If you have been injured due to someone else’s negligence, whether it be as a result of a car accident, slip and fall, dog bite, etc., you may be entitled to compensation through a personal injury lawsuit. However, a personal injury lawsuit can be a very long, strenuous process, especially when you are dealing with physical pain, emotional distress, and financial burden. Understanding the steps of a personal injury lawsuit can help to eliminate some of the uncertainty that you may have and smooth out the process as a whole. In this blog, we will be explaining the steps of a personal injury lawsuit, how each step brings you closer to a resolution, and the expected time frame.
Accident Occurs, Medical Treatment Begins
The first step of a personal injury lawsuit is obviously the occurrence of the accident and the injuries that come as a result of the responsible party’s negligence.
The most important priority after the accident is your safety and well-being. Immediately after the accident, your first priority should be to seek medical attention for your injuries, whether that means being rushed to the emergency room directly following the accident, or seeing your family doctor the next day.
Consultation with Attorney
After addressing your immediate medical needs, your next step should be to consult with an injury attorney that specializes in personal injury, such as the attorneys at Femminineo Law, to protect your rights and ensure the maximum amount of compensation for you and your family.
Most injury attorneys, including the team at Femminineo Law, will offer free consultations in which you can meet with the attorney, share the facts of your injury, how it happened, who was involved, and the extent of your treatment so far. After explaining the details of your accident, the attorney should be able to tell you whether or not you have a case that is worth pursuing.
Hiring a good personal injury attorney is a crucial step in your case because attorneys have experience in the legal system, know how to deal with insurance companies, and understand how to get the most compensation possible for their clients.
Investigation and Evidence Collection
Once the attorney is hired, they will begin an in-depth investigation to gather evidence needed to prove liability, establish the extent of the damages (injuries, etc.), and evaluate the insurance coverage for both parties.
Based on the damages caused by the accident, this step may take anywhere from six months to a year from the date of the accident as it is not uncommon for an attorney to wait an extended period of time before filing the lawsuit in order to get the most accurate understanding of the injuries/medical treatment as possible. This, in turn, may improve the value of the case.
Filing a Claim with the Insurance Company
Before a lawsuit is officially filed in court, most personal injury claims go through a pre-litigation phase in which the attorney attempts to resolve the case directly with the at-fault party’s insurance company by sending them what most people call a “demand package”. A demand package essentially summarizes the incident, medical treatment, medical bills, and any other damages related to the accident as well as a demand letter requesting compensation.
On the rare occasion that the insurance company of the at-fault driver accepts or negotiates a full settlement, your case is resolved and you will receive the compensation you deserve.
If the insurance company isn’t willing to provide the proper compensation for your injury, which is almost always the case, your attorney will then move on to the next step: filing a formal lawsuit in court.
Filing a Lawsuit/Complaint
Once you file a formal lawsuit in court, you have officially started the litigation process. By doing this, your case becomes part of the court system, and you are showing the opposing side that you are serious about the case and willing to go to trial to get justice.
This is an extremely important step in a personal injury case as it moves your claim from the insurance negotiation phase into a legal arena in which the rules of civil procedure and evidence apply.
This step usually occurs 12-18 months after the date of the accident.
Discovery
Now that the complaint has been officially filed, the discovery phase begins. In the discovery phase, both sides exchange information, evidence, witness details, and more in order to get an accurate value on the case and prepare for a settlement or a potential trial. In this phase, each side will send interrogatories to the opposing side. Interrogatories are a set of questions that must be answered under oath. These questions usually ask about the facts of the incident, injuries, treatment history, employment, prior claims, etc.
After exchanging interrogatories, a deposition will be scheduled. A deposition is essentially an interview between the plaintiff attorney and the defendant and the defense attorney and the plaintiff under oath regarding the answers to the interrogatories and any other aspects of the case. The plaintiff, defendant, eyewitnesses, medical providers, and any experts may all be deposed based on the situation. In a deposition, a court reporter transcribes every word, and the testimony can be used in court.
This is an extremely important aspect of any personal injury case as it can reveal facts, build the value of the case, and potentially provide leverage. This is why, as the client, it is important to prepare with your attorney before your deposition in order to maximize the value of your case and avoid saying anything that you would regret. Depositions can take anywhere from one hour up to five hours depending on the situation.
Case Evaluation
Once the key evidence such as medical records, deposition testimony, etc. have been gathered through the discovery phase, you will most likely be anywhere from 12-24 months post the date of the accident. At this point in the case, both sides will usually make an attempt to settle the case through case evaluation.
During a case evaluation, a neutral panel of three experienced individuals, usually attorneys or retired judges, will review the details of the accident as well as the arguments made by both sides and eventually issue a monetary award recommendation based on what they believe the case is worth.
After receiving this number, both sides have the option to either accept or reject this offer. If both sides accept, then the case is settled for the amount suggested by the panel. If one or both sides reject, then the process continues onto the next step, facilitation.
Facilitations
In a facilitation, the case is assigned a facilitator, usually an attorney or retired judge, to act as the middle person between the plaintiff and the defense. In this facilitation, the facilitator will continue going back and forth between the plaintiff and defense, whether they are on separate phone/zoom calls or in separate rooms, and negotiate the settlement amount until they can agree on a dollar figure. A facilitation can take anywhere from two to six hours depending on the complexity of the case.
This is usually the most important step of every injury case as approximately 75% of cases are settled within this step.
On the rare occasion that the case has gone through all of these steps and a settlement still hasn’t been reached, then both sides begin to prepare for trial.
Pre-Trial
Now that the case has continued beyond facilitation, trial becomes a true possibility. In this stage, both sides will usually make an effort to settle the case through further settlement conferences. In some cases a second facilitation may be held, or either side may file legal motions, such as a motion for summary disposition, in an effort to try to resolve issues within the case.
If all of these options have been exhausted and a verdict still cannot be reached, the judge will schedule a final pretrial conference to discuss any outstanding issues, attempt to resolve the case, and finalize all of the trial details. The judge uses this meeting as a final attempt to settle the case before it goes to trial. If both sides are still unable to agree, the case goes to trial.
Trial
Now that the case has gone through every possible stage and both sides are unable to agree on a settlement, the case proceeds to trial, joining the approximately 2-5% of injury cases that go to trial in the United States.
Trial is so rare in the US for many different reasons:
- Unpredictability of jury verdicts
- High cost of trial (hiring experts etc.)
- Extremely time consuming
- Pressure from courts to settle before trial
On top of all of these reasons, if the case is going to trial, it has most likely been anywhere from 18-36 months post the date of the accident, making it an extremely long, frustrating process.
In a trial, the case is presented in front of a jury in which both sides can make a case using things like witness testimony, hiring experts, etc. Eventually, once the jury agrees on a verdict, your case will resolve for that amount.
A trial can take anywhere from a day to many weeks to complete.
Then, after the trial verdict has been rendered, if one side is not happy with the verdict, they can appeal the verdict, which could take up to three years after the trial, making the process even more expensive and time consuming.
All in all, a personal injury case is often a long, intense experience filled with uncertainty and challenges. While the process can be overwhelming at times, it’s also a path towards justice, accountability, and financial recovery. For many, the end result brings a deep sense of relief and satisfaction of finally being heard and compensated for what they endured.
Get David Get Paid
Navigating through a personal injury case can be a complex, emotional journey, but understanding each step helps to stay informed and in control. While most cases settle before reaching trial, each step plays a critical role in building a strong claim so that you can receive the compensation you deserve in an orderly fashion. Whether you’re dealing with mounting medical bills, lost income, long-term recovery, or potential disability, hiring the correct legal team with experience makes all the difference.
At Femminineo Attorneys, we specialize in personal injury with a combined 100 years of experience in the field. We guide our clients every step of the way through the legal process with drive, dedication, and compassion. By hiring us, we can guarantee that you will be receiving top tier legal representation as our attorneys work around the clock to navigate through the complex legal system and ensure that our clients get what they deserve.
If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of someone else’s negligence, call Femminineo Attorneys at 855-65-CRASH or visit our website for a free consultation today!
