Nov. 12, 2025
The December dilemma: Why year-end settlements make strategic sense
Year-end settlements, driven by psychological, financial, and tax incentives, allow litigants and attorneys to avoid the holiday and trial-time stress while strategically resolving cases.
Chad W. Firetag
Judge (ret.)
Hon. Chad W. Firetag (Ret.) is a mediator, arbitrator, referee and neutral evaluator with JAMS. He brings more than two decades of trial and judicial experience from his tenure on the Riverside County Superior Court, where he led the civil and appellate divisions and handled a variety of complex disputes.
Consider the following dilemma: Sometime around February of any given year, an associate appears at a hearing to choose a trial date. The judge informs counsel that trial dates are available in December, and because judges set their cases when it is convenient for them, the matter is calendared on a date when eggnog and yuletide cheer are in season.
When the lead attorney learns of the December trial dat...
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