Lawsuits have become an increasingly common way for victims to get the compensation that they are owed. If you feel that you have been wronged and injured by another party, then you might have a successful personal injury claim on your hands. To help you figure out whether that's the case and whether a lawsuit is the route that you want to take, here is one guideline that you will need to follow when it comes to filing a lawsuit: the statute of limitations.
File Within the Time Limit
Before you get started, you want to take a look at the statute of limitations in your state. Now what does that number really mean? In most cases, missing that deadline will sink your case and drastically reduce your chances of winning. However, there are some unique circumstances that can be considered, and if you do meet these criteria, your deadline may be extended.
Minors
Firstly, there is an exception for minors. If you were underage at the time of the injury, then you can actually wait until you legally become an adult to file. In other words, your years begins counting down once you become an adult.
Discovery
The other key exception refers to cases where the injury wasn't actually discovered until long after the incident transpired. There are two common cases where this can happen, and those are chemical exposure and medical malpractice.
Chemical exposure can happen in a wide variety of situations, ranging from a car accident with a truck hauling toxic materials to working in a capacity that led to your negligent exposure to certain substances. The hard part is proving that your injuries were a result of that exposure and that there is no other cause of your current injuries. If you were exposed in the line of work, then the defendant may try to prove that you disregarded warnings, that you were not actually exposed to the substances in question, or even that your injuries are completely unrelated to your employment. You will need to be ready to defend your claim, and that may be easier if you consult a lawyer before filing.
The other major situation is medical malpractice, which is a legally volatile field. Laws on medical malpractice lawsuits are constantly changing, so you will need to keep abreast of your state's stance on damages and responsibility. You will need to prove that your healthcare provider did not act in accordance with the standard of care, and that you suffered as a result of their negligence.
In many cases, you will need to file your lawsuit relative to the date of discovery of your injuries, rather than relative to the incident itself. In medical malpractice cases, you might also be restricted by the date of your last treatment by the healthcare provider in question, and thus be required to file relative to that date. Contact a provider, such as the Bulluck Law Group, for more information.
Share25 January 2016
Defective products are produced and sold to consumers all of the time. Unfortunately, some of these defective products cause consumers injuries when they malfunction. So, what can you do if a defective product causes you or someone that you love some kind of injury? This blog will show you how the legal system works to protect consumers from instances such as this. You will find out about personal injury lawsuits and what it takes to file and proceed with a lawsuit to hold the company that manufactured that defective product responsible for the role that they played in the pain that has been experienced.