A common question from clients is the length of time it can take for a case to get from filing to trial. While many cases settle within a few months to a year, cases that must go all the way to trial for resolution can take a good deal longer.
Once a case is filed it begins a long process of discovery and preparation for trial. How far out that trial will be set can be affected by many factors, including the type of case, the complexity of the case, and the existing docket of the court in which the case is filed.
Unfortunately, the wheels of justice often turn slowly. Most courts recognize that the majority of cases are settle before they are tried. Given this fact, courts often set many cases for trial on the same date or set cases many months or years in advance. When one or more of those cases settle, the court can still try the remaining case and avoid losing a week of scheduled trials. Unfortunately, this means that some cases are reset to a later date. It is not at all unusual for a case to be passed over and reset from its first trial setting. And, given the number of cases that are scheduled on any given week, that reset date will often be many months in the future.
All of these scheduling issues have been made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic, which had courts closed for a year or more due to the virus.
Another factor influencing the length of the litigation process is that simple fact that defense lawyers get paid by the hour. Obviously, the longer the case drags out, the more money they make. This is not to say that all defense lawyers intentionally "churn" the files for more hours. But the hourly billing model certainly does not encourage defense lawyers to be as efficient as possible.
It would seem that the simple answer is to set a quick trial date at the outset of the litigation and the case would proceed very fast. This is often the case in federal courts where a trial date is set at the beginning of the case and generally honored. In federal court it is pretty routine to have a case set for trial within 12-18 months of filing. In state courts, however, the amount of time it takes to get to trial can vary widely county to county. For a variety of systemic reasons, most cases in state court take far longer to get to trial than cases in federal court.
Although most cases will go to trial within 2 years from the date of filing, some will take longer because they involve complex issues of liability, insurance coverage disputes or high dollar damages that require expert testimony to prove up. When the testimony of expert witnesses like physicians, economists, engineers, or safety experts is needed, the case will also proceed more slowly. Physicians are busy and will generally schedule depositions only on certain days of the month. Thus, the parties must wait to secure their testimony.
Summing it Up
In sum, there are a number of factors that cause cases to often take a long time to get to trial. Although the lawyers can play a part in this delay, most of it is baked into the judicial system. As you deal with your case, keep in mind that most plaintiff's attorneys do not get their fee until the case concludes. They don’t want the case to be delayed any more than you do and they have a strong incentive to move the case as quickly as possible.
