The Effect of Covid-19 on Personal Injury Law and Lawsuit Funding

Category: Law

As lawsuit “funders”, we are plaintiff advocates. As such, we keep abreast of any developments in the justice system as they pertain to personal injury or other types of civil cases. The current climate surrounding the Covid-19 outbreak and response impacts the legal system and its participants. This post will discuss some of those outcomes. Delayed Resolution for Litigants 2020 saw the widespread shutdown of government services, the court system included. As court employees were sent home, delays in processing new filings and dealing with the existing case load were a logical result. New filings simply add to an already crowded docket in most jurisdictions. This only compounded an existing problem. Even more troubling is that there is no end in sight. Fair Rate Legal Funding Fair Rate Legal Funding For example, the pandemic forced the New Jersey courts to move from in person operations to remote proceedings in March 2020. Some jury trials were completed in October through November. By mid-November, the Court suspended in-person jury trials. Recently, The NJ Supreme Court ordered a 2-phased approach to virtual jury trials during the pandemic. By April 5th, there will be a statewide implementation of virtual court proceedings for ALL case types. The Order also guided that single plaintiff, single defendant cases with limited issues and limited witnesses would be given preference in scheduling. More complex matters would be scheduled later