Nuclear verdicts (defined as a verdict of $10 million or more) are a growing concern in both the legal and insurance industries, and for good reason. Recent reports found that the average nuclear verdict has risen to $44 million and that the overall number of nuclear verdict cases rose to a 15-year high in 2023 with 89 lawsuits resulting in a nuclear verdict. While some states are taking legislative action to limit these types of verdicts, the trend of increasing nuclear verdict cases is still expected to continue for the foreseeable future. This is due in part to increasing social distrust directed at corporations and the growing inclusion of Gen Z in juries (who tend to be more pro-plaintiff) as they come of age. To complicate matters even further, 2024 saw the launch and growth of companies utilizing AI to generate highly sophisticated documents, such as demand letters, at higher volume than previously possible.
After receiving a demand letter and identifying the potential for a nuclear verdict, the ability to quickly and accurately gather information becomes the defense’s best chance at reducing the overall size of the demand.
In today’s digital age the sheer volume of available information may seem overwhelming. And it’s incredibly easy for plaintiffs to quickly delete information from their social media profiles and create inconsistencies in the defense’s timeline. But there are numerous services that attorneys can take advantage of to gather information including:
Social e-Profiler: A Social e-Profiler search takes between 60-90 seconds to complete and begins when you submit a search request based on a person’s full name, date of birth (or approximate age range) and at least one of the following: email address, username, phone number or zip code. The more information you can provide, the better your results will be. The result is a high-level report with information on your subject such as their social media accounts, internet searches, address history, education, relatives and more
Social canvassing: This type of canvassing goes beneath surface level results and uses a human touch to verify findings and conduct an in-depth search of your subject’s digital footprint. This service provides the opportunity to gather evidence from a subject’s social media platforms and digital footprint before a plaintiff removes posts or photos.
Medical canvassing: Designed to uncover essential claimant information and medical history. During a medical canvas, medical facilities within a specific geographic area are contacted to identify if a claimant was ever treated at that facility and if so, the dates on which treatment occurred. Medical canvassing can be used to verify information or discover potentially unknown medical history. A detailed canvass can also help you determine if injuries occurred outside the alleged course of the injury or uncover patterns in behavior that may imply a history of making injury claims.
Record Finder: Record Finder uses the information you provide during a medical canvass to search for additional records in locations you may not have been aware of. If additional records are found, you have the option to request them. This can help you uncover information that was not previously disclosed or forgotten about by the plaintiff.
These tools can help defense teams quickly build their counter claims and highlight areas where a plaintiff’s claims may not hold up, thus reducing the risk for a nuclear verdict decision. If you’re interested in learning more about any of these services or other case management tools, go here.
Topics: Ontellus Insight
