Three Phases of a Pennsylvania Personal Injury Case

Personal Injury Lawyer Tim Rayne discusses the Three Phases of a Pennsylvania Personal Injury Case - Medical Treatment and Investigation, Settlement Negotiation and Litigation.

During the first part of the case, we need to wait until your medical condition stabilizes so that we can properly value your case and come up with a settlement negotiation strategy. During this phase, your lawyer will be investigating the case and communicating with the insurance company while you are getting medical treatment to recover from your injury.

When your medical condition stabilizes, your lawyer will gather your medical records and all of the other pertinent information needed to value the case and prepare a Settlement Demand Package to send to the insurance company. After that, we negotiate with the insurance company to try to reach a settlement agreement. If we can agree on a fair amount of compensation, then the case can be settled without litigation. The insurance company will pay the agreed upon settlement in exchange for the injured party signing a Release giving up all legal claims.

If the case cannot be settled with the insurance company, then we must move forward with litigation. Litigation also involves three phases, Pleadings, Discovery and Trial.

In the Pleadings stage, the injured party files a Complaint in Court against the Defendant and the Defendant’s lawyer must file an Answer.

After the Pleadings stage, the parties engage in Discovery during which each party learns about the other side’s case. Written questions called Interrogatories are served and all relevant documents are requested in Requests for Production. Documents can be subpoenaed from third parties. Each side can also conduct depositions, which are oral interviews under oath in front of a court reporter. The defense can also have the injured party examined by a defense doctor.

If the case does not settle during Litigation then the case proceeds to a Jury Trial. Trial includes Opening Statements, Witnesses and Evidence, Expert Testimony and Closing Arguments.

For more information on the Three Phases of a Pennsylvania Personal Injury Case, contact Tim Rayne at 6108400124 or trayne@macelree.com.

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