STAGES OF LITIGATION FOR A PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM

There are many paths that can be taken to resolve a personal injury claim. This blog will look at the different stages involved in litigating a personal injury claim, and the different ways in which a claim can be resolved.

Claim Settlement

Ideally, a personal injury claim can be resolved directly with the insurance company, without the need to go to trial.  Your lawyer will meet with the insurance company and make sure that you get fair compensation. Your lawyer will work directly with a representative from the insurance company to negotiate a settlement for your claim on your behalf.  You have the option to accept the settlement.  If an appropriate settlement is reached, the claim can be settled without any further litigation.

However, not all claims can be resolved in this way, and instead, may require litigation.  Some claims are more complex.  Moustarah & Company will fight for you as far a necessary to ensure that you get fair compensation.

Questioning (or Examination for Discovery)

Often the first stage of litigation in a personal injury claim is a proceeding called a Questioning (or an Examination for Discovery). During the questioning, the defence lawyer will ask you questions, under oath, about your case, and a court reporter is present to take a transcript of everything that is said at the Questioning.  Often this is a full day, and very detailed.  Moustarah & Company usually makes sure that the Questioning is done at their offices. You don’t have to travel to a hostile environment like the insurance company headquarters. A lawyer from Moustarah & Company will sit beside you and make sure that the insurance company follows the law and to lend support.

The purpose of the Questioning is to learn as much information as possible about your claim. It also allows the lawyers to assess their case and the credibility of the witnesses.

After the questioning, your lawyer will often be required to fulfill “undertakings”. Undertakings often include documents which the defence lawyers would like to see in order to help them in assessing your case. This can include updated medical documentation, income documentation etc.… Your lawyer will need to collect these documents and provide them to the defence lawyers following the Questioning. Receipts for any medical expenses including medical treatments are very important in the medical documentation.

At some point after the Questioning has occurred, negotiations may resume, and it is possible that a settlement is reached at this stage.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

If a settlement in a personal injury claim cannot be reached following the Questioning, a Mediation may be scheduled. A Mediation is overseen by a mediator, who is a neutral third-party, and is there to help the parties come to a resolution for your personal injury claim.

Another alternative would be a JDR (judicial dispute resolution) which is similar to a mediation, except this proceeding is overseen by a judge, rather than a mediator, and is similar to a “mini trial” in that both parties have the opportunity to present their case to a judge.  This is not as common in a personal injury claim.  For most claims, the insurance company wants to settle before the claim gets to the alternative dispute resolution stage.  However, they want to drag it out as long as possible, so sometimes your personal injury claim might get past the questioning and undertakings.

If a settlement cannot be reached either at mediation, or afterwards, your file may need to be set for trial. However, personal injury files rarely make it to this stage of litigation in Alberta, as the parties must show good faith attempts to settle prior to being able to schedule a trial date.  In addition, the auto insurance companies do not want to go to trial, they end up paying too much in lawyer fees.

Overall, there are many ways to resolve a personal injury claim, and a personal injury lawyer can help guide you through every step of the litigation process needed in order to settle your claim.