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What is The Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury Claims in New Jersey?

When individuals are injured as a result of another party’s negligence, either in an auto accident, a slip and fall accident, or otherwise, they sometimes consider filing a personal injury lawsuit. A personal injury case is a civil action that exists to hold a negligent party responsible for injuries that happened as a result. Sometimes, people may hesitate to bring a lawsuit against another party for a long period of time after an accident. This may be because of a fear that they cannot afford certain legal fees that come with the lawsuit or they do not wish to cause any further trouble. This is usually the case if the individual would be filing a claim against a relative or friend.

Oftentimes, people do not realize that personal injury attorneys are only paid on a contingency basis. This means the attorney only gets paid if they recover an award for the injured party. In addition to this, the payment is generally taken out of the award that is recovered.

New Jersey’s Statute of Limitations

It is important to understand that if someone is harmed in an accident and wants to pursue a lawsuit, they should not wait too long. This is because there is a statute of limitations on the lawsuit. The statute of limitations is a deadline that people are required to meet if they wish to file a lawsuit against another party. In the state of New Jersey, injured individuals have a two-year statute of limitations from the date of the injury to pursue a claim for a personal injury case.

If an individual fails to file a lawsuit within the two-year time limit, the state of New Jersey will not allow them to bring a lawsuit against the negligent party.

Notice of Claim Requirements

If individuals are injured due to the negligence of a municipality, there may be a different process in pursuing a lawsuit. The state of New Jersey is generally protected from claims against the government under the New Jersey Tort Claims Act. However, Section 59:2-2 of the Act allows an exception to this rule in the event that individuals are injured by the negligence of a public entity.

When this happens, the individual may file a Notice of Claim. This gives notice to a municipality informing them that the individual plans to bring a lawsuit against them. Individuals in New Jersey have only 90 days from the date of the accident to file a Notice of Claim. Having an experienced personal injury attorney can be beneficial for individuals to assist their case.

Contact our Firm

Stathis & Leonardis, LLC is an experienced personal injury law firm in Middlesex County, New Jersey that is committed to helping clients who have been hurt because of the negligence of another party. If you have been involved in a motor vehicle accident or were injured on another person’s property, contact our firm today.

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