No one wants to be injured at the workplace. We know it can happen and we do our best to avoid them, but you can’t always prevent the negligence of the employers and other workers around you. When it does happen, a personal injury lawsuit is a powerful tool at your disposal – if you’re considering filing one, you must understand that there are time limits.
The legal time limit
Pennsylvania requires employers to provide a safe working environment at all times. When an employer fails in their duty, it can cause an accident and injure you in the process. In such a situation, the employer is legally negligent and may be held responsible. To do so, Pennsylvania gives you the right to sue them, so that you may be made whole again.
But at the same time Pennsylvania gives you the right, it also places a time limit on that right. This is known as the statute of limitations – you have two years, counted from the date of your accident, to file your personal injury lawsuit. If you fail to do so, you lose the right forever.
There’s also a practical time limit
Long before the statute of limitations runs out, an investigation usually needs to be conducted. The strength of your case, and its success, depends upon evidence. The better the evidence, the stronger your case and the more likely you will win it. That evidence must be collected – things like safety measures that were in place, witness statements, videos and documents.
The more time which passes, that evidence can begin to grow stale or unobtainable. Witness memories degrade and documents are disposed of. Once you’ve made the decision to file a personal injury lawsuit, the sooner you act, the better. It improves your chances of collecting the compensation you’re entitled to and holding the negligent party accountable.