Chris Brown's lawyer is hoping to save the singer more jail time by agreeing a civil settlement with the alleged victim in the star's assault case, according to a U.S. report.

The embattled R&B star was jailed last week (ends16Mar14) for violating a court order to complete a stint in rehab and will remain behind bars until the end of April (14) when he is due to stand trial on an assault charge.

The case relates to an alleged fight outside a hotel in Washington, D.C. in November (13) and if found guilty, Brown could be sent to prison for up to four years because he will have violated probation stemming from an attack on then-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009.

Brown's lawyer, Mark Geragos, has been in talks with the alleged victim's lawyer to negotiate a civil settlement and drop the criminal case against the 24-year-old singer, according to Tmz.com.

The website's editors allege a deal is close to being finalised.