A personal injury lawsuit is a means of pursuing financial compensation for harm caused by another party’s negligence. The plaintiff, or the individual who was injured, brings the lawsuit against the party who was responsible for his or her injury, called the defendant. The defendant may be a negligent driver, an insurance company, a property owner, a business, or even a government entity.
A crucial aspect of a personal injury lawsuit is discovery. During the discovery process, the defendant and the plaintiff gather information about the facts of the case using various legal tools. The information gathered during discovery may help the parties negotiate a settlement and avoid taking the case to trial. If no settlement is reached and the case does go to trial, the information gathered during discovery will be used as evidence in court.
Information-Gathering Strategies Used in a Personal Injury Lawsuit
Discovery exists so that both sides of a lawsuit have all of the information and can build their cases effectively. Depositions are sometimes used in personal injury lawsuits to gather oral testimony from parties who are placed under oath. A deposition is a formal meeting that takes place in front of a court reporter who will record everything the parties and their attorneys say.
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