injury law firms Litigation

The legal process that allows you to recover compensation for your injuries and losses. Your injury attorney will build strong evidence in your case, including eyewitness testimony as well as statements of the defendant and expert witness opinions.

Your lawyer will then file your lawsuit. When the defendant has responded to the lawsuit, the case moves to a fact-finding stage called discovery.

The Complaint

Before a lawsuit is filed, an injured person (plaintiff) must conduct pre-lawsuit discovery. This involves reading police accident reports, conducting informal discovery and identifying at-fault parties.

Once the plaintiff has done this, they are able to start a summons as well as a complaint. The complaint identifies the person that is being sued and details the harm caused by the defendant's actions or inaction. It typically contains a request for compensation for medical expenses as well as lost income, suffering and pain, as well as other damages resulting from their injury.

The defendant has 30 days to respond, referred to as an answer. In this response, the defendant can acknowledge or deny the allegations made in the complaint. They can also file an additional counterclaim or add a third party defendant to the suit.

During the discovery stage in the discovery stage, both parties exchange relevant information regarding their positions and evidence. This typically includes depositions, written questions (called interrogatories) and requests for documents. This is typically the majority of the lawsuit timeline. If there are any settlement opportunities they will be discussed. Otherwise the case will proceed to trial. During this time your attorney will be able to provide your case before a jury or judge and the defendant will take on their defense.

The Discovery Phase

Discovery is a formal process that allows you and your legal team to exchange information with the other party and collect evidence. This could include witness testimony as well as details of the treatment you received from your doctor, and evidence of the losses you've suffered. Your attorney can utilize a variety of tools to assist you during discovery, including interrogatories and requests for documents. Interrogatories are written queries that require a response written while requests for documents requires the submission of all relevant documents that fall under the control of the parties. Requests for admission require the other party to accept certain facts. This can save time and money since attorneys do not need to prove the facts uncontested during trial. Depositions are live conversations with witnesses, where the attorney can ask them questions about the incident under oath. They will have their answers recorded and transcribing by a court reporter.

Discovery may seem like an uncomfortable, long and invasive process, but it's necessary to collect the evidence required to win your injury claim. Your attorney will be capable of discussing the details of the discovery process with you during your no-cost consultation. For instance, if attempt to conceal a preexisting condition that has caused your injury to worsen it could be discovered in the process of discovery and thrown out of your case.

The Negotiation Phase

Most cases of injury lawsuit aim to reach a settlement through negotiation. The process typically involves a back and to and back-and-forth between your lawyer as well as that of the insurer of the responsible party. This may include informal conversations/correspondence (by phone, in meetings, by email) where the parties trade offers and counter-offers. Your lawyer can assist in deciding the amount of settlements you would like to demand and injury attorney then help in negotiations.

The amount of damages, which includes medical bills, lost wages, and future losses, is a factor that is constantly changing. Your injuries can get worse over time. This could increase future losses or decrease the value of current losses. Your lawyer will ensure that damages are determined based on your current injuries as well as the probability of future recovery.

Insurance companies frequently try to limit their payout by disputing certain elements of your claim. This can cause delays in settlement negotiations but your lawyer will have strategies to help you navigate these difficulties and achieve the best possible outcome for your case. In some cases the process of negotiating an agreement can be a long process that can take months or even years. Numerous factors influence the length of time settlement negotiations be, but knowing what to expect will make the process less stressful and more effective for you.

The Trial Phase

While the majority of injuries cases are resolved by settlement negotiations outside of court, your lawyer may choose to take your case to trial if an acceptable resolution is not attainable. This can be a difficult long, expensive and costly procedure. The jury also has to decide whether the defendant is responsible for your injuries, and what compensation you are entitled to. Your lawyer must thoroughly investigate your case in order to understand the circumstances of your injuries, the amount of the injuries, damages and costs.

At this stage, your attorney will call witnesses and experts to testify and present evidence of physical nature, such as photographs, documents and medical reports. This is known as the case-in-chief phase. The defense attorney will then call witnesses to testify in rebuttal and argue that the plaintiff should not be awarded damages. The judge or jury will then take into consideration the evidence and arguments put forward by both parties.

The judge will explain to jurors the legal standards that must be adhered to in order to decide in favor of plaintiffs or against defendants. This is referred to as jury instruction. After that, both sides present their closing arguments. If the jury cannot reach an agreement on a decision, the judge will declare the trial a mistrial. In some cases appeals may be available if unhappy with the outcome of your trial.