Auto Accident Personal Injury Lawsuit Timeline Expectations
Following a serious injury from an auto accident, you may be considering filing a personal injury claim against the party responsible for the accident. In addition, you may be curious what type of timeline you can expect with the lawsuit. Sadly, there is not a timeframe that fits all lawsuits because all lawsuits are not the same. However, it can help to understand the progression of an auto accident case.
Seeking Medical Treatment and Speaking to an Attorney
Immediately following the accident, you should seek medical treatment. Doing so will help prove your claim in court. If you take too long to seek medical treatment, it adds fuel to the argument for the defense in that your injuries were not as serious as you claim.
As soon as you are able, you need to speak to an attorney. You will want to speak to several and find one that you feel comfortable with and one who is willing to take your case. This may take a few days or even a few weeks.
Investigating the Evidence
Once you have chosen a lawyer, they will begin to investigate your case. They will take a look at your medical records, the police report, etc. They want to determine the facts of the case and how much your case is worth. Depending on the extent of your case and the lawyer's workload, this can take a couple of weeks. However, the lawyer will want to go through this as quickly as possible so they can move onto the next step.
Making a Demand and Filing a Lawsuit
Your lawyer will begin a demand from the other party/insurance company. This demand will outline your financial losses. This can take months or longer, depending on the other party. A lawsuit may be filed if your lawyer does not believe that your case can be settled or if the other party ignores their demands. In some cases, this can take a year or two. Throughout that time, your lawyer will continue negotiations with the other party, trying to reach a settlement.
Going to Trial
In the event that a settlement is not reached through negotiations, the case will go to trial where a judge and jury will hear the facts of the case and determine if the defendant should be held liable and for how what amount, if any. Trials tend to last for a few days to as long as a few weeks.
For more information, contact a personal injury attorney.
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