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Note: This blog was provided by A Case for Women’s friend, Milestone. Milestone is like us in many ways – they care deeply about helping women. But Milestone is also very different than us. They offer a very special service that helps women protect the money they receive after going through the legal process. It does not matter if your lawsuit involved sexual assault, medical injuries or birth problems – if you received a settlement (and we hope you did), it is important to know what to do with the money.
We trust Milestone and hope you will too.
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According to Pew Research Center, women are more likely than men to be the primary financial decision-makers in their households, a responsibility that extends to navigating the complexities of legal settlements. Yet the legal world is not set up to support these financial decision makers when it comes time for settlement monies to be paid out.
Traditionally, personal injury settlements have involved a one-size-fits-all approach: a paper check mailed via snail mail to a claimant’s physical address. This works for some, but what about those who are unbanked? Or those unable to wait the literal months it can take to get a physical check in hand? Or those who would simply prefer to have the money deposited directly into their account for whatever valid reason they may have?
The current status quo makes it difficult for claimants to financially plan with their settlement money, an issue that disproportionately affects women given their status as primary financial decision-makers in American households.
The good news is that solutions to this issue are beginning to become available in the age of claimant-centered efficiency that we find ourselves in. One such solution is Pathway®, an innovative post-settlement platform that digitizes everything from signing your closing agreement all the way through to getting paid.
Pathway enables claimants to get their money through MasterCard, PayPal, Zelle, or Direct Deposit, empowering you to choose the payment option that works best for you. Additionally, Pathway’s digital interface allows you to track your status easily and securely, adding a layer of transparency and control never-before seen.
After an assumingly long litigation process where you may have had to relive trauma or relinquish control to the legal system, the last thing you need is another drawn out step in the process that consists of more hoops to jump through.
Flexible, digital payment options should be the standard. To one claimant this might mean no more wasting hours or days wondering where their funds are, repeatedly calling their law firm for status updates. Maybe to someone else it means the ability to pay their rent on time. To another, it might mean swift closure to what has been an extremely painful life chapter. And to yet another, it could mean contributing to reducing the legal industry’s paper consumption levels.
And if all of that wasn’t advantageous enough, solutions like Pathway also incorporate education around settlement planning into the process, helping to increase your financial literacy (at no cost to you!) and encourage informed financial decision-making for you, your family, and your situation.
Digital is on track to be the new industry standard of claimant care. If you’re currently in the midst of a litigation, ask your attorney about your payment options. The sooner your attorney’s firm engages with a digital solution like Pathway, the more opportunities there will be for you to be empowered in the realm of financial decision-making.
Milestone is a settlement solutions firm on mission to bring efficiency, transparency, and education to law firms and their clients after settlement.
