Swartz & Swartz, P.C. has been among the best and most successful Boston personal injury and wrongful death law firms since the 1970’s.
Our attorneys are committed to working aggressively to get results for our clients and working collaboratively with them every step of the way.
Our top injury lawyers represent clients in all types of accidents, including catastrophic injury, wrongful death, medical malpractice and product liability claims in Massachusetts, New England, and right across the country.
What sets Swartz & Swartz attorneys apart is our ability to build strong, trusting personal relationships with every one of our clients. This is a serious point of pride for us. And it’s why our attorneys are always up-front with a client or potential client about their reasons for taking – or not taking – their case.
There’s a common misconception that personal injury lawyers will always agree to take a case, no matter what. At Swartz & Swartz P.C., we thoroughly look into any case before we take it on to determine the most likely outcome; and we are always open and honest about reasons why we can’t take their case.
To help people understand why a case might refused, we’ve outlined the three most significant reasons why a personal injury lawyer will not take a case.
Plaintiff more than 51% resonsible
In Massachusetts we have something called “comparative negligence,” a legal rule that governs personal injury cases. According to General Law c. 231, § 85, a plaintiff can only recover damages if and only if their share of fault was less than 51 percent. What does this mean? It means that you won’t be successful in filing a claim for damages caused by a car accident, for instance, if you were more than 51 percent at fault for it. Many personal injury lawyers will not take your case if you don’t meet the comparative negligence threshold. Moreover, although comparative fault is a jury question, a responsible attorney will carefully evaluate liability at the outset.
The statute of limitations has passed – more than three years is up
The statute of limitations in Massachusetts in most personal injury cases is three years. What this means is that a personal injury claim (in most circumstances) needs to filed in court before three years have passed since the date the injury or accident occurred. If your at-fault accident or injury is more than three years old and presented to a personal injury lawyer, they likely won’t take it because the law says time’s up.
It is important to speak to an experience attorney immediately when dealing with any personal injury case that decision can have compounding effects on the success of your case.
There are no damages to be collected – the cupboard is bare
If you have been in an at-fault accident with a person who has no assets or insurance to pursue, there may be no faults available to satisfy a jury verdict in your favor.
However, do not assume that your case won’t be accepted by a personal injury lawyer. It’s always a good idea to talk to a personal injury lawyer first to go over the specifics of your case to determine what can be done. Give our experienced attorneys a call now. We want to hear from you.
Joseph A Swartz is an accomplished trial attorney with over 35 years of experience litigating cases in New England and around the country focusing in the areas of personal injury, including but not limited to wrongful death, products liability, medical malpractice, brain injury, dram shop (liquor) liability, automobile liability and premises liability.
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If you or someone you know, needs help from a lawyer, contact the law offices of Swartz & Swartz, use our live chat, or send us a message using the form below and we’ll get in touch to assess your case and how we can help.