Johns Creek, GA Personal Injury Lawyer

Suffering a personal injury can be one of the most challenging times in your life. Fortunately, our lawyers can help you file a lawsuit to get your damages covered.

A personal injury lawsuit can be a complex process, even for minor accidents. Our team can ensure that you are aware of the critical aspects of your case. We will help you determine how long you have to file your claim and whether any laws allow for additional time. We have a range of experience with many types of personal injuries. No matter if you were in a minor car collision or the victim of a complicated medical malpractice accident, we can help you pursue damages for the financial and emotional losses you have endured.

Contact Rice, Murtha & Psoras today at (470) 287-3070 to receive your free case assessment with our personal injury lawyers.

What You Should Know About When to File Your Personal Injury Lawsuit in Johns Creek, GA

You typically have numerous considerations after being injured by another person. One of the most important aspects to consider in your case is how long you have to file a lawsuit in Johns Creek. Our personal injury attorneys can help you determine when you must file your claim and get it prepared before then. If the deadline is fast approaching or already passed, we can still check if any exceptions to the rule can be applied to your case.

Deadline to File a Personal Injury Claim

Every state has what is known as a “statute of limitations,” which is a legal term attorneys use when referring to the deadline to file. In Johns Creek, O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33 gives personal injury victims just two years to file a lawsuit. This clock usually starts ticking the day the accident occurs. For example, if you were injured on May 1st of this year, your last day to file would be May 1st, 2026.

Two years is not much time when considering a lawsuit. Gathering evidence, locating witnesses, and drafting a complaint takes time, even for relatively minor injuries. If you wait until the last minute, you will likely not have enough to prepare your case as thoroughly as you would like.

Even if you do file your lawsuit just before the statute of limitations passes, you will open yourself up to claims from the defense that your injuries were not that serious. If they were, the other side would argue that you would not have hesitated to file a claim.

The court also enforces this rule strictly. Whether you file your lawsuit one day after or one year, the court will treat it the same by dismissing the case. This will cost you dearly as it will bar you from recovering damages for any of the losses you sustained. Fortunately, certain exceptions might apply that will preserve your right to sue for a little longer.

Exceptions to the Deadline

In some situations, it is only fair that victims are given more time to file their lawsuits. For instance, it would be hard to serve your lawsuit on the defendant if they left the state. If the person who injured you fled Georgia to avoid a legal dispute, O.C.G.A. § 9-3-94 states that this time will not be applied to the statute of limitations. The clock will only begin running again if the defendant comes back.

You will also usually have more time if you or your child was younger than 18 when they were injured. O.C.G.A. § 9-3-90(b) gives victims under 18 two years to file starting on their 18th birthday.

You might also have additional time to file if you were coping with a mental illness or disability when you were injured. Under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-90(a), you have two years to file your lawsuit once the disability or mental condition no longer prevents you from having the capacity to pursue damages.

Some injuries take time before they are discovered. This typically occurs in medical malpractice cases where victims might not be aware of their doctor’s negligence until much later. If you were not able to reasonably discover your injuries before the deadline passed, the time should not count against you.

In other cases, you might have less time than the standard two years to file your claim. This is common in cases where the defendant is a government agency. The claim could be against a local municipal agency in Johns Creek or a state organization. If it is, you might only have a year to file a lawsuit. You might also have a deadline for notifying the agency of your intention to sue.

How Personal Injuries Commonly Happen in Johns Creek, GA

Personal injuries can be caused in many ways. Our attorneys see numerous different types of claims, but some are more common than others. The following are typical causes of personal injuries that our team can help you file a lawsuit for in Johns Creek:

Car Accidents

Arguably, the most reason to file a lawsuit is because you were injured in a car accident. Negligent drivers have a multitude of ways of causing an accident. Many of them are caused by the driver being distracted by their phone, while others crash because they made an illegal change of lanes without checking. If the police ticketed the other driver for negligent behavior, it can be used to help your case.

Motorcycle Accidents

Our team can also help motorcycle accident victims recover damages. These cases can be tough because the defendant will often attempt to blame the rider for the accident. Without a lawyer, a court or insurance company might be sympathetic to this argument. The reality is that most motorcycle accidents are caused by driver negligence, not the motorcyclist.

Slip and Falls

Slip and fall accidents can be much more serious than people think. The injuries you suffer in a slip and fall could require long-term care, especially if you need surgery to repair torn ligaments or muscles. How you sustained your fall injuries will often point to who should be named in the lawsuit. In most cases, the property owner will owe you for the damages they caused.

Medical Malpractice

The most challenging cases to recover compensation tend to arise from medical malpractice. If your doctor or another of your providers deviated from the standard of care they were required to give. For instance, you will have a medical malpractice claim if your doctor failed to diagnose you with a condition that another doctor would have discovered. Our team will help you get the evidence that proves how your malpractice was caused.

Our Personal Injury Attorneys in Johns Creek, GA Can Help You Today

For a free case review with our personal injury attorneys, call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (470) 287-3070.