How Long Will it Take for My Lawsuit to Settle in Michigan?

Avatar for admin

Have you found yourself considering filing a lawsuit over unpaid insurance claims due to a car accident or other incident that has taken place in Michigan? If so, you’re not alone.

Let’s walk through the typical litigation timeline, which can take a year or even longer in some cases. You can watch our video, “ How Long Does a Lawsuit Take? A Litigation Timeline ,” or reference the timeline details below.
Lawsuit Settlement Timeline in Michigan

Once your lawyer files suit, your case will be assigned a judge & case number

You’ll then have 90 days to serve the defendant with a lawsuit

The defendant gets 21 or 28 days to file an answer to the lawsuit

The court sets a scheduling order that gives you 3-6 months to complete discovery / party’s respective investigations

The parties will send out interrogatories and request documents pertaining to the case

Answers are due within 28 days

Depositions are conducted and will finish around 5 – 6 months after the lawsuit is filed

8 – 9 months after the lawsuit is filed, a case evaluation will be held

Parties submit detailed summaries of their arguments to a panel of three experienced attorneys

This is also referred to as mediation in Michigan, where the panel determines the appropriate value of a case and recommend a settlement amount

An award is determined based on the summaries and arguments

Both parties have 28 days to accept or reject the award

If both parties accept, the case is settled

If one party rejects, the case moves forward

42 days after the case evaluation, the court will set a settlement conference with the judge

The judge will attempt to talk to the attorneys to see if the case can be settled without going to trial

Facilitation may happen outside of court

If the settlement conference and facilitation fail, the judge will set a trial date

The jury trial is set approximately one year after the accident

Civil trials can last one day to several weeks depending on the complexity of the case

More Things to Keep in Mind for Lawsuits in Michigan

Keep in mind the discovery period could be extended by the judge which could mean a 3 – 6 month delay

You may not be able to get a trial date for 6 months or more after the settlement conference if the trial docket is full

If your dispute amount is less than $25,000 you have the option of filing in District Court which means you could get a trial date within a few months (due to no mandatory discovery or case evaluation)

About Seva Law Firm

Seva Law Firm is a litigation law firm with offices in Troy and Southfield Michigan. Seva Law Firm specializes in car accident insurance disputes. Contact us today for further information or to discuss the particulars of your case.