i am a lawyer, and I could tell stories of times where I had a good deal worked out for my client- advised them to take it, but they wanted their day in court.... and it did not go well for them. Any good lawyer will ave a good idea of the chances you have at winning your case, and the potential outcomes, if they tell you that it is a good deal- they have done the calculations. Clearly in this case, one lawyer knew the value of their case, and another was way off (of some exec had no freaking clue and kept pushing).
Note- it does not mean that I do better or worse in cases i advise settling, I am a public interest lawyer where 50% of my cases are simply unwinnable and i get a settlement that is better than losing on 95% of them, and about a quarter are rejected by my client even after I tell them that they have no legal defense.