Pre-Settlement Funding for Wrongful Conviction Cases
Getting locked up for a crime you did not commit destroys lives. The National Registry of Exonerations reports that over 3,200 people have been wrongfully convicted since 1989 in the United States. Many spent years behind bars before their cases were overturned.
After release, most exonerees cannot find work. Employers see the criminal record and end the interview, even after you show them the exoneration papers. Bills pile up fast. Your attorney needs money for expert witnesses and depositions, sometimes $15,000 or more before the case even gets to trial.
Civil lawsuits against police departments or prosecutors typically take 2 to 5 years to settle. That is a long time to wait when you have no income and nowhere to live.
Since 2018, America Lawsuit Loans has provided cash advances against pending wrongful imprisonment claims. We purchase a portion of your future settlement, which means you get money now while your attorney builds your case. Our underwriters have reviewed over 140 wrongful conviction cases across 23 states, and we understand the specific obstacles these claims face in court.
How Pre-Settlement Funding Helps Exonerees
Most wrongful imprisonment lawsuits settle between $50,000 and $1 million. The amount depends on how many years you were incarcerated, whether you can document lost wages, and what kind of misconduct caused the conviction. Cases involving DNA exoneration or prosecutorial misconduct that gets media attention tend to settle higher.
But these cases move slowly. Government defendants have taxpayer-funded legal teams and no financial pressure to settle quickly. They file motion after motion, drag out discovery for months, and appeal every ruling that goes against them.
Meanwhile, you need money right now. Our lawsuit loans bridge that gap. We fund cases from $500 to $100,000, depending on the strength of your claim and the expected settlement amount.
Here is what our clients use the money for: rent and basic living expenses while they rebuild their lives, medical treatment for health problems that developed in prison, attorney fees for expert witnesses who can testify about false confessions or eyewitness misidentification, and transportation to court hearings when they live hours away from the courthouse.
This is non-recourse funding. If you lose your case, you owe us nothing. You keep the money we advanced. That protects you from taking on debt you cannot repay.
Real-World Challenges We See Every Day
By Johnny Cavalli, Senior Legal Funding Underwriter
I have been reviewing wrongful conviction cases since 2008. These are some of the toughest approvals we do because the cases are unpredictable and the damages are hard to calculate. But when we can fund them, the impact is immediate.
Employment barriers are the biggest problem. Background checks still show arrest records even after exoneration. The databases do not update fast enough. I had a client in Ohio who was exonerated in 2019 but could not rent an apartment until 2021 because landlords kept seeing his old conviction when they ran his name. He was living in his car while his lawsuit was pending. We funded $8,500 so he could put down a deposit and pay first and last month rent.
Medical needs come up in almost every case. Prisons do not provide adequate healthcare. Dental work gets delayed for years. Mental health treatment is basically nonexistent. One client needed surgery for a hernia that developed while he was incarcerated. The prison doctor told him it was not serious enough to treat. After his release, he could barely walk. He needed the surgery before he could work, but he had no health insurance and no money. We advanced him $12,000 to cover the procedure.
Family reconnection costs money that most exonerees do not have. Some lost custody of their children during incarceration. Getting custody back requires family court filings, sometimes supervised visitation fees, and proof of stable housing. Others got divorced and owe years of back child support. The court will not modify those orders until you can prove you were wrongfully convicted, which requires hiring an attorney just for the family law side.
Not every case qualifies. We cannot approve applications if the liable party has no insurance or assets. Some small county jails are self-insured with caps that make collection unlikely. We also turn down cases where the attorney believes the settlement will be under $15,000, because our minimum advance is typically $500 and the math does not work for anyone.
What Makes Wrongful Imprisonment Cases Different
These lawsuits fall under Section 1983 of the U.S. Code, which allows people to sue government officials for civil rights violations. They are harder to win than typical personal injury cases because of qualified immunity protections for police and prosecutors.
Qualified immunity means government employees cannot be sued for actions taken in their official capacity unless they violated a “clearly established” constitutional right. Courts interpret this narrowly. Even if a prosecutor hid evidence that could have proven your innocence, you might not win if no prior case in your jurisdiction established that exact type of misconduct as a constitutional violation.
Your case becomes stronger with certain types of evidence. DNA testing that excluded you as the perpetrator is the gold standard. Recanted testimony from witnesses or jailhouse informants helps, especially if you can prove they were coerced or given benefits in exchange for their testimony. Findings from appeals courts that show prosecutor misconduct or ineffective assistance of counsel strengthen your claim significantly. Proof that exculpatory evidence was hidden from your defense attorney is powerful, but you need documentation, not just your attorney’s word.
We review these factors before approving funding. Our underwriters work directly with your attorney to understand the liability issues and potential recovery amount. We request copies of the complaint, any filed motions, and court rulings on preliminary matters. Most attorneys send these documents within a few hours by email or through their case management system. The review process usually takes 4 to 8 hours, not days.
Approval rates for wrongful imprisonment cases are lower than car accident cases. Roughly 35% of applications get approved. Government defendants fight harder, and settlements are less predictable. But when liability is clear and damages are well-documented, these cases can result in substantial compensation.
How to Apply for Wrongful Imprisonment Lawsuit Funding
Step 1: Fill out the form at the top of this page or call us at (888) 335-3537. We need your name, your attorney’s contact information, and the approximate amount you need.
Step 2: We contact your lawyer to request case documents. Most attorneys send these within 2 to 3 hours by email. We need the complaint, any filed motions, and a brief summary of the facts that led to your wrongful conviction.
Step 3: Our underwriting team reviews your case. We look at the strength of evidence, the defendant’s ability to pay, and comparable settlement amounts in your jurisdiction. This takes between 4 and 8 hours, sometimes longer if we need clarification from your attorney.
Step 4: If approved, we send you a contract explaining the funding terms. Read it carefully. Ask questions. Your attorney should review it as well. We will explain exactly how much you will owe if your case settles and what happens if you lose.
Step 5: Once you sign, we wire money directly to your bank account. Most clients receive funds within 24 hours of approval.
We do not check credit scores. Your credit history does not matter to us. We only care about your case strength and the expected settlement value. Even if you have filed bankruptcy or have judgments against you, you can still qualify if your wrongful imprisonment claim is strong enough.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to be fully exonerated to apply?
No, but it makes approval much easier. We fund cases where you are still appealing a conviction, as long as you have already retained a civil rights attorney and filed a separate civil lawsuit seeking monetary damages. The criminal appeal and the civil claim are two different legal processes. Most of our pre-exoneration funding goes to cases with new DNA evidence, recanted witness testimony, or newly discovered proof of prosecutorial misconduct. If your criminal case is still pending without strong new evidence, we probably cannot approve funding yet.
Can I get funding if I am currently appealing a conviction?
Yes, but approval is harder and less common. We need your attorney to demonstrate a viable path to both overturning the conviction and obtaining monetary compensation afterward. The civil lawsuit must be filed before we can fund. We cannot advance money based only on a pending criminal appeal, because there is no guarantee you will file a civil claim even if you win the appeal.
What does this funding cost?
Rates range from 2.9% to 4.5% per month, depending on case complexity, expected timeline to settlement, and the strength of liability evidence. These rates may vary by jurisdiction based on state regulations governing litigation funding. If your case settles in 6 months, a $10,000 advance would cost between $1,740 and $2,700 in fees. You only pay if you win or settle. This is not a consumer loan. We are purchasing a portion of your lawsuit claim, which is why rates are structured differently than traditional lending products.
How much can I borrow against my case?
We typically advance 8% to 12% of the estimated settlement value, though this varies based on case risk and the defendant’s ability to pay. For a case expected to settle for $200,000, you could receive $16,000 to $24,000. Our maximum advance is $100,000, reserved for exceptionally strong cases with clear liability and well-documented damages. Your attorney’s assessment of settlement value is the primary factor we consider.
What if the defendant has no money?
We cannot fund cases where the liable party is judgment-proof. This happens with small police departments or uninsured county facilities that have limited assets and no liability insurance coverage. Your attorney should verify that the defendant has sufficient insurance or assets before you apply. If the defendant is a large city or state agency, this is usually not a problem. Smaller municipalities can be harder to collect from, and we evaluate each situation individually.
Why Wrongful Conviction Cases Take Years to Settle
Government defendants rarely settle quickly, even when liability seems obvious. They have taxpayer-funded legal teams and face political pressure to avoid large payouts. Every dollar they pay you comes from the city budget or county treasury, which makes elected officials nervous.
Expect these obstacles: multiple rounds of motions to dismiss based on qualified immunity, demands for extensive discovery including depositions of police officers and prosecutors, appeals of unfavorable rulings at every stage of the case, and low initial settlement offers designed to test whether you are desperate enough to accept.
The average wrongful imprisonment case that goes to trial takes 3 to 5 years from filing to resolution. Cases that settle usually resolve in 18 to 30 months, but I have seen some drag out longer. During this entire time, you still need to pay bills and support yourself or your family.
That is where lawsuit funding becomes critical. It bridges the financial gap between filing your claim and receiving compensation. Without it, many plaintiffs accept settlement offers far below what their case is worth because they cannot afford to wait.
I remember one case where the city offered $75,000 to settle a claim our underwriters valued at $400,000 to $500,000. The plaintiff had been locked up for 11 years based on a coerced confession. DNA evidence later proved he was not at the crime scene. The city made the low offer knowing he was unemployed and living with relatives. We funded $25,000 so he could reject the offer and wait. The case eventually settled for $385,000.
Get the Money You Need While Your Attorney Builds Your Case
Wrongful imprisonment steals years from your life. You deserve full compensation for lost wages, emotional suffering, damage to your reputation, and the relationships you lost while you were incarcerated.
But strong cases require time. Your attorney needs to gather evidence, depose witnesses, hire expert witnesses who can explain why the original conviction was flawed, and prepare for the possibility of trial. Rushing this process usually results in lower settlement offers.
Our pre-settlement loans let you survive financially while your legal team does this work properly. Apply now using the form at the top of this page, or call us at (888) 335-3537 to speak with a funding specialist who has reviewed hundreds of wrongful conviction cases.
We will give you straight answers about your approval odds and the funding amount we can offer. You pay nothing unless you win. If your case loses, you keep the money we advanced. That is our commitment to every client fighting for justice after wrongful imprisonment.
Content reviewed by Johnny Cavalli, Senior Underwriter at America Lawsuit Loans. Johnny has evaluated over 200 wrongful imprisonment cases and specializes in Section 1983 civil rights funding. He works directly with plaintiff attorneys to assess case strength and potential settlement values for pre-settlement advances.
