Settlement statements for PI lawyers in CASEpeer

When a case settles, someone builds the closing statement by hand: the contingency fee, case costs, every medical lien after reductions and the client's net. A one-third (33⅓%) fee on a $30,000£22,556€26,842A$43,308C$42,406 settlement is $10,000£7,519€8,947A$14,436C$14,135; take out $1,400£1,053€1,253A$2,021C$1,979 of case costs and $8,200£6,165€7,337A$11,838C$11,591 of reduced liens and the client nets $10,400£7,820€9,305A$15,014C$14,701. If a paralegal builds and rechecks 10 of these a month at 90 minutes each, that's 15 hours, and one wrong lien figure means a corrected statement and an awkward call.

CASEpeer's Basic plan includes medical treatment tracking, lien tracking and a settlement calculator, so the bills and liens logged during the case are already on file when it settles. The paralegal enters the gross settlement and the fee percentage from the signed contingency fee agreement, updates each lien from its final payoff letter, and uses the calculator to work out the split for the firm's closing statement. The attorney checks every figure against the fee agreement and the payoff letters and goes through the statement with the client before anything is signed or paid out. State bar rules modeled on ABA Model Rule 1.5(c) require a written statement at the end of a contingency matter showing the outcome, the amount paid to the client and how it was worked out.

A three-attorney personal injury firm in Atlanta settles about 10 cases a month, mostly car crashes between $20,000£15,038€17,895A$28,872C$28,271 and $60,000£45,113€53,684A$86,617C$84,812. Its two paralegals move from a spreadsheet to CASEpeer Basic, log treatment and liens as they arrive, and build each closing statement from the settlement calculator.

About $290£218€259A$419C$410 a month of paralegal time, against $180£135€161A$260C$254 for two Basic seats. Saving 50 minutes on each of 10 statements is 500 minutes, about 8.3 hours, at an assumed $35£26€31A$51C$49 an hour. Basic is $90£68€81A$130C$127 per user a month, so $270£203€242A$390C$382 if the reviewing attorney also logs in; if the firm already runs on CASEpeer there is no extra cost. Fewer corrected statements are not counted.

1. 1Enter every medical bill, payment and lien in CASEpeer as it arrives during the case, not in a rush at settlement.
2. 2Rebuild the firm's closing statement layout around the calculator's figures, with the fee percentage and the order of deductions taken from the signed contingency fee agreement.
3. 3Before the statement is built, get a written final payoff for each lien, including any Medicare or health plan lien, and enter the reduced figure.
4. 4Have the attorney check the fee, costs, liens and net against the agreement and the payoff letters, then go through the statement with the client and get it signed as your state's rules require.
5. 5Pay out of the trust account only after the client has signed and the settlement funds have cleared.

• Fee agreements differ: some step up from 33⅓% to 40% once a lawsuit is filed, and some take the fee before costs are deducted and some after. The calculator is only right if it is set from the client's actual agreement.
• A lien taken from an old itemized bill instead of the final payoff letter gives the client a wrong net figure. Medicare conditional payment amounts in particular can change until the final demand.
• CASEpeer is priced per user: each case manager who logs in adds $90£68€81A$130C$127 a month on Basic, and texting and the AI writing assistant need Pro at $130£98€116A$188C$184.
• Some states set a specific form for contingency closing statements or require both the client's and the attorney's signature. Check your state bar's rule before reusing a template.