One of the most common questions we are asked by clients who are considering making a personal injury claim is whether or not their claim will go to trial.
Will My Personal Injury Claim Go To Court?
A trial can be a daunting experience, even for experienced lawyers. For the general public the thought that they may have to go to Court can be enough to persuade them not to pursue a claim, even if they have been injured through no fault of their own.
Any claim for personal injury could, theoretically, end up at a trial. If the defendant in the case does not admit fault, or if they do but they refuse to properly compensate the injured party, then the case may end up in Court. However, most claims do not result in a trial. Most personal injury claims do not even require the claimant to commence Court proceedings.
A hearing can take place long before a case ever reaches a trial and some cases require numerous hearings before a trial takes place. We regularly deal with hearings on behalf of clients where the client does not have to attend and does not even need to be very involved. These include:
- Case management hearings
- Cost management hearings
- Pre-trial reviews
- Hearings for applications (such as applications for pre-action disclosure or for interim payments)
Many of these hearings will also be included in these statistics.
Although there is no definitive data about how many personal injury claims are decided at trials the evidence suggests that it is a very small percentage. In our experience only around 1.5% of cases actually go to a trial.
It is, therefore, very unlikely for a personal injury claim to go to a trial. Most are settled or discontinued before that time (although not necessarily long before the trial is due to start).
How Nelsons Can Help
Despite this small percentage, our Personal Injury solicitors are experienced at taking claims to trials in order to get the best result for our clients. Whether a defendant is refusing to admit fault, or is not willing to pay a reasonable amount in compensation, we do not hesitate to take action against them.
If you have been injured in an accident which was not your fault, please contact us to see if our team can assist you in pursuing a claim for compensation. However, long your claim takes we will be with you every step of the way right up to the trial.