If you were hurt in an accident caused by someone else, you may be wondering how long a personal injury lawsuit takes. The truth is that every case is different, so there is no exact timeline.
Ultimately, how long your case takes depends heavily on the overall complexity of the situation. Several things will affect this.
Some personal injury cases may settle in a few weeks or months, while others can take years.
The specific timeline of a case is different for everyone. However, there are factors that will impact a personal injury lawsuit.
1. The Severity of Your Injuries
The severity of your injuries can impact the timeline in two ways.
First, more severe injuries often mean higher value damages. This can lead the other party or insurance company to provide additional pushback regarding your injuries. This can include questioning their severity and whether the treatment you obtained was necessary or related to the accident.
Additionally, if you have more severe injuries, it is often wise to hold off on filing your claim or lawsuit until you have reached maximum medical improvement. This gives you time to gain a clearer understanding of the extent of your injuries and helps you anticipate future needs, which may be included in your damages.
How long your case takes often depends on the overall complexity of the situation.
2. Disputes Over Fault and Liability Cause Lawsuit Delays
Liability is another area that can cause significant delays. Sometimes you may have a very clear situation, like an accident where someone hit you while you were sitting still at a red light. Other times, it may not be so clear whether both parties were moving and in the wrong, or the other person just isn’t being honest.
It can take a significant amount of time for both parties to provide and review the necessary evidence to determine fault. If both parties played a role in the situation, it may also take time to determine how much liability each party should hold. Per the proportionate responsibility statutes in Texas, the other party can reduce their payout based on the percentage of liability you hold.
3. Insurance Company Cooperation or Delays
While most companies operate in good faith, sometimes your initial negotiations will face delays. This may be because your particular adjuster is slow to respond to emails and messages. However, it may also be that they continuously ask for additional and unnecessary information.
Sometimes the insurance companies will intentionally delay to pressure you into accepting a lower-than-fair settlement offer, or they may begin with these low offers, which can lead to an extended negotiation period.
4. Complexity of the Case and Number of Parties
Working through negotiations for two parties can be hard enough, but when you add in additional parties, it can prolong things. You must consider liability among additional parties, consider additional needs, and work around additional schedules.
While there are general timelines, no two personal injury cases are the same. Delays can happen at different stages of the process.
If you have more questions about the legal process of a personal injury lawsuit, contact our El Paso personal injury lawyers for free to discuss your specific situation.
