Our History
Cybersettle grew out of a 1995 encounter between seasoned trial attorneys Charles Brofman and James Burchetta who were representing opposing sides in attempting to settle an insurance claim. Jim, who in this case was representing the plaintiff, had demanded tens of thousands of dollars more than the amount Charlie, the defense counsel, was willing to offer. Both parties were well aware of what amount would eventually settle this case, but neither wanted to compromise his bargaining position – so on to court they went.
In the courthouse, they agreed to secretly write down their bottom line numbers and hand them to a court clerk, who was instructed to give them a “thumbs-up” if they were within a few thousand dollars of each other. If the case didn't settle, the clerk would destroy the papers and never reveal the figures. He flashed a “thumbs-up.” The amounts were within $1,000 of each other. They split the difference and settled the case within minutes.
Cybersettle was incorporated in 1996 and was integrated into a state-of-the art Web-enabled system in 1998.
Through “Automated Dispute Resolution” the legal and insurance industries discovered a new medium of communication. Parties could finally exchange walk-away numbers immediately after case evaluation, not months after the first offer/demand. Cybersettle proved itself as an impartial, non-confrontational platform that helps expedite the settlement process.
In a few short years, Cybersettle had emerged as the world's undisputed market leader in Web facilitated claim settlement and one of the largest dispute resolution companies of any kind. The system has processed over a 100,000 claims and has been directly responsible for facilitating over $1.6 Billion in settlements. Cybersettle clients include insurance carriers, municipalities, third-party administrators and plaintiffs' attorneys nationwide.
In April 2001, Cybersettle was named the Official and Exclusive Online Settlement Tool of The Association of Trial Lawyers of America (ATLA). Today, Cybersettle is a Friend of ATLA and business partner of several state trial bar organizations. In December 2001, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granted the first of several patents (U.S. Patent Nos. 6,330,551, 6,850,918, 6,954,741, and 7,249,114) that protect Cybersettle's automated, online dispute resolution method and system and which name Jim and Charlie as inventors.