To file a personal injury lawsuit, you draft a formal complaint identifying the defendant and the legal basis for your claim, file it with the correct court and pay the filing fee, then formally serve the defendant with the complaint and a court-issued summons within the deadline your state or federal rules set. All of that has to happen before the statute of limitations runs out, which in most states is two years from the date of the injury. Most cases settle before or during litigation, but the filing steps are the same whether you end up at a settlement table or in front of a jury.
Know Your Filing Deadline First
Every state sets a statute of limitations for personal injury claims. Miss it and the court will almost certainly throw the case out no matter how strong the facts are. About half the states set the deadline at two years from the date of injury. Others allow three, four, or in rare cases up to six.
The clock usually starts on the date you were hurt. A doctrine called the discovery rule can push that start date later when the injury wasn’t immediately obvious, so the clock begins when you knew or reasonably should have known about the harm. This comes up most often in medical malpractice, where a misdiagnosis or surgical error may not surface for months or years.
If the injured person is a minor, most states pause the deadline until the child turns eighteen. A three-year statute would not start running until the eighteenth birthday, giving that person until age twenty-one to file. The tolling rules vary by state, so check yours early.
Government Defendants Have Stricter Rules
If a federal employee acting in an official capacity caused your injury, you cannot sue right away. Federal law requires you to file an administrative claim with the responsible agency first. The agency then has six months to respond, and only after a written denial or six months of silence can you take the case to court.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 2675 – Disposition by Federal Agency as Prerequisite; Evidence
State and local government claims come with their own pre-suit notice requirements, and these are often much shorter than the regular statute of limitations. Many states require written notice within 30 to 180 days after the injury. Miss that notice and your right to sue can vanish even though the ordinary deadline hasn’t expired. If a government entity might be involved, checking your state’s tort claims act is the first thing to do.
Try a Demand Letter Before You Sue
Most personal injury cases begin with a demand letter to the at-fault party’s insurance company, not a filed lawsuit. The letter summarizes what happened, explains why the other side is responsible, lays out your damages with documentation, and names a dollar figure you’ll accept to settle. It opens a negotiation. Insurance adjusters rarely accept the initial demand, and several rounds of counteroffers usually follow.
A useful demand package includes medical records and bills, proof of lost income, repair estimates for property damage, and a narrative explaining how the injury has affected your daily life. The demand amount reflects the strength of your liability evidence, the severity of the injuries, how similar cases have settled, and what a jury might award at trial. If negotiations stall or the insurer refuses a reasonable offer, filing suit becomes the next step.
Pick the Right Court
Before drafting anything, identify the correct court. You generally file in the state and county where the injury happened or where the defendant lives or does business. Filing in a court that lacks authority over the defendant is one of the defenses raised most often at the start of litigation, and it can result in dismissal or transfer, costing you months.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 12 – Defenses and Objections
Most personal injury cases belong in state court. Federal court enters the picture when the plaintiff and defendant are from different states and more than $75,000 is at stake, or when federal law governs the claim, such as a Federal Tort Claims Act case. The choice affects the jury pool and the pace of the case, so it’s worth discussing with an attorney when you have options.
Draft the Complaint
The complaint is the document that officially starts your lawsuit. Formatting varies by court, but the structure is standard.
At the top is the caption, which names the court, identifies you as the plaintiff, and identifies the person or entity you’re suing as the defendant. Then comes a chronological account of what happened, told in numbered paragraphs: where you were, what the defendant did or failed to do, and how you were injured.
The complaint has to state the legal theory supporting the claim. In most personal injury cases that theory is negligence, meaning the defendant owed you a duty of care, breached it, and caused your injuries. Other theories such as strict liability for defective products or intentional misconduct may apply depending on the facts.
The final section asks the court for specific relief. This is where you identify the categories of damages you’re seeking, including medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering. Some plaintiffs list a specific dollar amount. Others request damages “in an amount to be determined at trial.” Your court’s rules and local practice will dictate which approach fits.
File the Complaint and Pay the Fee
Once the complaint is drafted, you file it with the clerk of the court you’ve chosen. Many courts accept electronic filing through online portals. Others require paper copies delivered in person or by mail.3United States District Court District of Maryland. Electronic Filing in Civil Cases Check your specific court’s procedures before you show up at the clerk’s window.
Filing triggers a court fee. In federal court, the fee for a new civil case is currently $405. State court fees vary widely, running from roughly $200 to $400 or more. If you cannot afford the fee, you can ask the court to let you proceed without paying by filing a fee-waiver application. Federal courts allow this under a statute that permits any person to file without prepayment of fees by submitting a sworn statement that they cannot pay.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1915 – Proceedings In Forma Pauperis Most state courts have similar provisions.
Serve the Defendant
Filing the complaint does not notify the defendant. You have to formally deliver a copy of the complaint along with a court-issued summons, a process called service. In federal court, you have 90 days after filing to complete service. Miss that window without good cause and the court can dismiss the case.5Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 4 – Summons
Under federal rules, anyone at least 18 years old who is not a party to the case can serve the documents. In practice, most plaintiffs use a professional process server or a sheriff’s deputy. The server physically hands the papers to the defendant, then signs an affidavit confirming delivery. That affidavit gets filed with the court as proof of service.5Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 4 – Summonsp>
Some defendants are hard to locate or actively avoid service. In those situations, courts may allow alternative methods such as leaving the documents with another adult at the defendant’s home, service by publication in a newspaper, or in some jurisdictions service by mail. The specifics depend on the court’s rules and may need a judge’s approval.
What the Defendant Does Next
After being served, the defendant has a limited window to respond. In federal court, the standard deadline is 21 days. If the defendant waived formal service, meaning they agreed to accept the documents voluntarily, the deadline extends to 60 days.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 12 – Defenses and Objections
The response usually takes one of two forms. The defendant may file an answer, which goes through the complaint paragraph by paragraph, admitting or denying each allegation. The answer often includes affirmative defenses, meaning reasons the defendant argues they shouldn’t be held liable even if your facts are true. Common affirmative defenses in injury cases include comparative fault, assumption of risk, and expiration of the statute of limitations.
Alternatively, the defendant may file a motion to dismiss before answering. That motion argues the case has a procedural or legal defect that should end it immediately. Common grounds include lack of jurisdiction over the defendant, improper venue, and failure to state a valid legal claim.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 12 – Defenses and Objections If the court denies the motion, the defendant then has 14 days to file an answer.
Discovery
Discovery is where both sides investigate the facts, and it is usually the longest phase of a lawsuit. Each party can demand documents, ask written questions, and take sworn testimony from witnesses. The point is to eliminate surprises at trial and force both sides to show their hand.
The main tools are interrogatories (written questions the other side must answer under oath, capped at 25 per party in federal court unless the court orders otherwise), depositions (live sworn testimony taken outside the courtroom with a court reporter recording every word), requests for production (formal demands for documents like medical records, insurance policies, and internal communications), and requests for admission (statements the other side must admit or deny under oath).
Discovery often exposes the strengths and weaknesses of each side’s position, which is why many cases settle during or shortly after this phase. It is also expensive. Expert witness fees, deposition transcripts, and document review drive up litigation costs quickly.
After discovery closes, either party may file a motion for summary judgment, asking the court to rule in their favor without a trial. The court grants this only when there is no genuine factual dispute and the moving party is entitled to win as a matter of law.6Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 56 – Summary Judgment Most personal injury cases involve factual disputes about who was at fault or how badly someone was hurt, so full summary judgment is uncommon. Partial summary judgment can still knock out specific claims or defenses before trial.
How Most Cases End
The vast majority of personal injury cases settle before trial. Settlement can happen at any stage: during pre-suit negotiations, after the complaint is filed, during discovery, or on the courthouse steps the morning of trial. Many courts push the parties toward resolution by ordering mediation, where a neutral mediator helps both sides negotiate. Mediation isn’t binding unless you agree to a deal, but it’s effective enough that many jurisdictions require it before setting a trial date.
If the case doesn’t settle, it goes to trial. In most personal injury cases you have the right to a jury trial. The plaintiff presents evidence first, the defendant responds, and the jury decides both liability and damages. A trial can last a day or two for a straightforward car accident case, or several weeks for complex medical malpractice or product liability claims.
After a verdict, the losing side can file post-trial motions or appeal. Appeals don’t re-try the facts. They challenge legal errors the trial judge may have made. The appeals process can add a year or more to the timeline, which is another reason most defendants with reasonable settlement offers on the table prefer to resolve cases before a verdict.
What You’ll Pay a Lawyer
Most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis. You pay nothing upfront, and the attorney collects a percentage of your recovery only if you win. The standard rate is about one-third (33.3%) for cases that settle before a lawsuit is filed, rising to around 40% if the case proceeds through trial. If you recover nothing, you owe no attorney fee for their time.
Beyond the attorney’s percentage, lawsuits generate their own expenses: court filing fees, charges for obtaining medical records, expert witness fees, and deposition costs. Most personal injury attorneys advance these costs during the case and deduct them from your settlement or verdict at the end. Clarify in your fee agreement whether you are responsible for those expenses if the case is unsuccessful. Some agreements make you liable for costs even when there is no recovery.
Evidence to Gather from Day One
Strong evidence is what separates cases that settle quickly and favorably from those that drag on or fall apart. Start collecting documentation as soon as possible after the injury:
- Official reports, including police reports from car accidents, workplace incident reports, or any official account of what happened. These carry weight because they are created close in time to the event by someone with no stake in the claim.
- Medical records: emergency room records, specialist visit notes, physical therapy logs, and prescription records. Make sure your providers document how you were hurt, because the connection between the incident and the injuries has to appear in the medical file.
- Bills and receipts for every medical bill, pharmacy receipt, and out-of-pocket expense tied to the injury. These become the backbone of the economic damage claim.
- Visual evidence, meaning photos and videos of the accident scene, the injuries at various stages of healing, and any property damage.
- Witness names, phone numbers, and addresses. Witness memory fades fast, and getting written or recorded statements early is far more useful than tracking someone down a year later.
- Lost income documentation, including pay stubs, tax returns, or a letter from your employer confirming missed work.
Be careful with social media during the entire process. Defense attorneys routinely search plaintiffs’ accounts for posts, photos, or check-ins that contradict claimed injuries. A photo of you at a family barbecue can be spun as evidence you’re not as hurt as you say, even if you were in pain the whole time. Stop posting about your activities and tighten your privacy settings until the case is resolved.