The client’s prior firm withdrew after she declined the insurer’s offer. Court House Lawyers took over, filed suit before the deadline, and settled without trial.
Glendale, CA (PRUnderground) November 11th, 2026
Court House Lawyers has secured a $160,000 settlement in a car accident case it took over after the client’s prior firm withdrew, when the insurer’s offer stood at $10,000 and the two-year filing deadline was close. The case settled without going to trial.
The client was driving when another driver turned right into a shopping center driveway and collided with her car. The prior law firm sent a settlement demand on her behalf and the insurer offered $10,000. She turned it down. Her prior firm withdrew from the case after she declined that offer, about a year and a half after the accident. That is when she came to Court House Lawyers.
California generally gives injured people two years to file a personal injury lawsuit (Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1). When Court House Lawyers took over, that deadline was close.
The firm, led by Managing Attorney George Mkrtchyan, started with what had already been done, or not done: 18 months of records, correspondence, and the insurer’s position. When the insurer stayed at their unreasonable offer, the firm filed suit before the deadline. Filing preserved her claim and put the case on a court calendar.
The firm then served a formal settlement offer under Code of Civil Procedure § 998. Under that statute, a party that rejects the offer and does not do better at trial can be ordered to pay certain costs. That shifted the risk of saying no back to the insurer. The case settled for $160,000, 16 times the offer on the table when the firm took over.
“A case does not get less of our attention because the first offer was low,” said Mkrtchyan. “At high-volume firms, a file with a small opening number can end up waiting behind larger ones. I built this firm to work differently and for every client to be a high priority. We actively work a case from the day we take it, and once this one was filed, we litigated and kept the pressure on instead of waiting for the next offer.”
Mkrtchyan founded the firm in 2022 after working at a larger Century City personal injury firm, where he saw files sit untouched and clients unable to reach their own attorney. Court House Lawyers was built around the opposite approach: direct attorney access, constant communication, and cases prepared for trial from the outset rather than positioned for a quick settlement.
“A first offer is a starting point, not a verdict on what a case is worth,” Mkrtchyan said. “When we take over a stalled case, we analyze what has been done, then start from where the file stands and move it forward from there. When a case gets the attention it needs, the result can exceed expectations.”
In a public Google review, the client, Virginia C., wrote that “Grant and George turned my nightmare into a dream,” referring to case manager Grant Abadzhyan and Mkrtchyan. “I was finally at peace, knowing that my lawyers were working hard and taking care of what needed to be done.”
A claim that has stalled with one firm can be taken over by another, which picks up the file where things stand. For Mkrtchyan, who practices as a Glendale car accident attorney, that is how this case began. The firm has published a car accident case study detailing each step from takeover to settlement.
Case Number: 26STCV08502
Superior Court of Los Angeles County
Past results do not guarantee or predict future outcomes. Every matter is evaluated on its own merits. This article is provided for general information and is not legal advice.
About Court House Lawyers:
Court House Lawyers is a Glendale, California law firm founded by George Mkrtchyan, Esq. in 2022. The firm represents clients in personal injury cases, including car accidents, slip and fall, pedestrian, and dog bite claims, and California lemon law cases. Every client works directly with Mkrtchyan from the first consultation through resolution. Mkrtchyan is in good standing with the State Bar of California (#339099) and is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The firm is located at 613 E Glenoaks Blvd., Suite A, Glendale, CA 91207.
