In any personal injury case where a victim is attempting to claim compensation from a third-party there will be different stages to the process. Most cases will involve initial "discovery" stages, where the victim's lawyer and the lawyer of the third party will collect information about one another while they attempt to build a case for their client. In many cases the legal teams may be able to reach an agreement at this stage as to how much compensation should be paid to the victim. If the parties agree to this then a "settlement" is reached, and the case will not need to proceed to the civil courts. In most cases an injury claim settlement may be less than would be gained by going to court if the court were to rule in favor of the victim. A settlement does however lead to a much quicker conclusion being reached and may be less stressful and less expensive for both parties.