Alex Murdaugh stole millions of dollars from his client’s personal injury settlements. While his actions are fairly unprecedented, hearing about them can naturally cause concern. 

How Did Alex Murdaugh Manage to Steal Millions from His Clients? 

Forge Consulting is a company that handles minor settlement trusts and other trusts for people that may need their money protected or set aside for a period of time. Murdaugh opened a bank account in his name, but doing business as “Forge.” The main way he stole money was by tricking his clients into writing checks to “Forge” under the guise that the money was going to Forge Consulting for a trust, when the money was actually going to Murdaugh’s own bank account using the name Forge. 

How Can You Prevent Yourself From Becoming a Victim?

• Ask Questions
• Call for Updates
• Ask to see Documentation
• Understand the Disbursement Sheet

There is nothing wrong with asking questions. Your attorney should be able to explain the disbursement sheet in detail to help you understand where all of the money is going. A personal injury settlement disbursement is usually fairly straightforward:

GROSS SETTLEMENT

minus

ATTORNEY’S FEES

minus

FUNDS PAID OUT

minus 

COSTS INCURRED ____________________________________________________________________________

= NET TO CLIENT

The Gross Settlement is the amount you agreed to settle for or the amount you won at trial. First, the attorney’s fees are taken out. Next, your attorney may have to pay your medical providers or insurance companies for the medical treatment that you received. Attorneys have an ethical duty to hold money that third parties have a right to rather than disbursing it to the client. If you took out a loan on your personal injury case, that would have to be paid back as well. However, I do not recommend taking loans on your case. Finally, your attorney had to spend money to build your case. Medical records, filing fees, expert fees, and process server fees are all common expenses in a personal injury case. The law firm pays for it up front, and it gets reimbursed at the end of the case. If something doesn’t seem right, your attorney should be able to show you documentation from their end to make sense of it. 

If your case requires a trust, which is typical for larger minor settlements, there will be trust documents and a point of contact at the company establishing the trust. If you have concerns, take a look at the documents and contact the company, such as Forge Consulting, for clarification. 

Delays in litigation are inevitable. Often there will be periods of time in a case where there is a lot of action and other periods of time where the parties are trying to line up their schedules or are simply waiting for trial. Do not panic if there is a delay in your case. It is often unavoidable. However, it is never a bad idea to check in to see where your case stands. Regular check-ins can potentially prevent any surprises later. 

Attorneys take an oath to fight for their clients interests, but like other human beings, they can fall astray. Alex Murdaugh was disbarred from practicing law in South Carolina on July 12, 2022. The vast majority of lawyers want great results for their clients and are not out to cheat them in any way. In my experience, the best case results come from lawyers being willing to put personal time and attention into each case. 

Get in Touch with a Spartanburg Personal Injury Attorney Today

At the Law Office of Tyler Rody, we believe personal attention leads to full justice. Contact us online or call 864-381-7969 to speak to attorney Spartanburg personal injury attorney Tyler Rody about your potential case.