

Yup, the year is drawing down...Lot of trials, lot of settlements, some good cases, some heartbreakers..... but the ever- present clients are still there.
Well, the good news is only 10 more days left in the calendar year to deal with "your favorite clients"
HO. HO, HO.....

Funding Divorce Litigation; May or may not be a good business.

The latest type of litigation getting some media play is "matrimonial litigation funding". While I'm not into yet, I am keeping a watchful eye on it. On the one hand I like it, because let's face it; When you get divorced from a rich guy you know you're getting something substantial..On the other hand you are in essence "bankrolling a treasurehunt"...betting that the attorney and investigator will uncover hidden, shielded assets.

Only time will tell if it's a sound business. My gut; If you choose your situations carefully to fund, it may very well be a lucrative field. Certainly wide open!

Your thoughts?

9 Days Left to Fund; I'm Working Right up to New Years Eve Day....

Just a reminder for you"last minute people who want funding"; The funding world will basically be shut down on Friday December 24th and also on Friday December 31st. So by my calculations that only leaves "9" days left before the New Year for funding.

Plan ahead, don't be left out in the cold!


Happy holidays!

Personal Injury Litigation Operates in a World of It's Own.

It's truly amazing! I'm involved in the personal injury world since 1984(1981 if you count when I started working while in Law School), and not even recession, depression, stock market crashes, world events, bad decisions, new legislation ,Republican's, Tort Reform or"gloom of night" have destroyed or derailed our great profession. People continue to get hurt, big business continues to put profit over safety and plaintiffs' lawyers persevere generation after generation nationwide.
All I can say is I'm happy to be part of this profession and industry.

Now let's go get em!

Don't ever be Nonchalant when getting your retainer signed;It will come back to haunt you.

We all know when "signing up a case" that you must get a retainer agreement signed and you must then promptly file a retainer statement with the Office of Court Administration. To most personal injury attorneys having the client sign the retainer is a "rushed event", giving the attorney the authority to move forward with the case. Well your retainer better be filled out completely, be accurate, should contain necessary legalese and most importantly should be able to withstand scrutiny from a Judge, arbitrator or God forbid the disciplinary committee.(See NYLJ Monday December 13th, 2010).

These are a few of the most common mistakes;
1.Clients name and address not inserted on the top;
2. Attorney has client sign a "sliding scale retainer" instead of a "one third retainer;
3. Wrong form is used when signing up a medical malpractice case;
4. While injured spouse in the hospital, the wife signs;
5. Necessary wording regarding "collection of no-fault benefits "or obtaining 3rd party funding/financing for case costs is ommitted.
I could go on and on. Been there, done it.

Moral of the story; Next time you're in a rush to have the client sign the retainer, stop, take a deep breath and carefully review the document like you would any other legal document. You'll save yourself plenty of headaches down the road!

Year End Attorney Funding can actually turn out to be quite a tax advantage.

Let's say you settled a big case just after Thanksgiving for about $2 million. Your fee plus expenses is going to be be about $700,000. But suppose you don't want the fee for this year; only about(not the full $700,000) $200,000 to take care of year-end obligations. Well you found the right guy.
By funding $200,000 of your fee in December, you can take care of your financial responsibilities and only receive taxable income of $200,000 on your fee. Best of both worlds!

Call me and I'll walk you through it. Happy holidys!

Only Three More Weeks Till Year End; I promise to get all your funding requests done.

The next two weeks in the "personal injury world" are usually the busiest and most pedantic of the year. Every attorney is trying to settle [and collect fees] on as many cases as possible, their staff's are making them themselves crazy worrying about "Christmas Bonuses " and the clients care only about one thing: Getting ahold of enough money to pay their bills and enjoy their holidays.
Having practiced for over 20 years, I am keenly aware of these needs; not to mention that attorneys want to vacation with their families without "losing their best clients".
So be mentally prepared.The calls have started and will continue right up to New Year's Eve when you get that call from a client or secretary while you're hanging out in Miami Beach.
In any event , I'm fully prepared to take care of both your( and your clients' )funding needs...which I can guarantee you will go a long way towards making it a "happy holiday season for all"!
Call or contact me , any day, anytime!

Funding Companies Buying deals from other Funding Companies; It's a common practice today.

I'm sure you've encountered situations where a client of yours funds with"XYZ Funding Company" and the next thing you know you receive a notice about the funding from ABC Funding Company. You and your client are scratching your heads, and saying who the heck is ABC Funding Company ?
More often than not the first funder simply sold your deal to company #2. Totally proper, totally above board. Your deal will remain exactly the same except you will pay ABC Funding when the case settles.
If this happens; don't panic. Just get proof that this happened and confirm the terms of your deal haven't changed for the worse.

THIS HAS BEEN A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT.[Lol]. Good luck!

Attorneys, don't be shy; If you have settled cases I'll put money in your pockets.

It's holiday time, economy is tight and the medicare rules have created havoc. So, don't be shy.

Contact me regarding attorney fee funding. I'll be discreet and can put some fresh cash in your accounts.

Im here if you need me!

Mass Torts, I was doing em before they were even Fashionable.

So I'm admitted to the N.J. Bar in December 1984(wow 26 years) and New York in February 1985 . Next thing I know I'm on a plane to New Dehli, India to meet our liason counsel for the Bhopal , Union Carbide Gas Disaster Litigation. I get there, check into the Hyatt Hotel on Ring Road, and next thing I know I'm having dinner at co-counsel's house in an upscale neighborhood in Dehli.
Two days later after working out details I'm on a puddle jumper plane flying to Bhopal to visit the horrific "accident site" and then to "set up camp " there for a month to sign up thousands of plaintiffs . I'll never forget the rainy , misty night at the airport coming back from Bhopal to Dehli(like out of Casablanca) where dozens of nationally recognized "plaintiff's attorneys" waited for their planes lugging stuffed bags" full of signed retainers from victims and their families. The only difference was that I was only 25 , with less than 2 months of experience under my belt.
Upon my return to New York , I filed the first case on behalf of Shams Uddin in District Court in Manhattan. I would return shortly thereafter to India to sign up more cases.
The rest is history. This was certainly an experience which was invaluable in more ways than one.

"Deliberate Indifference Cases" 8th Amendment; Try one, you may like it.

Have you ever tried a " deliberate indifference " case? A deliberate what you say....Well, don't worry most trial lawyers have not tried one. These cases arise when an entity who "is acting under color of state law" refuses to treat or provide medication for a serious medical need. This 8th amendment violation triggers a cause of action under 42 U.S.C. 1981 et. seq.(Yes attorneys fees and all).
So an individual is arrested for violating an order of protection. When he is arrested his "seizure medication " is confiscated. Over the course of the next three days during nurses rounds and otherwise the plaintiff continues to request his meds[documented requests] but he is continually denied.
So what does the correctional facility do? You guessed it; They put him on a top bunk in his cell....and of course he seizes, fall and breaks his neck. Well I tried this case in N.J. Verdict for the plaintiff plus attorney's fees. Defendants' put us through hell! Including an emergent appeal during preparation of the verdict form by the trial judge.

Draining, but it was a worthwhile endeavor. These can be good cases.

Well, try one....Oh and keep your time sheets.

Good luck.

Another War Story; "When all else fails , go for broke".

So it's 1991, and the cases we accepted when we first started our practice in 1986-1987 were now coming up for trial . We are all painfully aware of the agony you must endure "when you take a case that you never should have". Well, this is exactly what happened to me in Golden Nuggett Hotel and Casino vs."John Doe".
The case was initially accepted as nothing more than a "paying defense case", representing the defendant in a collection case brought by the "Casino " against "John Doe" on his outstanding" casino markers". Well , the case transformed from a mundane collection case into one of the most " important cases I ever tried" . Frankly speaking , what I'm about to tell you cannot be made up.
Ok, here's what happened. Plaintiff became permanently disfigured in an auto accident and received a large settlement . Due to his permanent, persistent pain he was prescribed and was taking Percodan, a "Class Four Narcotic"[highly addictive]. Well, immediately after he settled his case he heads to Atlantic City with a copy of his "settlement check " and bankbook in hand. The Casino must have seen him coming from a mile away; Little 5 foot one guy, disfigured face, accent, addicted to Percodan who was carrying around a paper showing he just received $700,000 in a lawsuit.
So what did the Casino do ? Checked him in, gave him a "royal suite", his own butler, credit and "his very own house doctor" who proceeded to prescribe him 200 Percodan over a two week period. Oh I almost forgot, and they helicoptered him , with a waiting limo, every few days to withdraw money from his bank in N.Y. to make good "on his notes". Testimony was even adduced that they were feeding him drinks(with the Percodan) and as he layed face down on the gambling table, he was told" this is not a hotel , it's a casino.
They never cut him off from gambling despite his "visible narcotic-intoxication " until he lost over $200,000 in two weeks. Oh, by the way they misplaced "all the video from the eye in the sky ". Somehow, no one was surprised.
So the case goes to trial in Federal Court in Camden and yours truly tries the case; Defending the collection case and prosecuting the counterclaim sounding in negligence(we alleged the Casino had a duty similar to a Dram Shop case to stop a visibly intoxicated individual from gambling).
What no one expected was that this case would attract a swarm of Wall Street interest and would turn into a media frenzy...all because of the potential ramifications of what a "dram shop standard" would mean to the "Casino Industry". The Wall Street Journal followed it, The Maury Povic Show and the AP, UPI and New York and Philadelphia media. It was a media circus.
At the conclusion of defendant -counterclaimant's case, plaintiff(defendant on the counterclaim) moved to dismiss the counterclaim. The Court(J. Cohen) responded with a thirty two page written decision denying the motion and establishing a "DUTY" on the Casino to stop a visibly intoxicated patron " from continuing to gamble . This standard became "the law of the land" and later I belive it was statutorily codified. But my work was not done. Still had summations.
Plaintiff summed up and basically said he borrowed the money and he owes it; here's all his IOU's , etc. For me , it was one of those moments I decided " to go for broke " . We had nothing to lose.
I proceeded to give my closing statement lying face down on the counsel table for two hours, imitating the way my client looked while laying face down after ingesting class 4 narcotics and drinking alcohol at the "gaming table". I later learned the Judge was having a fit and I came very close to a major sanction. Summations were watched intently.
Next day a verdict(I wanted to get out of Camden already); Jury found for the casino on the collection case, but on our counterclaim they also found the Casino negligent under the new standard the Court had established. Only problem was they found my client 51% comparatively negligent, reasoning that each day he went back to the tables on his own volition. Wow a bummer!
Well, we "rode the media wave" for a while, received numerous calls from people all over the country who were bilked out of their money, filed an appeal and ultimately settled.
Hey, once in a while "you have to go for broke"!

It's Almost Twenty years, so I have to tell you a "war story".

This morning I suddenly realized that my dad and former partner suddenly and very prematurely passed away 20 years this upcoming March. Wow! Anyway, he was the greatest guy I ever met; animal trial lawyer, sports nut, tennis , hoops, hockey, baseball , skiing, pingpong...you name it. Brooklyn boy all the way.... As I always say" he taught me how to try a case, and I taught him how to settle one". I had the honor to be his partner for 5 years almost directly out of law school.
So time for a funny walk down memory lane. In or about 1987 , I signed up this case against Alan Funt and "Candid Camera " on behalf of a former actress who claims she was screwed out of her residuals because she was not a member of AFTRA. We filed in Federal Court and proceeded with discovery. I was " riding shotgun " the entire time...just holding the client's hand.
Anyway, time came to take Funt's deposition. Problem is Alan Funt lived in California and would not come to N.Y. for fear of being arrested due to a outstanding judgment on matimonial arrears. So we took our traveling show to San Francisco to take his deposition at "the Alan Funt Ranch " in Carmel. Me being the hot shot 26 year old wordly guy I was, made all the travel and hotel arrangements.[lol].
So my dad and I get to the hotel in San Francisco and go to the front desk to check in. The clerk gives us only one room key...I'm thinking that's strange. Anyway we get to the room; all pink, one bed, pink curtains...the works! Yes, yours truly checked us into a gay hotel. Never lived that one down.
The next day we took Funt's deposition, had a blast , made the case[ultimately settled] and enjoyed Carmel, San Francisco and wine country for two days. I will never, ever forget that trip!

Happy Hannukah

To all those who celebrate Hannukah, I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you a joyous and safe holiday.
Happy Hannukah!

Additional Funding request; Don't knock yourself out...just need status update with new meds, etc

One of the easiest things for a funder to do is provide additional funding after the case has already been approved and funded for the first time. Since the case has already been entered, reviewed and approved , the "second time around " is greatly simplified.
If your client seeks additional funding on his case, just email me, fax or call me with "quickie case update"; The file can be looked at asap and a decision made promptly. No new funding application is needed.
So if the situation arises over the holiday, shoot me an email or give me a call....I'll be on your request 1,2, 3.