in these type of things you can get a lot more money. If you're willing to lawyer up and split the reward with the lawyer and wait years you can make a lot of money in the process if you have a slam dunk case. Its always tempting to take the initial offer and avoid trial and just move on in life. Its interesting to see how these things shake out and who does what. Our family just went through a wrongful death case and the family was definitely split on how to approach it. Our situation revolved around a significant medical error at a large hospital. Some wanted to just not do anything to not drive up peoples costs at hospitals just out of principle and to be forgiving. Others wanted to just take the initial offer. Others wanted to counter the initial offer. Nobody really wanted to lawyer up and go to trial. So we just consulted with a lawyer friend who coached us through negotiations and it was the quickest resolution. But when you see the astronomical numbers some people get after trials it makes you wonder what the right move is. I don't fault anyone either way. It is a chilling process to lose someone and have it be someones fault...and especially when its a hospital where you think they'd be safe. Its definitely not fun reliving it over and over and being confronted with it. I can't imagine still having to deal with it years later in court. I might have been willing but nobody in my family was. I was angrier than they were. And the money...its just bandaid for a gunshot. You quickly realize it doesn't replace what you lost.