There is a whole lot of discomfort that accompanies a personal injury more than the injury itself. First of all, it is your daily routine coming to a halt. You don’t even get a chance to negotiate that. You can’t escape the medical expenses and the appointments just so you’ll get better.
This is why victims in this category should take up a personal injury lawsuit most especially when it didn’t occur based on their mistakes. This lawsuit will help to cover for the other discomforts aside from the injury itself. Contact an attorney in Michigan for help and make that contact quickly because this kind of lawsuit is time-sensitive.
Important Things To Know About Michigan Personal Injury Lawsuits
Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal that every year, there are about 39.5 million visits to the physicians’ office and 29.4 million visits to the emergency room for unintentional accidents.
Some of the key things you should know if you are a victim of personal injury in the U.S. are:
- You can either get a lawyer to file for a case or simply reach a consensus outside of the court. Your best move will be communicated to you by your legal team or lawyer, you can drop your claim to just settle or file a court case.
- Claims are better done by employing an attorney; you can recover double rather than taking it up yourself. As a car accident victim, you should retain an injury lawyer; it’s their profession to help you recover your claims intelligently.
- Do not sign any document from your insurance adjuster until you meet with your Michigan attorney; you most probably won’t get a worthy claim for your injury. Every insurance company tries to cut costs regardless of your claims.
- Patience is needed to get the best out of the legal proceedings. This is because legal matters usually take a while and you can’t tell what point you can be settled at. Your insurance company will most likely yield eventually if they can’t get you to back down.
- Don’t forget, make your move or take steps on time.
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When To File Your Lawsuit
Your right to sue in Michigan for personal injury is time-based, and this is called statutes of limitation. Once you don’t sue after four years of the accident, you forfeit the right to do so again. Although, these statutes usually differ based on state.
As important as the time factor, there are other factors if not known can still cost you your legal claim which is why you must employ the expertise of the attorney.
One of the costly mistakes you should avoid from the start is documentation; document your injuries, medical bills and reach out to your insurance with proves. Just make sure you reach out to every necessary point as soon as possible.
Even if you do not take your injury claim to trial, the filing deadline set by this law is critical to your position in settlement negotiations with the defendant and his/her insurance company.
Note that once the statute of limitation tagged on four years limit is over, you cannot claim your settlements. With a lawsuit, you could be able to get your claims but if you were unable to file a lawsuit in the first place, then nothing else can motivate the defendant to settle you.
Exceptions To Michigan’s Statute Of Limitations For Personal Injuries
Michigan identifies some scenarios that can stand as an exception for the Michigan statute of limitation. These may include:
- If the injured person in question is mentally affected or subjected to severe physical injury that impedes movement, this serves as a legal exception to the statute. This exception is limited by various other circumstances.
- If the alleged initiator of the incident legally called the defendant leaves the state after the incident thereby impending the lawsuit from being filled early.
- If the accused intentionally obstructs the process of filing a case by hiding somewhere in the state or opt-in for a change of name or identity to excuse from every legal process and justice.
Other Factors That May Lengthen Or Shorten The Statute Of Limitations In Michigan
Many other considerations may change the statute of limitations in Michigan, including:
- The Type of Case: More heavy cases with heavy impact like death, cases tilting towards crime like medical malpractice, and other related cases are subjected to a different statute of limitations.
- The Injury: Some certain injuries take time before they manifest, internal injuries and cancer may not be discovered early enough after the incident which is why the statute can be less rigid in this case.
- Product Liability: Victims injured with effect on their product should file for a claim early enough because the product has limited useful life. In other words, victims cannot claim the product after a useful life period.
- The Age of the Victim: Age limit matters when it comes to filling a case, any victim that falls below the legal age bracket is afforded additional time outside the standard statute of limitations to file claims.
- Sexual Abuse: Issues related to sexual abuse in Michigan draw more time. So, sexual claims are involved and survivors can be given more time to file their claims.
- Claims against the Government: If a legal claim by victims is against the government or public entity, a different set of rules or procedures might be at play. Statutes of limitation may also be shorter.