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After being seriously hurt in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you deserve to be compensated for your pain, emotional suffering, and the financial impact of your injuries. A seasoned personal injury attorney can help you pursue fair and full compensation by building a compelling case on your behalf and filing a personal injury lawsuit. The potential length of personal injury cases depends on many factors.
How Long Does a Personal Injury Lawsuit Take?
There’s no clear-cut answer for how long your personal injury claim or lawsuit may take. Since New York is a no-fault insurance state, car accident victims will generally turn to their own insurance policy first to cover medical costs and lost wages, no matter who was at fault. Filing a claim with your own insurance provider tends to be a faster process than filing a claim with someone else’s insurance provider. However, when serious injuries are involved, an accident victim can file a third-party injury claim against the at-fault party.
If a lawsuit is necessary to recover compensation not covered by your own insurance policy, or to compensate you for a serious injury, the process may take longer. The discovery phase alone, which is when each side investigates the other side’s claims, can take months to complete. Scheduling a trial can take even longer, depending on existing backlog of cases, the jury process and the judge’s schedule.
Personal Injury Lawsuit Timeline
After retaining an attorney to represent you, they will investigate the accident and collect evidence to support your case. Initially, your attorney may file your claim with the at-fault party’s insurance company and work to negotiate a strong settlement on your behalf. If the insurance company fails to offer a reasonable settlement, your lawyer may file a lawsuit on your behalf, which will typically be followed by these phases:
- Discovery phase, during which each side investigates the other side’s claims, requests information, and interviews witnesses
- Mediation, during which both sides try to negotiate a settlement to avoid going to trial
- Trial, which involves scheduling a courtroom and a judge and potentially selecting a jury
- Verdict, made by the judge or jury
Factors That Can Affect the Length of Your Personal Injury Case
Many accident victims wonder, “Why is my personal injury lawsuit taking so long?” Your personal injury lawyer will work diligently to resolve your claim as quickly as possible. The amount of time it takes to resolve your personal injury case can depend on several factors, including:
- The severity of your injuries and the amount of time needed for you to reasonably recover from your injuries
- The amount of compensation involved, as the investigation and negotiations will typically take longer if more money is on the line
- Whether fault is clear in the case or if the defendant or insurance company tries to shift fault on to you or someone else
- Whether the defendant’s insurance company uses tactics to slow down the negotiations process to delay paying a settlement
- Whether your case goes to trial
- Whether you have a strong legal advocate on your side
Talk to Our Knowledgeable New York Personal Injury Attorneys Today
When you’re facing a potentially lengthy personal injury case, it’s crucial to have a seasoned attorney on your side who knows what it takes to expedite the process and keep everything moving forward.
The personal injury attorneys at Finz & Finz, P.C. can provide top-tier service to help you pursue the compensation you deserve for your accident-related injuries in New York. As your attorneys, we’ll do what is required to pursue maximum compensation, including hiring top medical experts and other field-leading experts to support your case. Contact us today for a free case review.
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Finz & Finz, P.C. is a New York and Long Island personal injury law firm based out of Mineola, NY. It was founded in 1984 and is highly rated, with many honors and awards of excellence.
