Lawsuit Road Map

This is a post I did for my clients, so they know the road ahead. If your Waldorf, Maryland personal injury case has not settled, and we have been forced to file suit, your case is in litigation.

This post is designed to provide a road map of what to expect as your legal case moves forward. I will provide a brief outline of the litigation process and tell you what you need to do during the process.

The purpose of this is to give you a reference article you can read and re-read if you want to know what to expect during litigation of your personal injury case. If you are my client, we will talk about all of these matters in great detail over the course of your case. Use this is handy guide you can refer to whenever you want.

While geared to personal injury cases, everything in this roadmap applies to any other type of lawsuit in Maryland.

This post cannot possibly answer all questions or provide details of your specific personal injury case. We will discuss those details one on one. If you ever have any questions or concerns, or need to discuss the facts of your particular case, please don’t hesitate to call me.

If you need a Waldorf personal injury attorney, contact us today for a free consultation. And discover everything you need to know with our Free Legal Guide to Car Accident Cases in Maryland. Know your options and be informed before you make big decisions about your accident case.

District Court vs Circuit Court

There are multiple levels of courts in Maryland.

If we filed your case in District Court, the process is largely the same – but it is much easier and shorter. District Court gives you a trial before a Judge – not a jury. That trial date will probably take place in a couple of months.

The trial will probably take 1-2 hours total, and we will have to be there one half of a day – either on the morning or afternoon docket depending on when the court sets our case in. It will be relatively easy for you to have this trial.

Circuit Court is where we filed if we want a jury trial. That is a longer and more involved process. It can be up to a year before we have the trial. The trial will probably take 2 days. Obviously, it is a way bigger deal than a District Court case.

There will be a lot of prep work before trial – regardless of which level. But don’t worry, most of that work is done by me and my staff. We will prepare you for everything and be there every step of the way.

Filing Suit & Serving the Summons

The first thing we have to do is file the lawsuit, which we either have done already or will do soon. Once the clerk gets the lawsuit, they prepare a summons.

The summons is a formal legal document directing the Defendant to file a response to our lawsuit. In a District Court case, the clerk sets the trial date in the summons. I will send you a copy. In Circuit Court, the trial date is not set until the other side answers the lawsuit.

The summons is returned to my office, and we have to serve the summons on the Defendant personally. I can’t just serve the insurance company.

This is a sort of antiquated law, in my opinion. It causes unnecessary harassment to private individuals who just happened to cause an accident. They answer the door one day and get handed a lawsuit. Most of the time, their insurance company didn’t bother to tell them it was coming.

In a personal injury case in Charles County, Maryland, the insurance company will represent the Defendant. But we still have to serve the Defendant (the person who caused your accident) with a lawsuit personally under the Maryland Rules of Civil Procedure. They must turn it over to their insurance company. I give them a cover letter advising them to do just that.

When we get service on the Defendant, they have 30 days to file an “Answer” to our complaint. (This is 15 days in District Court.) This is simply a formal legal document saying they will contest the case. I will get a copy. It is usually a formality, and doesn’t tell us much that we don’t already know.

The response to our lawsuit in District Court is called a “Notice of Intention to Defend.” The response in Circuit Court is called an “Answer.” One is more formal than the other, but they both mean the same thing – the litigation process will now begin full steam ahead.

When the Defendant files this Answer in Circuit Court, the Court will then set the trial date. Usually they will hold a hearing with the attorneys to clear dates and deadlines. The Court will also issue an Order setting deadlines for various things we must do in the case.

Discovery – Written

The first thing we do is a process called discovery. Discovery is more intense in Circuit Court than it is in District Court.

Each side sends the other side a list of questions (called Interrogatories), and a request to produce any documents or things you want to submit at trial (called Request for Production of Documents). They must be answered in writing and under oath.

You can read about that process, and what I need from you, here.  We will send you a copy of these questions, and my paralegal will work directly with you to answer the questions. We can answer many of their questions from the information in the file. We will do 90% of the work, but there will be some things I don’t know yet.

My staff will work with you to get them as accurate as possible, and then you and I will personally discuss them to make sure everything is in order. Then, you have to sign the oath that they are “true and correct.”

That means you have to be sure they are accurate when you sign your formal answers.

Don’t worry. The questions are pretty standard and they will not be hard to answer. If anything unusual is asked then you and I will discuss it. Often, I will refuse to answer an unusual or irrelevant question unless the other side has a very good reason. This is a rare occurrence in a personal injury case. It can happen in a general civil lawsuit though.

Depositions

In a Circuit Court trial, the next thing that happens is depositions. There are no depositions in a District Court case.

You probably know what a deposition is. You sit in front of a court reporter and answer questions from the other attorney. It will probably be in my office. It might be on Zoom. Since the pandemic, attorneys have been using Zoom for depositions. It is MUCH easier since you don’t have to travel the often long distances required.

I will be there to defend your deposition. I will normally depose the other driver as well in a personal injury case. In a standard civil case, I will definitely depose the other side if you are deposed.

Deposition preparation is the subject of another post. I will send you that one at the right time, and we will meet in my office to prepare for the deposition before it happens.

The one thing I want to tell you now is to NOT be nervous about your deposition. They are a serious legal proceeding to be sure, but they are a lot easier than you are probably thinking they are. They are NOT like what you see on TV.

The other attorney will usually be very nice and polite, and the whole thing will be rather conversational. You are not being asked any trick questions. You lived through this event, and the pain and medical care after the fact. That is all you have to talk about.

DME – Defense Medical Examination

In a personal injury case, the insurer has the right to send you to a Defense Medical Exam during the case.

This is like any other doctor’s appointment, except it is not your doctor. The insurance company will hire a doctor to use as an expert witness. They will send you to that doctor to be examined. A report will be made, and that will form the basis of their doctor’s testimony at your case.

DME’s are the subject of another email and post. I will send you that one and we can discuss at the right time.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

After your deposition and DME, we may explore alternative means of resolving your case. This may include arbitration, mediation, or a number of other creative processes.

The Courts love to push parties to alternative resolution. We will talk about this when the time comes. I just want to tell you to expect it.

Trial Preparation

If we do not agree to alternative dispute resolution, we will start preparing for trial. There will be a lot more to do at that time, and we will talk about it then. The weeks leading up to your trial are relatively busy. Be aware of that if planning any major events in that time period.

As always, feel free to call me if you have any questions or concerns.

Conclusion

Don’t worry. We have done this hundreds of times and will get you through this process safe and sound. You can call me anytime to discuss any questions or concerns you may have.

And remember to refer to our Free Legal Guide tn Car Accident Cases in Maryland if you have other questions.

If you need a Maryland personal injury attorney for your personal injury case, contact us for a consultation.

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Author: This content was written and approved by Tucker Clagett, an attorney at Southern Maryland Law – Andrews, Bongar, Gormley & Clagett.