What Is The Timeline For a Personal Injury Case?
Automobile accidents take a toll not only on your physicality, but also your mental fortitude. Anxiety can build as your vehicle and body take time to recover. All the while, bills are due. It can be a stressful experience. During this time, your personal injury lawsuit is moving forward. It is important to ask however, how long will the lawsuit take? The duration of a personal injury claim depends on many factors and variables. Overall, cases are settled within a year or two, but your lawsuit may vary.
What Are the Steps Taken in a Personal Injury Lawsuit?
All personal injury lawsuits follow the same steps from beginning to end. Each part has an important aspect, and a general timeline that is followed. Your lawyer should explain to you each step along the way and give updates when applicable. The steps for a personal injury lawsuit include:
Finding and hiring an attorney: Once you have found an attorney and explained your situation, they will begin the necessary paperwork and contact the other party to inform them that you intend to file a claim.
Discovery: Your attorney will investigate the accident, gather information such as the police report and any medical records, exchange documents with the defense, and wait to ensure your physical and mental states are progressing. The investigation and document gathering takes time, and can last from six months to over a year.
Settlement negotiations: Any time after the case begins, both sides may meet for negotiation, mediation, or arbitration to attempt to settle the case out of court. It may take several meetings, but most cases are settled in this manner, ending the claim.
Trial: The lawsuit will be filed if it hasn’t been already, and the case goes to trial, provided that no settlement has been reached. The trial will require drafting of motions, expert witnesses, and jury selection. A court case may take up to two years from starting to conclusion.
Trial Verdict: The judge or jury will hand down a verdict in the case. An appeal is possible, which could extend the timeline by forcing a new trial.
Post trial Collection: After the judgment is made, the damages must be collected from the defendant. This could be a lump sum or may be stretched out into payments.
What Factors Can Impact the Length of the Legal Process?
There are many variables that differentiate personal injury cases from each other, and these variables will shorten or lengthen the timeline. Some of these mitigating circumstances include:
The seriousness of your injuries
The amount of damages you are seeking
The complexity of your case
The desire of the defendant to settle
The timeline for court cases in your jurisdiction
Your patience level
Most personal injury cases end with negotiations, and few actually require going to trial. In fact, up to 97% of personal injury cases are completed prior to going to trial.You lawyer should explain to you how your case is going and update of any important information
Why is Hiring the Right Personal Injury Lawyer Important?
Being in an automobile accident is stressful. You do not have to be alone however. Experienced lawyers can focus on the legal side of the accident, which allows you to focus on what is important, recovering. Rushing forward with your case can cause problems down the line. After all, if you find out later that your injuries are more severe and require more medical treatment, you cannot go back and ask the defendant for more money. If you have further questions about your specific case, contact our helpful attorneys today to schedule a consultation: 908-280-4717.
