Upon receipt of the claim report, ARAG attempts to reach an amicablesettlement. In the meantime, the insured must not take initiatives, take actions, reachagreements or transactions without first informing ARAG. If it is not possible to reach an agreement or the dispute is such as toexclude this possibility or if there is a conflict of interest between ARAGand the insured or a criminal defense is necessary, the insured has theright to choose a lawyer of his trust from among those who practice in thedistrict of the Court of Appeal seat of the competent judicial offices andmust report the name to ARAG. If the competent Court of Appeal is in a place other than the place ofresidence, the insured can choose a lawyer who practices in the district ofthe Court of Appeal of his residence and must still report his name to ARAG.In this case, ARAG also reimburses any expenses incurred exclusively incourt for a lawyer, if they fall within the limits indicated in the policy. The insured who cannot or does not want to choose a lawyer of his trust, canask ARAG to appoint a lawyer to whom to entrust the protection of hisinterests. The insured must give him the power of attorney and provide himwith all the necessary documentation. ARAG then confirms the assignment tothe lawyer. If it is necessary to appoint a party expert, the appointment mustbe agreedwith ARAG. ARAG reimburses in any case the costs of a lawyer and/or experteven if the insured has appointed several lawyers/experts. If the insured revokes the appointment of the lawyer and appoints anotherlawyer during the same level of judgment, ARAG pays the costs of only onelawyer chosen by the insured. If the revocation takes place at the end of a level of judgment, ARAG willalso reimburse the costs of the lawyer in charge of the new level ofjudgment. If the lawyer in charge waives, ARAG reimburses both the costs of the firstlawyer in charge and the costs of the new lawyer appointed, if the waiver isnot due to an objective assessment of bad faith or gross negligence on the part of the insured.  The insured cannot reach agreements with lawyers and experts on the fees duewithout having the consent of ARAG. Upon settlement of the dispute, ARAG reimburses the insured for the costsincurred within the limits of the Ceiling if these costs cannot be recoveredby the other party.