Wondering how long a personal injury lawsuit can take? Frankly, no one can know for sure how long a case may take. This is because each case is different – some could be as quick as two months, while others may take years to be settled. However, it’s not entirely impossible to approximate how long a case can take.
How quickly your case will take to settle may depend on several factors, including;
- Your attorney
Choosing the right attorney to handle your case from the beginning is the best way to ensure that your claim settles quickly. When identifying a personal injury attorney, make sure that they are well educated, dedicated, competent, experienced.
If an attorney has settled cases quickly in the past, then it’s highly likely that that attorney will close your case quickly too. Some attorneys may lengthen your case just to take your money.
- Liability responsibility
Who was responsible for the accident or the injury? If the person responsible for the damage admits responsibility straight away, then the case can be settled in a relatively straightforward manner.
On the other hand, if the opponent denies responsible, that’s a complex case and may take even years to settle. But if you have the necessary evidence that the opponent is responsible for the damage – witnesses statements, documents, CCTV, etc., the case can be resolved quickly.
- Claim Complexity
Each accident and injury is different. How complex or severe your injury is a major consideration in personal injury cases. If the damages are minor, the less compensation is needed, and the quicker it will be to settle the case.
On the other hand, severe injuries calls for serious and sometimes expensive treatment. This means larger compensation, which may delay the case. As well, where extensive treatment is required, it may take longer to gather the medical evidence and costs, which may extend the timeframe of the claim settlement.
- The case involves Big Money
If you’re looking for a large compensation, this means that the opponent’s legal representatives will be reviewing every aspect of the case in an effort to reduce the compensation amount. As well, the insurance company may delay the settlement process when big money is involved just because they fill the pain of giving out money.
Furthermore, insurers sometimes tend to delay the settlement process so that the claimant may settle for less. Most claimants just want to close their cases quickly, so they may go for a less settlement rather than waiting for the end judgments.
Conclusion
Frankly, there is a specific formula for calculating how long a case may take to settle. Personal injury cases are different and may take as little as months to settle while other cases may go for years.
It’s worth noting that the length your case will take doesn’t depend on any one factor that we’ve discussed above – one or more elements can affect the overall length of settlement for your case. For instance, you can have a bad lawyer, severe injuries, large claims, all of which have the ability to delay the settlement of the case.
