When you sustain injuries because of another party’s actions, you may incur substantial financial losses in addition to physical pain and suffering. In these circumstances, you may be understandably anxious to receive your personal injury settlement.
While we cannot pinpoint exactly how long your personal injury case takes to settle in San Antonio, Texas, we can explain the factors that could impact the timeline. You can also reach out for a free consultation to learn more.
Factors That Can Affect the Settlement Timeline for Your San Antonio Personal Injury Case
The facts and circumstances of your case determine how long it takes for your claim to settle in San Antonio. Each personal injury claim is unique, so your claim could be impacted by factors that other cases do not include. Likewise, another person’s case could include factors not involved in your case.
However, some factors appear in almost all personal injury cases. Factors that could impact how long it takes to settle your personal injury claim include:
The Duration of Your Recovery
The type of injuries you sustain and the severity of your injuries directly impact the timeline for your personal injury settlement. Until you reach maximum medical improvement (MMI), we cannot calculate the value of your damages. The longer it takes to recover from your injuries, the longer it takes to settle your case.
Maximum medical improvement is the point when your doctor states you have recovered as much as you will recover from your injuries. In many cases, MMI means that the person has recovered fully from their injuries. However, some victims reach MMI and have life-long impairments.
Injuries that could result in disabling conditions include:
- Traumatic brain injury
- Broken bones and fractures
- Severe burns
- Internal organ damage and bleeding
- Back injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Loss of limbs and amputations
- Neck injuries
As the severity of your injuries and disabilities increases, your damages increase. It costs more to treat catastrophic injuries. You may have high medical bills, lost wages, out-of-pocket expenses, and other economic damages. You may also experience severe, chronic pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress, and other non-economic damages.
You may also incur ongoing expenses and costs, such as diminished quality of life, long-term care, and reduced earning capacity. You can recover compensation for those damages, too.
We will wait until you reach MMI to ensure we include all economic and non-economic damages in our settlement demand.
Claim Investigation
While you recover from your injuries, our legal team investigates your claim. We gather evidence proving the legal elements of negligence:
- Duty of care
- Breach of duty
- Causation
- Damages
Injured parties have the burden of proving the other party caused their injuries. They must also prove the other party’s conduct was a direct and proximate cause of their injuries.
Our lawyers diligently search for evidence. We may retain accident reconstructionists, financial professionals, medical specialists, and other experts to assist in the investigation. They may also provide written opinions and testimony.
The type of personal injury case and the circumstances determine how long it takes to complete the investigation. Some types of cases take longer to investigate, such as medical malpractice, product liability, aviation accidents, oil rig accidents, and commercial trucking accidents.
Settlement Negotiations
After you reach MMI and we complete the claim investigation, we will prepare a settlement demand letter. The demand letter includes:
- Identification of parties involved in the claim
- Summary of the facts of the case
- Discussion of the legal basis for a personal injury claim
- Description of the evidence proving fault and liability
- Explanation of your injuries and damages
- Demand for a specific amount to settle your personal injury case
The insurance company may agree to the settlement demand. More often, the company will issue a counteroffer for a lower amount. That counteroffer begins the settlement negotiation process.
Settlement negotiations could take weeks to complete. In complicated cases, it could take longer. The parties may agree to mediation or arbitration as an alternative dispute resolution. If settlement is not possible, the next step would be to file a lawsuit.
You Share Liability for Causing Your Injury
The Texas proportionate responsibility statute creates a modified comparative negligence standard for personal injury cases. Contributory fault does not bar recovery for damages unless you are more than 50% to blame for causing your injury.
Therefore, if you are 55% to blame for causing a car accident, you cannot receive any money for your damages. However, if you are 45% at fault, you can receive 55% of the damages award.
If you are accused of being partially to blame for causing your injuries, it could take additional time to build a defense against the accusations. Contributory fault complicates a case and could significantly reduce the amount of your settlement. Our lawyers aggressively fight allegations of fault to protect your right to receive fair compensation for damages.
Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit
When the parties in a personal injury case cannot agree to a settlement amount, the injured party may file a lawsuit. Filing a lawsuit extends the time it takes to settle your claim. The steps involved in a personal injury lawsuit include:
- Filing and serving the summons and complaint
- Discovery, including interrogatories, depositions, requests to produce, and more
- Settlement negotiations and/or mediation
- Pre-trial motions
- Selecting a jury
- Trial
- Verdict
A lawsuit could take a year or longer to go to trial. The timeline depends on numerous factors.
Most personal injury cases are settled without filing a lawsuit. However, filing a lawsuit could be a tactic to encourage settlement. Even if we file a lawsuit, the case can still be settled before it goes to trial.
Do You Need Help With a Personal Injury Case in San Antonio, TX?
At George Salinas Injury Lawyers, our legal team works to get you money for your personal injury case as quickly as possible. However, we do not rush settlements just to close cases. We are seasoned trial lawyers willing to fight for our clients in court when necessary.
Call our office today at (210) 225-0909 for a free consultation with a San Antonio personal injury lawyer. Let us get to work on your case to speed up the personal injury timeline if possible.
