If you need to file a personal injury lawsuit in Pennsylvania, then there are some things that you should know before proceeding. Not only do you need to be familiar with the general process of how these lawsuits work, but you also need to know the specific laws in your state. To help you get a better idea of how to proceed, here are some specific rules for personal injury lawsuits in Pennsylvania:

The Statute of Limitations

You have to file your lawsuit within a certain number of months or else your case will likely just get thrown out. For most cases in Pennsylvania, you have 2 years to file. When filing against the government, you have 6 months instead. These are found in Subchapter B, with the limit on general personal injury lawsuits in section 5524 and the limit for action against the government in section 5522.

There is generally one big exception to keep in mind when it comes to the statute of limitations, and that is cases where the injury was not discovered until years after the fact. It's entirely possible that one could be negligently exposed to chemicals at the workplace and not display adverse symptoms for decades, which would be long after the statute of limitations has run out. In these cases, the statute of limitations is often calculated from the discovery of the injury rather than from the incident itself.

Damage Caps

Pennsylvania has very few limitations on damage caps, with the only notable example being a cap on punitive damages. While you can only pursue punitive damages that are equal to twice the rest of the damages combined, not many cases actually allow for punitive damages in the first place.

Punitive damage are meant to prevent negligence in the future, so they are normally used in cases pertaining to medical malpractice and the like. The odds of your case allowing for punitive damages are quite low, but you should ask a lawyer to make sure.

Car Accident Lawsuits

Pennsylvania is one of the states that only allows lawsuits to be filed in car accidents where serious injuries were caused. If there were no serious injuries, then you will have to just talk to your insurance and hope that they can cover the damages.

As you might expect, the line between serious and non-serious injuries can get somewhat blurry. Therefore, you will want to talk to an attorney if you have any doubts as to which category your injury falls under. A short consultation with a personal injury attorney can help you establish which route you should go and whether or not a lawsuit is your best option.