587-819-1279

FREE CASE EVALUATION | 1-800-260-0784

What does it mean if a resident of British Columbia that has filed an ICBC claim proceeds to hire a lawyer, and then poses this question to that same lawyer: How long must I wait? The lawyer’s client is almost certainly seeking an answer to this question: How long until the case gets settled?

No Personal Injury Lawyer in Saint John could offer a definite answer. A whole range of factors play a part in determining how long a given claimant must wait, until the case on file has been settled.

Factors that can affect the time of the settlement

The case’s complexity: Maybe it is not clear that one party must bear complete responsibility for a given accident. It may take time to sort through all the evidence, and determine who should be declared at-fault for an accident victim’s injuries.

The plaintiff’s decision to submit a large demand for reimbursement of the damages caused by pain and suffering. It can be difficult to assess the exact monetary value of someone’s pain and suffering. The performance of a difficult task increases the amount of time required for the completion of a given case.

An extensive list of documents in a listing of the available evidence. It takes time for the lawyers and the judge to wade through all those documents. Then after reading them, the either of same lawyers may elect to present a new argument, one based on something that was in one of the documents.

The existence of good legal representation can hinder an attempt by the insurance company to obtain a premature settlement. That would be one that has forced an agreement from both sides, when at least one injured member of the plaintiff’s party has not yet recovered from his or her injuries. Clients that settle too early deprive themselves of the chance to appeal a decision.

The age of the injured victims. If someone has filed a personal injury claim for a minor, the judge could allow for a hold to be placed in the case’s limitation period. That would mean that the statute of limitations would not start to run until the injured minor had reached the age of 18.

The one factor that blocks achievement of a settlement

No case gets settled if the plaintiff has delayed too long, before going to the courthouse and actually attempting to file a personal injury claim. In that situation, the court refuses to allow the claim’s filing. The court does not permit the charging of a defendant more than 2 years after an accident, or more than 2 years after a victim’s discovery of the damages that he or she has suffered, following the unexpected involvement in a given accident.