How the Settlement Desk works
The Settlement Desk is not mediation or arbitration. No one carries offers between rooms and no one decides the case. It is a structured way for both sides to learn, privately, whether a settlement figure exists that each would accept. Counsel for each party directs every step, and the whole process usually takes about six weeks.
The five steps
- 01Days 1–3 · no charge
Screening
Either party, or its counsel, describes the dispute in confidence. We tell you whether the case is suited to an early number. Cases that need a precedent, an injunction or a public verdict are turned away at this stage, at no charge.
- 02Weeks 1–3
Limited document exchange
Counsel for each side lists the few documents that actually determine value. They are exchanged under a protective order. There are no interrogatories and no motion practice.
- 03Weeks 3–5
Independent valuation
Both parties receive the same valuation range, built from comparable case outcomes in the jurisdiction where the case is pending. Each side sees exactly what the other sees.
- 04Weeks 3–5
Cost of continuing
Each side receives its own estimate of the fees, time and risk involved in litigating to judgment. This one is not shared with the other side.
- 05Week 6
Blind submission
Each side privately submits the figure it would accept. If the two figures overlap, the case settles at the midpoint and counsel draft the agreement. If they do not overlap, both figures are deleted and neither side ever sees the other’s number.
Why settling early can be worth more
Litigation costs come out of the same pool both sides are arguing over. Every dollar spent on discovery, experts and motions reduces what the plaintiff nets and adds to what the defendant pays.
The earlier the parties agree, the less of the amount in dispute has been spent getting there. The cost-of-continuing estimate in step 4 puts figures on this for your particular case.
Who uses it
Plaintiff counsel
Resolve contingency matters sooner without discounting them. If there is no deal, the other side never learns your number.
Defense counsel
Limit exposure before discovery costs build up. There is no public filing and no admission of liability.
In-house teams and insurers
Replace an open-ended litigation reserve with a process of about six weeks. The worst case is known in advance: no deal, and nothing disclosed.
Questions counsel ask
- Does suggesting Wireroom signal weakness?
- No. Nothing is disclosed to the other side unless both figures overlap, so proposing the process says nothing about what you would accept.
- How is this different from mediation?
- There is no mediator, and no positions or offers are exchanged. Each side submits a single figure, privately.
- Is anything binding?
- Only the settlement agreement, which your own lawyers draft and sign.
- What does it cost?
- Screening is free. A percentage fee applies only if the case settles.
- What if the case needs a ruling or an injunction?
- We will tell you at screening that it is not a good fit, at no charge.