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A lawsuit is a formal court proceeding that ends in a settlement or a trial. Very few cases proceed to trial. Most cases are settled out of court.

A lawsuit has five main parts.

The first part is filing a Statement of Claim with the court. This is an official court document that describes who wronged you, how they wronged you, what your injuries and other losses are, and how much money you are asking for.

The second part of a lawsuit is an examination for discovery. This is often called a “deposition” on television and is a meeting where your lawyer asks the defendants questions about the case and the defendant’s lawyer asks you questions about your case. The meeting is recorded and typed into a transcript.

The third part of a lawsuit is gathering the evidence you need to prove your case. This includes gathering medical records, receipts, witness statements, and often reports created by medical and other experts who are hired by your lawyer to explain your injuries and losses.

The fourth part of your case is often a mediation, which is a settlement meeting with a mediator. The mediator helps both sides see each other’s point of view and brings settlement offers back and forth between the parties with the goal of settling the case.

The fifth part of your case is a trial. The trial is a formal court hearing that can take days or weeks. Both sides call witnesses and present their case to a judge or a judge and a jury who then renders a verdict.

Your case can settle any time. Many cases settle before needing to file a Statement of Claim, or before needing to attend an examination for discovery or a mediation. Very few cases go to trial.

If you are involved in an accident and it is not your fault, then you are entitled to compensation for all losses caused by the accident:

1. Pain and suffering damages: these compensate you for the change in your quality of life, taking into account the change to your health, your pain levels, the activities you cannot do anymore, how your emotional health and relationships are impacted, etc.

2. Out of pocket expenses: this compensates you for money you have already spent due to the accident or your injuries (keep your receipts!), such as parking expenses to see your doctor, physiotherapy costs, pain medication, etc.

3. Loss of employment or business income: this is income you’ve lost or will lose because of the accident or your injuries. You are also entitled to all future income loss, or an amount to account for the real and substantial possibility of losses to your ability to earn income in the future or be competitive in an open job market.

4. Housekeeping losses: you are entitled to compensation for your inability to do your housekeeping chores or yard maintenance chores in the past and for the remainder of your life, including a reasonable amount to hire people to do these chores for you if your injuries prevent you from doing them.

5. Future medical care: you are entitled to compensation for all medical care you will need for the remainder of your life as a result of your injuries.

6. Legal costs: Ontario has a “loser pays” system, meaning that the loser pays a part of the winner’s legal costs. If you settle your case or are successful at trial then you have won your case. Legal costs generally cover 25% to 50% of your lawyer’s bill.

Every case is different. Some cases can be settled quickly, in a matter of months. Some cases can take two to four years to settle.

A lawyer’s goal is to get you fair compensation. You can only settle your case once, so it needs to be for the right number. The main concern is not how you will be doing two months from now, but how you will be doing ten years from now.

Generally, a lawyer will not settle your case until you have recovered or they know how your injuries will impact your future. If you recover quickly, your lawyer may be able to settle your case quickly. If you do not recover quickly, your case could take two to four years to resolve.

Lawyers know limitation periods and ensure you do not miss them. Ontario law has many different notice and limitation periods, some of which start only 10 days after your accident. If you miss one, your case could be dismissed or barred.

Lawyers give you peace of mind. They take care of your case so that you can focus on your recovery. Put simply: it is your job to try and get better and it is your lawyer’s job to do everything else.

Lawyers help you get treatment. Physiotherapy, massage therapy, chiropractic treatment and counseling are expensive. Insurance companies often deny requests to fund your treatment. Lawyers fight these unfair denials to get you the physical and psychological treatment you need. Some treatment providers who will treat you upfront at no cost if you agree to pay them back when you settle your case, but only if you have a lawyer.

Lawyers know the value of your case. Knowledge is power. Never settle your case until you know what you are owed as a matter of law. If you have a long-term injury, it may cost you a significant amount of money over the remainder of your life. Lawyers give you advice on how much to settle your case for, though the decision to settle remains your own.

Lawyers even the power imbalance. Insurance companies are a business not a charity; they are not your friend. They hire insurance lawyers whose goal is to dismiss or settle your case for less than it is worth. A lawyer evens this power imbalance and is generally able to secure you a better settlement than you would on your own even after the lawyer’s fees are deducted.

You should see your doctor and tell them about all of your symptoms. Be honest and accurate. It is important that your medical record accurately records all of your symptoms.

Try and get better. Follow your doctor and other medical practitioners’ treatment advice.

Keep your receipts, no matter how small. You should receive every penny you are owed and this may not happen without receipts.

Talk to your lawyer about your case. Keep them updated on your recovery. Ask them questions when you do not understand something about your case.

If your lawyer cannot settle your case before starting a lawsuit, then you may need to attend an interview with the insurance company’s lawyer (called an “examination for discovery”) or a mediation, which is a meeting with the insurance company where we try and settle your case. In very rare cases, you may be required to attend a trial.

Your lawyer will want to know about your life before the accident. How was your health? How did you earn income? What were your life and career plans if the accident did not happen?

Your lawyer will want to know about the accident. When did it happen? Where did it happen? How did it happen? Whose fault was the accident?

Your lawyer will want to know how the accident impacted your life. What are your injuries? What are all of your symptoms? How they impact your personal life? Your work life? Your home life?

Ontario has a loser pays system. That means that if you lose the case at trial you are required to pay a part of the winner’s legal bill.

It is extraordinarily rare for a personal injury case to go to trial, let alone for the injured person to lose at trial.

Regardless, lawyers can generally arrange litigation insurance that pays the winner’s legal bill for you if you lose your case.

Many cases can be settled within months of retaining a lawyer. But cases with more serious injuries usually take longer.

Your lawyer may need doctors to write reports on how your injuries will impact your future before they settle your case. Your future is often the most important part of your case, after all.

It can take two years or more to reach the point of maximum medical recovery where doctors are able to know with any certainty what your future holds. This means you may need to wait two years before your lawyer can secure the medical reports needed for your case.

Ontario courts are severely backlogged. It takes one to two years to set a trial date and you must complete a number of other steps before you can set a trial date.

Insurance companies are businesses that focus on profit. Paying you less than you are owed increases their profits. Denying you benefits increases their profits.

Insurance companies are used to working in our legal system, which is an adversarial system. This means that insurance companies are accustomed to fighting against injured people in court. They are naturally suspicious and trained to look for weaknesses in someone’s case to try and defeat them in court. This kind of mindset does not make for healthy relationships.

People make mistakes and people operate insurance companies. The insurance adjuster may not understand your case. They may falsely believe you’re lying or exaggerating your case. Unfortunately, when an insurance company makes a mistake it can cause incredible harm to an injured person.