Car accidents are one of the most common causes of injuries and deaths in the US. Every year around a million people die and about 50 million get injured in road crashes. The victims of the road accidents usually have to bear a great deal of financial, emotional, and psychological ordeal.
Justice demands that the person who caused the accident compensates the victims for the losses. The victims can sue the person responsible for the car accident to get compensation for their losses. However, there is one situation when the victims cannot sue the culprit, which we will discuss in this article.
Car Accident Statute of Limitations
Statute of Limitations is a legal term that sets a time limit during which the victims can file a car accident case in the court. The time limit varies in different states. In California the statute of limitations for a car accident and other personal injury matters is generally 2 years from the date of incident, or 1 year from the date of discovery of the injury. You need to file the case within the prescribed time limit otherwise, your right to sue the victim will be barred forever. The statute does have some exceptions, like if a government entity was involved or the victim suffered a mental incapacity, or the victim was a minor, etc. For this reason, we suggest you contact an experience law firm that specializes in personal injury law.
An important concept that you should understand regarding the statute of limitation is the ‘discovery of harm’ rule. The statute of limitation begins only once the victim knows or ‘discovers’ about the extent of the injury.
A simple example will help you better understand this concept:
- Suppose that a person gets injured in a car accident, but did not get any medical help as the injury seemed minor at first. However, after a year the person started experiencing extreme pain in the body part that was injured during the accident. A medical examination later revealed that the nerves in the body’s extremities have been damaged that would require a costly surgery.
In such a situation, the victim had no knowledge of injury at the time of the accident. A reliable car accident injury lawyer can convince the court that the statute of limitation should begin when the injury was ‘discovered’, instead of at the time of the accident.
So, you should not delay in filing a car accident case. The more you delay, the less are the chances of a court outcome in your favor.
Get Professional Help for a Car Accident Case
If you or someone you know has been involved in a car accident, it’s important that you contact an experienced car accident lawyer soon after the accident. An experienced attorney will be able to help you in getting the maximum amount of compensation for the injury sustained in a car crash.
The experienced and professional car accident attorneys at Sanford A. Kassel, Professional Law Corporation have been helping victims for more than a decade. The team of capable car accident lawyers can handle car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, and more. For more information on how we can help you, call us now at 909-984-6451.