Legal Question in Personal Injury in Washington
defendant of lawsuit from minor minor accident
I am being sued for miscellaneous injuries resulting from a minor rear-end collision. This accident occurred over 6 months ago. At the time of the accident the person I hit said she was fine. She also said that she was glad the accident was minor because she had been in a previous accident resulting in a neck injury. I was traveling less than 5 miles an hour when I bumped her. Receiving the court papers today was such a complete surprise. What are my rights? What are my next steps? Thank you for your help. I am sure that this is a frivolous lawsuit by someone who is just trying to get easy money out of me. Her lawyers advertise that they do not collect payment until they have won cases, etc.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: defendant of lawsuit from minor minor accident
First, notify your insurance carrier regarding the claim. Most policies require the insurer to defend you in this type of case. However, they may defend under a "reservation of rights." This means that they are claiming that the policy does not cover this accident.
If you do not have insurance, then I recommend you hire private counsel immediately. A plaintiff can get a default judgment 20 days after you were served with the complaint. Once they have a judgment they can attach to your personal property and/or obtain liens on your real estate.
If you hire counsel, the plaintiff's attorney will likely give more time to file the answer to the complaint.
In auto accident cases there are generally two areas to focus a defense on: (1) whether the plaintiff was partially at fault for the accident and (2) whether all of the plaintiff's injuries were caused by the accident. This usually requires a trial or arbitration.
Feel free to contact me if you have further questions, or would like to schedule a meeting with me to discuss this matter.
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