A soon-to-be-released academic study in the Journal of Empirical Studies concludes that plaintiffs are better off cutting their losses and settling rather than taking a case before a jury. The study found that most plaintiffs who passed up a settlement and proceeded to trial ended up getting less money than originally offered. That decision typically cost the plaintiff about $43,000, the study concludes.

Defendants, on the other time, made a mistake by proceeding trial only about a quarter of the time. The survey found that an attorney's experience level played no role in the success or failure in the courtroom. Dallas attorney Mike Richardson, a partner at the trial law firm Rose•Walker, says the study should have taken actual courtroom experience into consideration _ not the number of years on the job. "If you've tried plenty of cases, you can usually do a pretty good job of handicapping the outcome," Richardson says. "The study is absolutely right in saying an attorney's years of experience don't matter, but real trial experience does." To interview Mr. Richardson about his opinion of the study, contact Mark Annick at 800-559-4534 or mark@androvett.com.