Litigation Lawyers in Spokane County

Residents of Spokane County, Washington who suffer legal wrongs are usually legally entitled to compensation for harm they incurred as a result. This compensation is usually obtained by filing a lawsuit.

If you wish to file a lawsuit, there are several things you need to consider, and the decision to sue someone should not be made without the counsel of a Spokane County, Washington civil litigation attorney.

Once you have retained an attorney in Spokane County, Washington, he or she will be able to help you devise a strategy on how to proceed, which will hopefully maximize your chances of success in your lawsuit. Your lawyer can also provide you a rough idea of how much the lawsuit is likely to cost, taking into account court fees, expert witness fees, and other costs.

Steps for Filing a Lawsuit in Spokane County, Washington

Consultation with your attorney: You should always speak with a Spokane County, Washington lawyer who specializes in civil litigation before filing any type of lawsuit in a court in Spokane County, Washington. Your lawyer will have critical information and advise, helping you decide whether or not your chances of success in the lawsuit make it worth your while to proceed.

Drafting The Complaint: Once you determine that pursuing a lawsuit in Spokane County, Washington civil court is worth your time and effort, you need to file a complaint. The complaint can set the tone, and frame the issues, for the rest of the litigation procedure, which can drag on for months, or even years (and decades, in some cases). This is because the complaint lays out all the allegations against the defendant. It also usually asks the court for particular relief, should it rule in the plaintiff's favor.

Serving The Defendant: After you draft your complaint, and file it with the court, you have to let the defendant know that they're being sued. The law of Spokane County, Washington states that the defendant be given advance notice of the lawsuit as a matter of general fairness: if you were being sued, you'd want to be given time to find a lawyer and prepare your defense strategy, right? So, with that in mind, the law prefers that defendants be served personally, generally through the use of a paid process server.

Await The Response: The defendant has a certain amount of time to respond to your lawsuit, once they confirm that they've been served in Spokane County, Washington. The defendant will likely respond with an answer to your complaint. An answer is a document in which the defendant admits or denies the specific factual allegations made by the plaintiff. Typically, the defendant will admit the allegations that are not seriously in dispute (for instance, if the lawsuit concerns a car accident, they'll probably admit that an accident did, in fact, take place), but deny the more serious allegations (they'll probably deny that they were responsible for the accident). If the defendant fails to respond within a set period of time, they are in "default," and basically lose the case automatically.

How Can A Spokane County, Washington Tort Lawyer Help?

Filing a lawsuit in a Spokane County, Washington court is a bit more complicated than the basic outline laid out above.

Therefore, it's always a good idea to talk with a Spokane County, Washington litigation attorney if you are contemplating filing a lawsuit against a person or company.