What is a general or global release?
If you’re involved in a lawsuit settlement, you’ll be asked to sign a “general” or “global release.” These terms are often used interchangeably, although they have slightly different meanings. In this article, we’ll discuss releases. We’ll explain how they work, what some of the terms are, and what questions you should be asking when asked to agree to one.
Settling a lawsuit
Whether you’ve filed a lawsuit or not, you have a right to “settle” your claims with another party in exchange for a promise. In most cases, the promise is payment of a certain sum of money.
Settling a lawsuit is a contract. That may be a strange way to think about it, but it is. For this reason, a release is the written agreement that confirms the contract. These release contracts are important, and we can start by understanding a few terms.
A “releasor” is the person releasing someone else. The releasor is usually the “victim” of the injury that led to the lawsuit. A “releasee” is the person being released—that is, the “tortfeasor” or other person who (allegedly) hurt someone else through their actions.
Now, let’s get into the different types of releases out there.
Partial release
A partial release only “lets go” of part of a claim, or of a specific claim. In other words, if you are suing your neighbor for hitting you with their car, a partial release might release the insurance company that is covering your neighbor, but doesn’t release your right to submit medical bills to your own PIP coverage. Alternatively, a partial release might release your neighbor for the car accident, but not for any trespassing on your land at a different date.
Partial releases are rare for the simple reason that, if someone is settling a lawsuit, they usually require you to release all claims in exchange for a payment or promise. But in various situations, and especially in complex fights between businesses, partial releases act to relieve pressure in one area and allow the parties to focus on the remaining issues with all of their resources.
General Release
A general release is a total release in most cases. This means that it will release the “releasee” from all harms “from the beginning of the world until now.” (No, really, that’s the typical language that’s often used). A release says that the releasee can’t be sued by the releasor forever for anything that has ever happened.
What it doesn’t release—and what perhaps no one can release—is what happens in the future. A release signed on February 19, 2025 can release everything through that date. But it can’t release someone for what they do to the releasor on February 20. In other words, the law does not allow a releasee to have “immunity” for torts going forward into the future.
But a general release can (and usually does) release someone even for things the releasor doesn’t know about. You release that person even for the damages they caused you that you’re not sure of or aware of yet. If you find out, later, that the releasee did something to your property on February 18, 2025, and then shows up to sign the release the next day, that release may indeed release them from that liability.
Fraud is sometimes an exception to these agreements, but that’s a subject for another day. In short, be sure you know all the relevant facts before you sign a release!
Global Release
A global release is a two-way (or multi-way) release. It usually means that you are releasing someone else and they are releasing you. While a general release is a one-way agreement, the global release says that everyone is walking away from everyone else. The parties are agreeing to peace.
What else might a release contain?
Releases sometimes include confidentiality agreements, although not always. They may include an attorneys’ fees provision that says that either party breaching such release is liable to the other party for their attorneys’ fees spent in the process of prosecuting the breach.
Releases sometimes elect “choice of law” and venue. They say where a future lawsuit about the release will be decided and under which state’s law. Sometimes this may be obvious (if you both live in Pennsylvania, for example). In other cases, these provisions can be key.
Releases often contain a clear statement that the releasee is not admitting fault. This sometimes rankles the releasor, who understandably asks, “How can they agree to pay all this money and claim they didn’t do anything wrong?” But settlements happen for many reasons, and “sorry” is not usually part of the equation.
A release is a contract. It ends a lawsuit or compromises a claim in exchange for a promise. Accordingly, it can contain virtually any provision a typical contract may contain.
Conclusion: Seek an attorney’s advice before you sign an agreement
If you’re being asked to sign a release, it is crucial that you have an attorney’s advice to discuss the case. You should revise the release terms carefully with your counsel and make your decisions with the help of a professional. At Cornerstone Law Firm, our attorneys can help you with these questions. Call us today for a consultation on your release.