The answer here depends on several different variables. First, the amount of insurance coverage impact this issue. If there is a small insurance policy with a more significant injury, then many times, the cases resolve within a very short time (and it could be very shortly after the accident). Generally, if there is enough insurance, then the next large variable is how long the treatment course lasts, which will vary from person to person and injury to injury. If a client treats with their provider for 6 months before completing treatment, then obviously the case cannot resolve within 6 months. Once the treatment concludes, the lawyer will obtain the bills and medical records which could be a two to six week process (depending on the amount of providers, etc.). Please understand that many cases with smaller injuries have treatment that lasts 2 to 4 months and thus does resolve a short time or even within 6 months. Once the case gets into settlement negotiations, then if the case settles without the need for an actual lawsuit to be filed, then the client generally would get their money within a few weeks from that point. However, if the parties cannot agree on a settlement, then a lawsuit would generally be filed. From the point in which a lawsuit is filed, a trial date in most counties takes a year to be set (first case has to be ready for trial and then case gets set). Within the court process are other opportunities to settle the case, the most significant being mandatory court ordered mediation. While most of us say that a trial marks the end to the case, there always could be an appeal, which could delay things even more, 9 months to a year. In general, there is not an easy answer as to how long it takes to resolve a Florida slip and fall or trip and fall case and it varies from case to case.
