Joint Settlement Meeting (JSM)

A Joint Settlement Meeting is a meeting held to discuss a claim, with a view to achieving a settlement. Either side can propose holding a Joint Settlement Meeting once court proceedings have started on a case. It can also be proposed by the court, and in more complex cases, the court is likely to propose one to try and settle a claim without the need to progress to trial. The format of these meetings is that the Claimant and Defendant teams take up separate rooms. Usually the Claimant’s lawyer (and a barrister) will meet the Defendant team in a third ‘neutral’ room to discuss the case, and report back to the Claimant on the discussions and any settlement offers made. Claimants are also able to put forward settlement offers at a Joint Settlement Meetings.