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954-764-2909 or 1-800-393-0596 |
Articles
Articles
When is the right time to contact your lawyer about a personal injury you have suffered?
There are actually two correct answers, one legal and the other based on practical considerations. I have had numerous clients seek my advise years after an accident has occurred because they wanted to wait to see how they healed or were so involved with medical care, loss of their job, and just surviving the rigors of their injuries that they could not deal with the legal aspects of their claim. Many times this proves to be a catastrophic mistake in relation to their chances for recovery.
Each state has different statutes of limitations, or time period in which a claim must be filed in court, for accidents, auto accidents, nursing home claims, medical malpractice claims and claims for negligence against government entities. When considering when to make a claim, be sure to check with a lawyer as soon as possible after an accident to see when the statute of limitations may run. Do not assume, for example, that the periods are the same in New York or New Jersey as they are in Florida, because they are not.
In Florida, a claim as a result of an automobile accident, has a four year statute of limitations. This, however, is not true if the accident involves a state, county or municipal employee where the statute of limitations is only three years. In order to sue a state government entity, one must file a written notice pursuant to state statute and then wait six months or receive a written denial of the claim from the agency prior to being able to file a law suit. If you were in an accident with a federal employee, such as the Post Office, you would then have to file a notice under the Federal Tort Claims Act and again wait six months before filing suit. The filing of the notice against State and Federal entities stops the statute of limitations from running until there is a denial of the claim or until six months from the date of notice. The statute of limitations for suing the Federal government is, however, only two years for torts claims.
The statute of limitations concerning medical malpractice can be very complex and varies based on the fact pattern of the case. The normal statute of limitations runs from the time you knew or should have know that you suffered an injury due to someone’s medical negligence. This is often difficult to ascertain and should be calculated based on the facts by your attorney. There are some instances where there are elements of fraud and misrepresentation where the statute of limitations can run as long as seven years. In claims involving children, the claim times are also different Under Florida Law one can extend the statute of limitations for 90 days providing the petition for extension is filed before the end of the original statute of limitations runs. The statute of limitations on product failures can also be varied and complex and best left to an attorney to calculate.
In addition to the legal considerations, one must consider the potential problems that could arise by not pursuing a claim for injuries as soon as possible. Delay makes it impossible to conduct an investigation of the scene of the accident without fear of it having changed, witnesses memories fade with time, opportunity to take photographs of vehicles or the place where a fall occurred becomes impossible and sometimes records are lost either accidentally, or intentionally. All of these examples make it less likely that the attorney will have all the elements necessary to maximize the recovery on your behalf. The answer the to the original question is to contact a lawyer as soon as possible after an accident in order to ultimately maximize your potential recovery for injuries you have sustained due to the negligence of others.
Robert Spector, is an AV rated trial attorney, with over 34 years of handling cases in Florida on behalf of injured people.
If you have any questions contact him at : 954-764-2909 or by email at Robert@SpectorLawOffices.com.
Also see his website at www.SpectorLawOffices.com.
