"My wife settled a life-changing personal injury claim after 4 years, because the repeated medical consultations, court appearances and repeatedly going back over the accident was effectively putting her life on hold."
And, of course, even if you are determined to hold the offender to account, when the offender has deep pockets and REALLY doesn't want the information to come out in court, on the record, they will keep increasing the settlement amount until you go away. I hope, after those 4 years of added trauma, your wife got a much bigger settlement than she was likely offered at the start of the process.