As personal injury attorneys handling cases in the Kansas City metro for over 15 years, we have filed and litigated many lawsuits. Although we try to give each case the chance of settling before we sue someone, filing suit is sometimes inevitable in personal injury cases. Here is a brief overview of what goes into a personal injury lawsuit.
First, we have to state facts that ensures the court has personal jurisdiction over the parties and that the lawsuit is filed in the right venue.
Personal jurisdiction is the Court’s power to exercise its judgments against the parties. If the court does not have personal jurisdiction over the parties, it will usually dismiss the lawsuit. If the venue, or location of the lawsuit, is incorrect the court will usually transfer the case to the correct venue.
Next, the lawsuit must contain the allegations of negligence against the defendants.
The allegations must have enough facts and information to let the defendants know what they did wrong and why they are being sued. These allegations are usually spelled out in separate counts, if there are more than one. If there aren’t enough facts to tell the defendant what they did wrong, the judge may order the plaintiff to re-write the lawsuit.
Finally, the lawsuit must contain all the special damages the defendants’ negligence caused.
Special damages are economic damages like medical expenses and wage loss. Pain and suffering damages are general damages that need not be stated, at least in Missouri. If the damages are not properly stated, the judge may prevent you from claiming them at trial.
These are but a few of the things we write into our lawsuits when they become necessary. If you have any questions about personal injury lawsuits, please give our office a call.