Settlement Department Team Lead

The Ward Law Group, PL•Miami Lakes, FL

21h•Onsite

About The Position

The Ward Law Group is seeking a Settlement Department Manager to lead the team responsible for valuing, negotiating, and resolving its pre-suit personal injury inventory. This is a management role without an individual file pipeline; success is measured by negotiator performance and department-wide results. The firm uses documented workflows, defined case stages, case-level data, and performance standards calibrated to case characteristics rather than uniform monthly quotas. The manager will lead and develop settlement negotiators and support staff, manage performance using operational and case-outcome metrics, oversee valuation and negotiation strategy, maintain and improve department processes, and protect the client relationship throughout settlement. The role includes responsibility for hiring, onboarding, training, coaching, performance management, department reporting, workflow improvements, and escalated negotiations and client concerns. The manager will partner with medical management, intake, case management, litigation, Human Resources, and firm leadership. The position is in-office Monday through Friday. Fluency in English and Spanish is essential, as is working knowledge of Florida personal injury practice. Success is measured by improved settlement value and velocity without reduced net client recovery, consistent valuation, effective management of aged inventory, and development and retention of team members.

Requirements

Managed at least five people in past roles, as direct or indirect reports.
Three to five years of progressive personal injury experience, including substantial pre-suit settlement and negotiation experience.
At least three years directly managing a settlement, pre-litigation, or case management team; experience managing assistants or serving only as a senior individual contributor does not meet this requirement.
Demonstrated responsibility for other people’s results.
Demonstrated experience setting performance standards, tracking performance, holding people accountable, coaching underperformers, and making decisions when performance does not meet expectations.
Strong command of case valuation, including medical specials, treatment trajectory, procedure-level valuation, comparative fault, coverage layers, and venue-specific analysis.
Fluent written and spoken English and Spanish.
Working knowledge of Florida personal injury practice, including PIP, the statutory pre-suit framework, and applicable damages and fee rules.
Comfort using a case management system, reports, and spreadsheets, including the ability to build or interpret a pipeline report and draw appropriate conclusions.
Ability to work in-office Monday through Friday.

Nice To Haves

Experience on both the plaintiff and defense side, or exposure to both litigation and pre-suit work.
Track record of building department infrastructure, such as SOPs, scorecards, training programs, and stage definitions.
Experience managing a department through substantial growth in headcount or case volume.
Deep medical management and lien negotiation experience, including letters of protection and health insurance and government liens.
Formal management training or a documented history of developing people who were later promoted.

Responsibilities

Directly manage settlement negotiators and support staff, including hiring, onboarding, training, and performance management.
Conduct structured one-on-ones, file reviews, and coaching sessions, documenting follow-up and creating individual development plans.
Address performance and conduct issues promptly in partnership with Human Resources, including documented corrective action when appropriate.
Own department KPIs, including settlement volume, average settlement value, policy-limits capture rate, net client recovery, time in each pre-suit stage, aged-file exposure, demand turnaround, and negotiator productivity.
Set individual and team performance standards that account for jurisdiction, case type, treatment posture, coverage, and liability profile.
Review pipeline and performance data weekly, diagnose changes, and take appropriate action.
Report department performance, forecasts, and risks to firm leadership with analysis.
Manage aged and stalled inventory and develop plans to resolve files on their merits.
Serve as the final internal authority on case valuation and settlement strategy within approval limits, escalating matters as appropriate.
Review and approve demand packages, settlement authority requests, and counteroffers for quality, accuracy, and strategy.
Apply and teach valuation methodology across injury types and procedures, including soft-tissue injuries, injections, surgical intervention, and traumatic brain injury.
Identify potential bad-faith setups, policy-limits opportunities, UM/UIM exposure, and coverage issues, and coordinate strategy with firm leadership.
Personally handle or co-handle the department’s highest-exposure and most sensitive negotiations.
Maintain and improve standard operating procedures, checklists, templates, and case-stage definitions.
Partner with medical management on treatment monitoring, records and billing completeness, reductions, and lien resolution.
Coordinate with intake, case management, and litigation to ensure clean handoffs and share feedback about case quality.
Ensure resolutions are documented and compliant, client-approved, and followed by accurate, timely disbursement.
Identify and implement technology, reporting, and workflow improvements, measure results, and retain effective changes.
Set client-counseling standards for settlement, including clear expectations, realistic valuation conversations, and no surprises at disbursement.
Ensure client communications are in clients’ preferred languages and meet expectations for responsiveness and cultural fluency.
Personally resolve escalated client concerns and use them to identify process improvements.

Benefits

Competitive salary commensurate with experience
Professional development and continuing education support
Collaborative, growth-oriented team environment
Medical, dental, and vision plans
Hospital plans
401(k) retirement plan with pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions
Company-paid basic life and AD&D insurance, plus voluntary life and AD&D for employees and dependents
Company-paid short- and long-term disability
Health and Dependent Care Spending Accounts (HSA and DCFSA)
Employee Assistance Program
Tuition assistance
Paid time off and paid holidays