settlement Archives

A Guide to Statutory California Settlement Offers (Code of Civil Procedure Section 998)

Published on: March 20, 2024 | By Underwood Law Firm, P.C.

underwood-guide-statutory-settlement-offers-300x300 California Code of Civil Procedure section 998 encourages parties involved in legal disputes to settle prior to trial. According to this law, either party can present a written settlement offer to the other party up to ten days before the trial begins. (CCP § 998(b).)

If the plaintiff declines a timely offer from the defendant and subsequently receives a judgment at trial that isn’t more favorable than the defendant’s offer, the plaintiff must “pay the defendant’s costs from the time of the offer.” (CCP § 998(c)(1).) Moreover, in many civil cases, the court may also require the plaintiff to pay a reasonable amount of the defendant’s expert witness expenses incurred after the offer was presented.

Likewise, if the defendant rejects the plaintiff’s timely offer and later gets a judgment at trial that isn’t more advantageous than what the plaintiff offered, the court has the authority to require the defendant to pay the plaintiff a reasonable portion of their costs related to expert witnesses incurred after the offer was made. (CCP § 998(d).)

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Equity as a Settlement Offer (Code of Civil Procedure § 998)

Published on: January 12, 2024 | By Underwood Law Firm, P.C.

underwood-equity-settlement-offer-300x300 California Code of Civil Procedure section 998 incentivizes parties in litigation to settle their disputes before trial. The statute provides that up to ten days before trial, either party may submit a written offer to the other to settle the case under specified terms. (CCP § 998(b).)

If the plaintiff rejects the defendant’s timely offer and, after trial, receives a judgment not more favorable than the one offered by the defendant, then the plaintiff must “pay the defendant’s costs from the time of the offer.” (CCP § 998(c)(1).) In most civil actions, the court also has the discretion to force the plaintiff to cover a “reasonable sum” of the defendant’s costs of using expert witnesses incurred after the offer was made.

When a defendant rejects the plaintiff’s timely offer and later receives a judgment at trial that is not more favorable than what the plaintiff offered, the court has the discretion to force the defendant to cover a “reasonable sum” of the plaintiff’s costs of using expert witnesses incurred after the offer was made. (CCP § 998(d).)

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What is a 1542 Waiver? (Civ. Code section 1542)

Published on: November 15, 2023 | By Underwood Law Firm, P.C.

underwood-what-is-1542-waiver-300x300 Civil Code section 1542 provides, “A general release does not extend to claims that the creditor or releasing party does not know or suspect to exist in his or her favor at the time of executing the release and that, if known by him or her, would have materially affected his or her settlement with the debtor or released party.”

Settlements are a key aspect of litigation. As roughly 95% of all civil suits end with settlements, litigants are bound to come across these agreements, because that’s what settlements ultimately are – agreements. And though each settlement will ultimately differ depending on the circumstances, there are some settlement terms in California that are simply ubiquitous.

These, of course, are agreements related to “release” and “waiver.” These are legal terms that relate to settlement provisions whereby both parties agree to release any claims they may have against each other. Almost every settlement has a section related to a “release.”

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