Your Personal Injury Lawsuit Guide: When to Sue for an Injury

Book with words PERSONAL INJURY LAW and stethoscope on table

Injuries are costly. Workplace injuries and illnesses alone cost companies at least $170 billion.

While some injuries occur purely due to an accident, sometimes you get hurt due to other people’s negligence.

Have you been injured due to another person’s actions? You might have a case for a personal injury lawsuit. Keep reading below for a detailed guide with everything you need to know.

What Even is a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

It’s important to know that it is different from a personal injury claim. An injury claim is handled between you and the other’s person’s insurance company. The end goal is a settlement payout that everyone is happy with.

A lawsuit, on the other hand, is when you move directly to sue for a personal injury.

The type of cases that are most common includes traffic accidents, medical malpractice, wrongful death, and workplace accidents. Dog bites are also included.

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Filing Deadlines to Know

There isn’t one clear answer to how long you have to file a personal injury case. Two factors drive what your deadline will be: where the event occurred and when it occurred.

Many states have about a two-year window where you can bring your case to the court. But it can actually range from one to ten years.

What You Will Need for Your Case

The first step is being able to prove that the other person was negligent and that lead to your injuries. And while you may think it’s obvious, you will also have to prove that you suffered true damages from the injury.

Burden of proof in these cases lies with you, the one filing the lawsuit. If your case does not settle and it reaches a judge or jury, you will have to prove that more likely than not what you are saying is true.

Depending on your specific case, the process may look slightly different. For example, if you are injured on the job, you will file a workers’ compensation claim.

Typically, an employee is not legally allowed to sue an employer over an accident.

Hiring a Lawyer

Even if you know you have a case, it can be scary moving forward with hiring a lawyer. It’s important to understand that they usually work on what is called a Contingency Fee Basis.

Basically, this means you as a client don’t have to pay anything to start. The attorney only gets paid if you win your case. They will take a percentage of the overall amount.

Things to Include in Your Settlement

You can include lots of compensation forms in a settlement. Work with your lawyer to determine what works best for you. Things to consider include pain and suffering, medical bills, and loss of income.

Time to Get Your Rightful Compensation

With this guide to personal injury lawsuits, we hope you feel confident in taking your case to court. Being injured is a challenging thing, and you deserve compensation.

If you have some questions or want our legal opinion on a potential case, please reach out for a free consultation.