You’ve recently been injured in an unforeseen circumstance. Perhaps you slipped and fell at work and broke your leg, or maybe you were involved in an accident that caused significant injury. The only thing you want to do now is to wallow as you heal. So, a lawsuit is probably the last thing that you have in your mind.
That being said, there are several reasons why you may not want to sit on your lawsuit. If you are planning to file a personal injury claim, you should get it done as quickly as possible. And there are quite a few good reasons for that. This article should convince you as to why you should get a lawyer right away and file a lawsuit.
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Table of Contents
Statute of Limitations
Each area will have its own statute of limitations, during which you can file a lawsuit for personal injury. In Santa Rosa, for instance, this statute of limitations is between 1 and 3 years, depending on the type of injury that you just went through. Medical malpractice injuries, for instance, can be treated differently in comparison to road accident injuries.
A Santa Rosa personal injury lawyer will be fully familiar with the statute of limitations for each possible scenario. They will be able to give you advice on what documents you should be able to file, all at their specific moments. This way, by filing a claim early on, you won’t accidentally go past your deadline for the statute of limitations. Once you do, you will not be able to get your case in court anymore.
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Memories Are Still Fresh
As human beings, our memories will eventually fade at some point. When something happens, our memory is fresh within the first few months, and there is a good chance we will remember every detail of that. However, as time passes, we will remember less and less of what happened due to our memories fading. This might even end up causing you to lose your personal injury case.
When you file a lawsuit, you need to make several statements. You may think that you know what happen, but the judge may ask about some details that you never bothered putting down. If you would have filed from the very start, you would have remembered those details. Plus, you can’t make things up in court either; if they find out, it will affect your case.
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Information and Evidence Are Still Readily Available
Just like your memory may fade, evidence may also be lost if you sit on your case too long. For instance, let’s say that your only evidence was the cast that you had your leg in or your medical records. However, by some sort of cosmic move (or simply time passing), you lost access to that evidence.
By filing a lawsuit as early as possible, you won’t have to worry that the evidence will become available. Hospitals are required to keep your records for a specific time frame, which means that if you file early, you should not have any issues accessing them.
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Arbitration May Be Necessary
Before taking the case in front of a jury, some states may require you to go through a formal arbitration first. In this case, the arbitration panels will hear the issues of each side, review the evidence and try to come up with a decision. If the arbitration is binding, the decision is final. However, if it is non-binding, then you may file a lawsuit in a court of law.
The problem is that these arbitrations may take quite a bit of time – and if you aren’t careful, you may end up going past your statute of limitations. By hiring a personal injury lawyer right away, you can avoid these kinds of delays and mess-ups.
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You Need the Compensation
A personal injury lawsuit may be costly, considering you will have lawyers to pay and all that, but this is nothing compared to the medical bills you may have to pay. Insurance will only cover so much. Plus, it will generally not cover any long-term care you’ll have to go through.
If you file for personal injury early, then you may also receive your compensation faster than you expected. A trial like this should last 6 months at the very least if it is a simple and straightforward case. By the end of it, you will have the money necessary to cover past and future expenses.
Final Thoughts
Procrastination is not the answer when it comes to personal injury cases. The sooner you file, the better your chances of winning the case will be. Plus, you will get things off your plate right away, and clear your troubles for the future.