Filing a Camden Pedestrian Accident Case

Filing a Camden pedestrian accident case must generally take place within two years of the date of the accident. However, when it is involving a minor it is two years from their 18th birthday that it would have to be filed by.

When it comes to deciding whether to file a case, ask a Camden pedestrian accident lawyer to review the individual facts and circumstances of your claim so as to weigh all the options to see whether or not it is in someone’s best interest to file a lawsuit.

Importance of a Claim

The most important part of any claim is having an entire medical picture, once the medical treatment has been concluded. The next step is to attempt to resolve the case with the insurance company before having to file a lawsuit.

If the claim cannot be resolved or the plaintiff determines that the offer made is unfair, then the next step is to file a complaint in the court system. In the state of New Jersey, these claims are usually filed in the Superior Court of the particular county where either the accident occurred or the plaintiff resided or the defendant resided. It is very rare that a pedestrian accident case will have to go into federal court.

Once the complaint has been filed, it will be served on the defendant, and then the final phase takes place: litigation.

Process of Pedestrian Accident Trials

Once a Camden pedestrian accident case is filed, litigation begins and the first thing that is done is discovery. Discovery varies case by case on how long it lasts, but generally, the court gives 300 days of discovery and the first thing that is done are interrogatories they are just written questions, those are done outside of court with the help of the attorney’s office.

The next part of a Camden pedestrian accident case is a deposition, which is usually done in the attorney’s office. This process is where the person would be asked questions by an attorney about what happened, what their injuries were, what their medical treatment was. If the case still does not resolve, then it will go to an arbitration. This process occurs down at the courthouse and takes about a half hour to an hour.

There are arbitrators appointed by the court who will hear the case and they say what they think the value of the case is, it is not binding, and both sides have an opportunity to appeal that arbitration award. If that happens and the case still does not resolve, it goes to a trial that would be down at the courthouse where a judge and a jury would hear the case and a jury would ultimately decide the outcome.

Relevant Information

An attorney will want to look at the entire picture and every case is different, so it will be important to examine the following elements to begin with:

• The details of the accident
• The liability
• The injuries involved
• The injured party’s prognosis going forward

As a general rule, if an individual is a pedestrian that is involved in an accident and has been injured, then it most likely makes sense to file a claim. This is because the whole purpose of a lawsuit is to try to restore someone to the position they would have been in if this had never happened in the first place. If a person has experienced damages as a result of somebody else, filing a Camden pedestrian accident case is usually recommended so that the individual may pursue restitution.

How An Attorney Can Help

An attorney can help by handling the important steps involved in filing a Camden pedestrian accident case. The only thing that a person involved in the accident should do is try to get better. Your attorney can handle all the other work involved, such as dealing with the insurance company, gathering all of the medical records, gathering all of the medical bills, and getting final narrative reports from the treating physicians about what the prognosis is going forward. This is important because, before filing a case, it is relevant to know if these injuries are going to get better or if they are likely to worsen.

Besides handling the logistics of the case, and attorney will also be able to guide and advise you as to the best course of action throughout each phase of the legal process.