Approval of Settlement for Car Accident case Involving a Minor

Maria was in the car with her mother who was driving through an intersection, when their car was struck by another vehicle. Maria suffered several severe injuries that required a significant amount of medical treatment. Attorney FitzGerald was able to obtain settlements from both her mother’s car insurance policy as well as the car insurance policy of the other vehicle in compensation for her injuries. Because Maria was a minor child and the amount of the settlement would be so large, insurance companies generally do not want to release the funds to a parent because they are concerned the parent will spend the funds and the child may bring another claim against them in the future. Therefore, attorney FitzGerald filed a court action to seek approval of the settlement and to have a trustee appointed for the child to manage the funds until the child becomes an adult. The court approved the settlement based upon the presentation of evidence by attorney FitzGerald and the child received her compensation.