You may have been able to walk away from the scene of your personal injury accident seemingly unharmed. Your health may have remained normal and stable in the following days as well. However, months later, you may start picking up on signs and symptoms that you never experienced before. After being diagnosed with a certain injury, you may not be able to help but attribute it to your significant, impactful accident event. Well, please follow along to find out whether you have enough time to sue given your delayed injuries and how a proficient Pasco County personal injury lawyer at Merricks Law Group, P.A. can help you make right of this situation.
Do I have enough time to sue if my injuries are delayed?
Delayed signs and symptoms are more common among accident-related injuries than you may realize. For example, whiplash, a frequent injury in an auto accident event, may take up to five days to reveal visible symptoms, such as neck stiffness, shoulder pain, arm numbness, etc. With this understanding, Florida law applies the “discovery rule” to certain personal injury claims. Typically, the statute of limitations for this claim type is two years from the date of the accident event. But with the discovery rule, your deadline may be extended to two years from the date you found out, or should have reasonably found out, about your injury’s existence.
How do I prove that my injuries were delayed?
To reiterate, you may only count the discovery rule toward your case if your injury type is not immediately apparent, nor its effects. With that being said, to ensure the Florida civil court accepts your case, you must do everything in your power to prove that you practiced reasonable diligence in identifying and treating your injury as promptly as possible. Specifically, this may require you to bring forward the following forms of evidence:
- Records of your medical history to establish that your injury is unrelated to any of your pre-existing health conditions.
- Records of your seeking medical attention immediately and repeatedly after your accident event date to monitor your physical condition.
- A catalogue of your treating medical professional’s evaluations of your physical condition and how an injury actualized over time.
- Expert testimony by a medical professional regarding the likely cause and effect of your incurred injury and how the nature of your injury is delayed.
- Testimony from your friends, family, or employer explaining how you have not engaged in any activity since your accident that would cause injury.
Otherwise, the court may have difficulty accepting your causal link between the defendant’s negligence and your injury and ultimately rule in your disfavor. To conclude, to give yourself enough time to develop a solid case, please contact a talented Pasco County personal injury lawyer from Merricks Law Group, P.A., as soon as possible. We look forward to hearing from you.
