Where You File Has Significant Impact on Your Lawsuit
After suffering a serious injury, many people will understand the importance of retaining an attorney to investigate filing a lawsuit. As many people begin working with an attorney to bring a lawsuit, it seems few give enough thought to where their lawsuit should be filed. Questions of what occurred and how you were injured are, of course, critically important, however, the choice of where to file suit will surely have a significant impact on your lawsuit.
Pennsylvania law provides the injured person with great discretion as to where they may file a lawsuit. For most personal injury cases, a lawsuit may be filed in any county in the Commonwealth where a defendant resides or where that defendant regularly conducts business. These laws permit a person file a lawsuit in a different county than where they were injured.
This distinction is an important one. Some counties have jurors that are traditionally more sympathetic to inured persons than other counties. Some counties will be more convenient for witnesses to appear in court. There can also be additional costs associated with where the filing is made. Finally, some counties have a case management system in place that will ensure a quicker resolution of your case than other counties. All of these factors must be considered in selecting an appropriate venue to file a lawsuit. It is also important to remember that if lawsuit is filed in an incorrect venue, the case may be transferred or even dismissed, making the selection of an appropriate venue critically important.
If you or a loved has suffered an injury, contact our team to discuss not just how the injury happened but the specifics regarding where to file suit. By analyzing the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure and applying legal holdings, our attorneys will ensure that a legally appropriate venue that best suits your case is selected.