There may be some misunderstanding over how long you have after an accident in California to initiate a personal injury claim. This makes sense because there are many rules for various types of scenarios. Get the information below, then call Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas at 909-982-0707 if you need a free legal consultation after being hurt in an accident.
In most cases, you have two years to file a defense when a private party is involved
Typically, the clock will begin ticking on the day of the incident. You will typically have two years to launch the lawsuit if the defendant is a private party. There are some exclusions. You would have three years from the accident date if, for instance, the party was a private party, there were no injuries, and you were simply seeking for property damage. Your clock may begin when you become aware of the injuries if you did not become aware of them for weeks, months, or even years after the accident.
Cases involving personal injuries where the government is a plaintiff
The clock is severely slowed down and the process is completely different if a government entity is a plaintiff in the lawsuit. Typically, you only have six months to file. You should absolutely call a personal injury lawyer to handle this issue on your behalf.
Claims for wrongful death may have their own timelines
Unintentional injuries are one of the top causes of death in California. This contains collisions involving cars, buses, and other vehicles. In this situation, you have two years from the date of their passing rather than the date of the accident or injury. The other party can argue that the claim deadline should begin at the date of your loved one’s injuries if they lived for a while after the accident but did not pass away right away. This is false.
It is crucial that you prove a connection between the incident, your loved one’s injuries, and their passing. This connection is simple to prove if the person was engaged in a car accident, went into a coma right afterwards, and never came out of it. On the other hand, the sooner you employ a personal injury lawyer to show that link if the accident resulted in a brain injury that did not really kill your loved one for three years, the better off you will be.
There is no reason to put off speaking with a lawyer. No matter how straightforward or intricate your case is, the sooner we can start working on it, the better. For a free legal consultation, contact Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas at 909-982-0707 right away.
