According to the Transportation Injury Mapping System at the University of California, Berkeley, more than 165,000 traffic accidents took place across California in 2024. Each of these accidents changed the lives of the involved parties. Victims of car crashes usually suffer life-changing injuries or the loss of loved ones. A personal injury case stems from their inability to find financial relief outside of California's courts. Yet, the steps to win a case include an extensive discovery process.
What Is Discovery?
During a personal injury lawsuit, the plaintiff who has a grievance files their case with the local court. Discovery is essentially the evidence-gathering or investigative phase of the process. Both the plaintiff and the defendant must prove their arguments. Discovery includes anything that relates to the crash, all directly impacted parties, third parties and others who have knowledge that can support a claim. Typically, personal injury or defense lawyers and other legal staff perform the actual task.
A law firm makes an immediate written request to the other party and their lawyer to preserve all documents and other relevant evidence. They then attempt to gather everything as quickly as possible. Many businesses, agencies and organizations don't keep relevant evidence on file for long. For example, a nearby business might automatically delete street-facing security camera footage nightly or once a week.
What Counts as Evidence?
Basic evidence includes written and recorded statements from the plaintiff, witnesses, law enforcement and any relevant experts that offer supportive information and facts. For example, legal counsel might attempt to obtain witness testimonies, police and medical reports, insurance carrier forms, photographs taken at the scene or hospital, personal videos by either party or witnesses, and footage from security, police body or dash and traffic cameras.
Of course, attorneys pursue any type of evidence that might support their client's claim. They might request copies of 911 call recordings or ask second-opinion medical specialists and third-party crash and forensic experts to perform independent investigations. They might also request follow-up reports with written and charted details and video statements.
Why Does Discovery Take Months?
A personal injury legal team might need six months on average, or even longer, to acquire enough evidence to make a strong argument. Many car crash victims go through lengthy workers' compensation or insurer processes before seeking legal help. They sometimes experience delayed symptoms that only start affecting them months after the crash.
By the time a victim talks to a personal injury lawyer, they might have more than a year's worth of evidence that requires a thorough review by the legal team. For example, a plaintiff who has been dealing with health and work problems for more than a year after an accident often has a much bigger medical history and related file than one who started taking legal steps the day of or after the accident.
Some evidence also takes longer to acquire because of investigation delays and lengthy request requirements. Members of law enforcement must complete an investigation before finalizing a police report. Hospitals can take weeks or even months to fulfill requests for copies of all relevant medical documents, scans and other medical records. In some regions, the victim of an accident or their family must have their requests notarized or pay fees.
Even after the receipt of all written documents, both legal counsels then usually request in-person interviews, known as depositions, with all parties, witnesses and experts. They must have enough time to schedule these appointments, reschedule in the event that an emergency or other disruption prevents a meeting on a specific date, and set up follow-ups to clarify anything they might have previously missed or new evidence.
Why Is a Lawyer's Assistance Critical?
The entire discovery process takes more than a victim's time or money. Anyone attempting to gather enough evidence to win a case must have the knowledge and skills to acquire the right kinds of evidence and deal with any pushback from opposing counsel.
For example, a person or team making a deposition request must file a notice of deposition. If they forget to include a request for video recording in the written document, then they must refile and possibly reschedule the appointment. They must also know how to make written custom question requests known as special or specially prepared interrogatories. If the opposing counsel seems to withhold any evidence, personal injury lawyers know exactly how to fight back for their clients.
Additionally, a personal injury legal team gives a victim or victims a low-stress opportunity to do everything they need to heal and continue forward with their day-to-day obligations while discovery takes place. For example, while trying to manage painful injury-related symptoms or rehabilitation, a victim, their spouse or another member of their family doesn't have to spend hours arguing or playing phone tag with someone, perhaps a person who isn't the right one to contact, about a single piece of evidence or missing pieces of evidence. A member of a deceased victim's family doesn't have to take time away from their grief or worsen their nightmare by dealing directly with the defendant who caused their loss.
Lastly, personal injury lawyers typically set up a contingency fee arrangement with their clients. They only receive payment if they win a client's case. As a result, a victim doesn't have to pay anything for an initial consultation or follow-up phone calls, emails and meetings. They also usually don't have to pay fees related to evidence gathering, such as the costs to hire a notary public or copy large medical document files. Personal injury lawyers usually add pre-trial discovery costs to their expenses that come out of their client's court-ordered award for damages or out-of-court settlement.