A serious injury caused by someone else’s carelessness will turn your life upside down. Medical bills pile up. You may not be able to work. And on top of all that, someone is telling you that you need to file a lawsuit and navigate a legal system you have never dealt with before.
That is where we come in. At Gruel Mills, our skilled personal injury attorneys have spent decades helping Michigan injury victims understand their rights and pursue fair compensation after accidents involving car crashes, medical mistakes, wrongful deaths, and other types of personal injuries. This page walks you through what a personal injury case typically looks like, from the first phone call to the final resolution, so you know what to expect at each step.
Before anything else, it helps to understand what a personal injury claim is and whether your situation may qualify.
A personal injury claim is a legal action brought by an injured person, called the plaintiff, against the person or company responsible for causing the injury, called the defendant. To succeed, the claim generally needs to show that the defendant was negligent, meaning they acted carelessly or failed to act with reasonable care, and that this negligence caused real harm to the plaintiff.
Common situations that may give rise to a personal injury claim in Michigan include:
The steps you take in the hours and days following an accident can significantly shape the ultimate outcome of your case.
The process begins with a simple, no-obligation conversation. At Gruel Mills, we offer a free consultation where you can sit down with one of our attorneys and talk through what happened. You do not need to have everything figured out. You just need to tell us your story.
During this meeting, we will:
This first meeting is also your opportunity to evaluate whether our law firm feels like the right fit for you and your family. You should feel comfortable asking questions and feel good about who is handling your claim.
This is one of the first questions most people ask, and it is a fair one. Unfortunately, there is no formula that produces an exact number. What we can tell you is that the value of a personal injury claim typically depends on several factors, including:
Damages in a personal injury case generally fall into two categories. Economic damages are the measurable financial losses, such as medical bills and lost income. Non-economic damages cover things that are harder to quantify, like pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and emotional distress. Michigan law generally does not cap damages in car accident or slip-and-fall cases, although caps do apply in certain medical malpractice situations.
Even if you were partly at fault for the accident, you may still be able to recover compensation. Michigan follows a modified comparative negligence rule under MCL 600.2959. This means that if you were partially responsible, your recovery may be reduced by your percentage of fault. However, if you are found to be more than 50 percent at fault, you may be barred from recovering anything. This is another reason why having an attorney evaluate the facts early matters.
After you decide to move forward and hire an attorney, a significant amount of work happens before any lawsuit is filed. This phase is sometimes called pre-litigation, and it is where the foundation of your case is built.
During this period, our legal team typically:
One practical note about timing: attorneys in personal injury cases often wait until a client has reached what is called maximum medical improvement, meaning the point where the treating doctors have a clearer picture of the long-term impact of the injuries, before sending a formal demand. Rushing this process can mean undervaluing the claim.
Once the investigation is complete, we typically prepare and send a demand package to the at-fault party’s insurance company. This package outlines the facts of the accident, the injuries you sustained, the medical treatment you received, and the compensation being sought. Then negotiations with the insurer begin.
If negotiations with the insurer result in a fair offer of compensation to you, the case may be resolved at this stage without ever having to file a lawsuit and go through the court system. If the insurer refuses to offer fair compensation, the next step is filing a formal complaint in court.
A critical deadline to keep in mind: Michigan law generally gives injury victims three years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. This is called the statute of limitations. For claims involving medical malpractice or government entities, the deadlines are often shorter and more complex. Missing these deadlines can permanently bar your right to seek compensation, which is why contacting an attorney soon after an accident matters.
Once a lawsuit is filed, the formal litigation process begins. Our attorneys file a complaint with the appropriate Michigan court, which could be a circuit court in Kent County, Ottawa County, Kalamazoo County, or wherever the case is most properly brought. The complaint outlines the facts of the accident, the injuries suffered, and the compensation sought. The defendant is then served with the complaint and a summons, and they have a set period of time to respond.
After the complaint is filed and the defendant responds, the case moves into the discovery phase. Discovery is the formal process through which both sides exchange information and evidence. It typically includes:
Depositions deserve particular attention, because they are where a significant portion of personal injury cases are decided. About one percent of civil cases ever reach a jury trial, which makes depositions the most important testimonies in a case. Depositions are where most cases are won or lost, and we make sure our clients and their witnesses are ready.
A deposition is a formal question-and-answer session conducted under oath. Your answers are recorded and can be used at trial. Attorneys for both sides of the case will ask you questions about the accident, your injuries, your medical history, your daily life before and after the accident, and your treatment. Your treating physicians and other medical professionals may also be deposed.
Questions in a deposition might include:
Preparation for your deposition is a very important step. The defense is looking for inconsistencies, prior injuries that could be blamed for your current condition, gaps in medical treatment, and anything that could reduce the value of your claim. Your attorney will take the time before your deposition to prepare you for the often-stressful situation and help you collect your thoughts before the questions start coming at you.
Preparation is not about coaching someone to say the right things. It is about making sure there are no surprises. We review the questions you are likely to face, talk through your medical history and treatment timeline, and make sure you understand the process so you can speak clearly and confidently. A well-prepared witness is a credible witness.
View this video to learn more about deposition preparation: Attorney and partner William (Bill) Azkoul is recognized for his depth of knowledge in bodily injury claims, and he regularly provides instruction to other attorneys on how to prepare injury victims and their medical providers for depositions. In this video, Attorney Azkoul walks through the kinds of hard questions that will be asked in a deposition, how to answer them honestly and effectively, and why thorough preparation makes all the difference.
There is no single answer to this question, and anyone who gives you a firm timeline without knowing the details of your case is guessing. A case that settles during pre-litigation might be resolved in several months. A case that proceeds through discovery, depositions, and trial could take two years or longer. Factors that affect timing include:
We keep our clients informed throughout the process, so you are never left wondering where things stand.
The majority of personal injury cases in Michigan are resolved through negotiated settlements rather than a trial. A settlement is a voluntary agreement between the plaintiff and the defendant, or more commonly the defendant’s insurance company, to resolve the case for an agreed-upon amount.
Settlement can happen at several points. It might occur during pre-litigation negotiations, during the discovery phase after depositions are taken, or even on the eve of trial. In many cases, the parties participate in mediation, a process where a neutral third party helps both sides work toward an agreement.
When a settlement is reached, you will typically sign a release, which is a legal document in which you agree to accept the settlement amount in exchange for giving up your right to pursue further claims related to the accident. Before you sign anything, we review the terms carefully with you to make sure you understand what you are agreeing to and that the amount reflects the full value of your losses, including future medical needs.
Once the settlement funds are received, any outstanding medical liens, health insurance reimbursement obligations, your attorney expenses and fees, and other costs are paid from the proceeds, and the remaining amount is distributed to you.
Only a small percentage of personal injury cases make it to trial, but our attorneys prepare every case as if it will. When a case does proceed to trial in a Michigan circuit court, such as the Kent County Circuit Court in Grand Rapids, the process generally includes:
In a civil personal injury case, the plaintiff must show that it is more likely than not that the defendant’s negligence caused their injuries. If the jury finds in your favor, it will award damages. If the outcome is unfavorable, there may be grounds to appeal, though the appellate process involves its own timeline and considerations that your attorney can explain.
Probably not, but we will be prepared if it does. The reality is that most civil personal injury cases settle before reaching a jury. However, the willingness to go to trial makes a difference. Insurance companies and defense attorneys are more likely to make reasonable offers when they know your legal team is fully prepared to try the case in front of a jury. We do not take a passive approach to any case, regardless of how it ultimately resolves.
If you or someone you care about has been hurt in an accident in Michigan, whether on a highway near Grand Rapids, in a parking lot in Kalamazoo, or at a facility anywhere across the state, you do not have to figure this out alone. The attorneys at Gruel Mills are ready to listen, answer your questions honestly, and help you understand your options.
We handle personal injury cases, wrongful death claims, medical malpractice, and related matters on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you.
Contact Gruel Mills today to schedule your free consultation. The sooner you reach out, the sooner we can start protecting your rights and building the strongest possible case on your behalf.
