Car accidents, semi-truck crashes, and other personal injury incidents often leave our clients with devastating injuries, property damage, unpaid medical bills, and financial losses. If someone else’s negligence caused your injuries, you may be entitled to compensation, and the attorneys at Skeeters, Bennett, Wilson & Humphrey have the knowledge and skill to help you recover compensation you are due. However, depending on the type of case, Kentucky law gives you only one to two years to file a personal injury lawsuit. This means victims of someone else’s careless conduct must act quickly to protect their right to recovery. .jpeg)
Here’s what you should know about these strict filing deadlines, known as the statutes of limitations, and how Skeeters, Bennett, Wilson & Humphrey’s skilled Central Kentucky injury attorneys can help you navigate the claims and civil litigation process to get the money you rightfully deserve for your medical bills, pain and suffering, and damages to property.
Understanding Kentucky Statutes of Limitations
Civil statutes of limitations are laws specifying how much time you have to file a lawsuit against a person or company. The purpose of these statutes is to protect would-be defendants from having to defend themselves from a civil action after substantial time has passed and relevant evidence has been lost or obscured. These laws vary significantly from state to state depending on the type of case.
Kentucky has a one-year statute of limitations for many types of personal injury cases, including dog bites and wrongful death actions. However, the time prescribed in Kentucky’s Motor Vehicle Reparations Act provides a two-year filing deadline for car accidents, commercial truck crashes, and pedestrian accident cases.
Unlike the standard statute of limitations, which starts ticking from the date of the injury, motor vehicle accident cases follow a different rule. The countdown begins either from the date of the injury or the date of the last personal injury protection (PIP) payment, whichever comes later.
Exceptions to the Standard Statute of Limitations
The Commonwealth of Kentucky does provide limited exceptions to the standard one- or two-year timeframes for filing a personal injury lawsuit. For instance, the countdown to the deadline may be “tolled” or paused in certain circumstances, including when the victim is a minor (though parents can bring a lawsuit on a child's behalf) or when the victim is physically or mentally incapacitated. In these situations, the countdown begins once the minor turns 18 or the incapacitated victim regains capacity.
How Kentucky’s Personal Injury Statute of Limitations Affects Your Right to Compensation
While wide-ranging factors can influence the outcome of a personal injury case, few have as direct and decisive an impact on your potential recovery as the statute of limitations. Once this filing deadline has passed, you are forever barred from bringing a lawsuit related to the incident. This means you’ve effectively forfeited your right to pursue a legal remedy for your injuries and losses.
Allowing the statute of limitations to expire is the surest way to lose your case. Don’t let it happen to you. Consult an experienced Kentucky injury attorney as soon as possible after a car accident or other incident caused by someone else’s negligence.
How Our Skilled Central Kentucky Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help You Fight for a Fair Recovery
At Skeeters, Bennett, Wilson & Humphrey, our skilled and experienced litigators can help you navigate the Commonwealth’s complex legal landscape to obtain the compensation you deserve for injuries and losses you didn’t cause.
What Our Kentucky Team Can Do for You
- Investigate the accident to help determine fault;
- Gather essential evidence;
- Handle communication with insurers and the other party’s defense attorney;
- Interview witnesses;
- Arrange for experts to testify on your behalf, if necessary; and
- Protect your rights and advocate for the best possible outcome.
What You Must Prove in a Negligence Case
To hold someone responsible for negligently causing you injury, you must prove the following elements:
- The defendant owed you a duty of care. That is, they had a legal obligation to take reasonable measures to avoid injuring others;
- The defendant breached the duty of care by failing to exercise reasonable care;
- The defendant’s conduct caused the accident that resulted in your injuries; and
- You suffered physical injuries or financial damages as a result of the accident.
What You Could Recover in Your Negligence Claim
- Medical expenses
- Lost wages
- Money for your reduced earning capacity
- Out-of-pocket costs
- Physical pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Depression, anxiety, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Reduced quality of life
- Future medical costs
The Importance of Consulting Legal Counsel as Soon as Possible
A year, or in some cases two, may seem like a long time, but it really isn’t when you consider everything it takes to investigate a case to ensure a fair settlement. The longer you delay in taking legal action, the greater the chances that witnesses’ memories will fade, or vital evidence will be lost or destroyed. Your best course of action if you are injured by another person’s negligence is to act immediately to protect your right to recovery. The attorneys at Skeeters, Bennett, Wilson & Humphrey will help you do just that.