When you are injured and need to file a lawsuit, there may be different courts where you can file your case. Many people do not realize that there are rules governing where you can file a lawsuit in Missouri and throughout the Midwest. As St. Louis personal injury lawyers, we understand the location where your case is filed can have a big impact on how it proceeds.
Why Does Location Matter?
You can’t file your case anywhere, it depends on the type of case, where the incident occurred, and where the parties are from. A lawsuit may be more or less advantageous for you and your St. Louis personal injury lawyers to file in the City of St. Louis, compared to St. Louis County, St. Charles County, Jefferson County or Franklin County.
The court and location where your injury case takes place is very important as it will have an effect on the value of your case, the rules that apply to your case, and the convenience to the parties involved in the case.
Insurance companies and defendants often prefer more rural venues and federal courts to state courts. This is because in more metropolitan areas jury verdicts are usually higher. Additionally, in federal court, there are more-stringent rules, and the juries must be unanimous in agreement rather than in the Missouri state court, where only nine out of twelve jurors must agree.
St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyers on Jurisdiction and Venue
The decision of where to file a case depends on jurisdiction and venue. Jurisdiction is the power of a court to hear and determine a case. This requires a court to have personal jurisdiction, which means the court can have power over the defendant, and subject matter jurisdiction, which means a court can decide the specific type of case. A full explanation of personal jurisdiction can be lengthy, but in simple terms, the U.S. Constitution requires that a party, such as a negligent driver or company, to have minimum contacts with the state where a lawsuit would be filed.
Subject matter jurisdiction determines if the case will be filed in a state or federal court. If the case involves a federal law, it will likely be in federal court. If there is no federal issue, but a plaintiff is suing a citizen of another state for an amount over $75,000 there can be “diversity” and the case can be heard in federal court.
Venue is the county or district within a state or the United States where a case will go to trial, if necessary. For example, in Missouri, the proper venue for your case will depend on the type of case and where an incident occurs. For “tort” claims, such as car accidents, if the injury occurred in Missouri, the proper venue is generally in the county where the plaintiff was first injured. If the injury occurred outside the state of Missouri, there are different venue rules depending on whether the defendant is an individual or a corporation.Experienced St. Louis personal injury lawyers will work with you to examine the location of your case and work to file it in the place that serves your best interest.
Connect with Our St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyers
At MHM Legal, our St. Louis personal injury lawyers have years of experience litigating cases in state and federal courts. We consider the strategies to make sure your case can be filed in a court that is most valuable to you. If you were recently injured at the negligence of another, contact our St. Louis personal injury lawyers to begin the process of filing your case. You can also learn more about our personal injury cases by visiting our blog. Read about our successes in personal injury, including our recent case with Kilroy’s Bar in St. Louis.