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While each personal injury case is unique, most cases typically involve the following basic steps.

Step 1: Determine if there’s a viable claim—after accepting the case, the personal injury lawyer will perform an initial investigation into the plaintiff’s injury to determine whether the facts and circumstances genuinely support a claim for damages.   

Step 2: Demand letter—once a good-faith basis for a personal injury claim has been established, plaintiff’s lawyer sends a demand letter notifying the defendant’s insurance company of the claim, including a demand for a specified dollar amount to resolve the matter. 

Step 3: Response and negotiation—upon receiving the demand letter, the insurance company will respond in one of three ways: (1) agree with the demand letter and promptly settle, (2) make a counteroffer and negotiate for an amount less than specified in the demand letter, or (3) deny the claim outright and refuse to pay any amount.  Negotiating a settlement is the most common response, and most cases are resolved this way.      

Step 4: Filing a lawsuit—if the parties can’t reach a settlement, the plaintiff’s lawyer files a lawsuit.  During the pre-trial phase, the parties obtain evidence from each other, witnesses, and third parties in a process called “discovery.”  The pre-trial phase can take several months or even years.

Step 5: Mediation—nearly all personal injury cases in Florida will be ordered to mediation by the court.  Mediation is the process in which a neutral mediator facilitates discussion between the parties in an effort to resolve the case before going to trial.  The parties can settle the case at any time, even after a lawsuit has been filed.

Step 6: Trial—if the parties can’t reach a settlement during mediation, the case goes to trial where a jury will generally determine liability and damage awards, if any.

Step 7: Appeal—a party who is unhappy with the final verdict can appeal, but there must be a legal basis for doing so, i.e., some material error that prevented a fair trial.  Simply being unhappy with the outcome isn’t sufficient for an appeal.     

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