If you are unable to collect money from the person responsible for causing your personal injury, such as from a car accident, then you'll have to file a personal injury lawsuit so that the court system can help you get the compensation you deserve. However, before you even go to trial or start mediation, you'll need to go through the discovery process. This happens after the lawsuit is filed, and allows you and the defendant to gather evidence so that you can state your case. Here is what you can expect during discovery for your personal injury case.
Written Discovery
Your lawyer will help with the written discovery process, which allows you to ask the defendant written questions that they must answer under oath. Their answers are sworn testimony that can be used in your case, which is why you definitely want to take the opportunity to see what the defendant will say. However, their lawyer can do the same thing and provide you with written questions that you must answer under oath.
There is also the opportunity to make a written request for documents from each party. The defendant is likely going to want to see your medical records, photographs, and anything else that was used to document your injury. Your lawyer can even issue a subpoena to other people in order to request documents.
Oral Discovery
A deposition is commonly used during discovery, which is when a lawyer can speak with anyone and use their testimony as evidence. It is not just limited to you and the defendant, since each lawyer can bring in witnesses, doctors, and whoever else they feel will strengthen their case. A court reporter will then transcribe the depositions while under oath, and that transcript can be used as evidence if the case were to go to trial.
Interrogatories are very similar to a deposition, but it is a bit different. Instead of being asked the questions directly by a lawyer in person, the person providing the interrogatory gives spoken answers that are transcribed.
Requests for admissions can also be made during oral discovery, which involves validating documents. A person will be shown a document and allowed to view it, and then will be asked to confirm facts about the document or to speak about the entire document's genuineness
Want to learn more about the discovery process? Reach out to a car accident lawyer so that you can know what to expect.
