Practice Area: Personal Injury, Criminal Defense, DMV/Traffic

A client called the office explaining that he was in an accident and the other driver had died from the collision. He had another attorney handling his criminal charges but he received a letter from DMV, and one from a law firm seeking monetary relief. This client came into the office and showed us the documentation he received. The letter from DMV was a fail to deposit security letter, that if he did not deposit $27,000 to DMV then his license would be suspended. He also received a letter from a collection law firm stating that he owed them over $220,000. Our client was distraught, a father of three working a minimum wage job at a local car wash. He could not cover the $27,000 let alone the $220,000. 

Our team sat down and discussed goals of what we needed to accomplish with our representation. As stated above, our client needed his job. He was supporting three children and could not afford to lose his license and not be able to drive. However, the amounts he was provided just were not going to work for him. We discussed his finances, and paying $27,000 up front to DMV was not an option. So we decided the best avenue to get him reinstated was to get him a settlement agreement with the collection firm looking to recover from the accident. In the DMV suspension letter, they state that a way to avoid or rescind suspension is to enter into a settlement agreement with the persons who were injured in the accident. 

Immediately after the client hired our firm, we contacted the collection law firm, and we began discussing what needed to be done on our end. I was informed that the $228,000 was the number they had that our client owed because of the accident, as well as the medical bills and the loss of life. I laid out the case for our client, letting the firm know of his financial situation. We laid out that getting them paid on all that money was unlikely, but our client is willing to make payments. Our client took responsibility and wanted to make it right. 

We were ultimately able to negotiate that opposing firm to lower their cost by $200,000. We were able to get our client a payment plan within his budget, which he began to pay on immediately. Our client worked diligently to get us all the documentation we needed to lock in the deal, and thus his license was never actually suspended. Our client was able to keep his privileges and continue supporting his family. 

Definition(s) for the Case

Failure to Deposit Security

What it is: A cause for license suspension as a result of a collision and a lack of liability insurance. To remove the suspension, the party must set up a payment plan with the insurance provider of the other party from the accident OR show the DMV that a sufficient amount of time has passed since the accident and no damages suits have been filed.

Why it matters: A party may lose their license.

In this case: Our client faced insurmountable fines or a loss of license, neither of which would be tenable in his life situation.

SeiferFlatow works for each and every client to secure the best possible outcome. We are ready, willing, and prepared to take a case to trial whenever necessary, however we also realize the value of coming to resolution before trial when possible and in the best interest of our client.

If you are a business or individual needing representation for non-compete issues, breach of contract, or other employee or contractual concerns, we are ready to help.