How to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Missouri
About the Author
Ethan Charles (“EC”) Duckworth is the founding attorney of Duckworth Injury Law. EC earned his law degree from the University of Missouri - Columbia, where he graduated in the top 10 of his class and served as an Editor of the Missouri Law Review. EC currently serves as a member of the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys (MATA) and is a graduate of the Ross T. Roberts Trial Academy. EC has represented hundreds of injury victims throughout his career resulting in tens of millions of dollars in compensation recovered. EC’s and his staff have filed hundreds of personal injury cases across the state of Missouri and are happy to assist with any questions you may have.
Were You or a Loved One Injured in Missouri? Learn How To File a Personal Injury Case so You Can Seek Compensation
If you were injured because of someone else’s carelessness, you may be wondering what it actually takes to file a personal injury lawsuit in Missouri.
At the most basic level, a lawsuit starts when a petition is filed with the appropriate court. But preparing and filing the petition is only one part of the process. Before the case ever reaches a jury, the parties may investigate the claim, exchange written discovery, take depositions, retain expert witnesses, litigate motions, negotiate with insurance companies, and attend mediation.
Below is a high-level overview of how the process generally works. Every case is different, and certain claims—including wrongful death, medical malpractice, product liability, and claims involving a governmental entity—may have additional rules or shorter deadlines.
The Essentials Steps in Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Missouri
Step 1: Investigate the Accident and Preserve the Evidence
A strong lawsuit usually begins well before anything is filed at the courthouse. The first step is to determine what happened, who may be legally responsible, and what evidence will be needed to prove it. Depending on the case, that may include photographs or video, police or incident reports, witness statements, medical records, employment records, vehicle data, inspection records, surveillance footage, and testimony from experts.
Some evidence can disappear quickly. A business may overwrite surveillance footage. Vehicles may be repaired or destroyed. Witnesses may forget important details. That is why an attorney may send preservation letters and begin investigating soon after being hired.
It is also usually important to understand the full extent of the injuries before attempting to resolve the claim. Settling too early can mean accepting compensation before you know whether you will need future treatment, miss additional work, or experience permanent limitations.
Step 2: Identify the Responsible Parties and Available Insurance
The person or business that appears responsible at first glance is not always the only potential defendant.
For example, a commercial vehicle collision may involve the driver, the driver’s employer, the trucking company, a maintenance contractor, or another business. A dangerous-property case may require determining who owned, occupied, controlled, inspected, or maintained the property. A defective-product case may involve several companies in the chain of distribution.
Identifying every proper party matters. Filing against the wrong legal entity—or overlooking a responsible party—can create serious problems, particularly if the filing deadline later expires.
An attorney will also investigate all potentially available sources of recovery. Those may include liability insurance, commercial policies, umbrella coverage, and uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage.
H4: Step 3: Determine the Filing Deadline
Every personal injury claim is subject to a statute of limitations. If the lawsuit is not filed on time, the injured person may lose the right to recover, regardless of how strong the case would otherwise have been.
Section 516.120 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri provides a five-year limitations period for many Missouri personal injury claims. But you should not assume that every injury case has a five-year deadline. Missouri wrongful-death claims generally have a three-year deadline, while medical-malpractice claims are generally subject to a two-year deadline. Other exceptions or special rules may apply. Claims involving public entities can create additional notice, immunity, and procedural issues.
The safest approach is to speak with a Missouri personal injury attorney as soon as possible. Waiting can create problems even when the formal deadline is still months or years away because evidence becomes harder to locate and preserve.
Step 4: Decide Where the Lawsuit Should Be Filed
A lawsuit must be filed in a court that has authority over the case and in a county where venue is proper.
Missouri’s venue rules for tort cases are found primarily in Section 508.010. The correct county can depend on where the plaintiff was first injured, where the defendant resides, whether a defendant is a corporation, and other facts.
Choosing the proper court is not simply a matter of filing wherever the injured person lives. Filing in the wrong place may lead to delay, additional expense, or transfer of the case.
Step 5: Prepare and File the Petition
The petition is the document that formally begins the lawsuit. It generally identifies the parties, explains why the court has jurisdiction and why venue is proper, states the important facts, identifies the legal claims, and describes the damages being sought.
In a typical negligence case, the injured person must ultimately prove that the defendant owed a legal duty, breached that duty, caused the injury, and caused compensable damages. The petition should allege the facts necessary to support the claim while complying with Missouri’s pleading rules.
The petition is filed with the circuit court clerk, along with the required filing information and fee. Filing fees and local procedures can vary by court.
Step 6: Obtain a Summons and Serve Each Defendant
Filing the petition does not, by itself, bring a defendant under the court’s authority. Each defendant must ordinarily be formally served with a summons and a copy of the petition in a manner permitted by Missouri law.
Service may be completed by a sheriff, a specially appointed process server, or another authorized method, depending on the circumstances. Different rules may apply when serving a corporation, an out-of-state defendant, an unknown defendant, or someone who cannot readily be located.
Improper or delayed service can jeopardize a case. It is not enough merely to mail the petition to the defendant and assume that service has been completed.
Step 7: Address the Defendant’s Response
After service, the defendant may file an answer admitting or denying the allegations and asserting defenses. The defendant may also file a motion attacking the legal sufficiency of the petition or asking the court to dismiss some or all of the claims.
The deadline and procedure for responding depend on the court and the type of case. Once the defendant appears, the court may enter a scheduling order establishing deadlines for discovery, expert disclosures, mediation, motions, and trial.
Step 8: Complete Discovery
Discovery is the formal process through which each side obtains information and evidence from the other. It commonly includes interrogatories, which are written questions answered under oath; requests for production of documents, photographs, electronic data, and other evidence; requests for admissions; and depositions of the parties, witnesses, treating providers, corporate representatives, and experts. In some cases, the defense may also request a medical examination.
Discovery is often the longest and most labor-intensive part of a lawsuit. The insurance company’s lawyers will examine liability, prior medical history, treatment, lost income, social-media activity, and anything else they believe may reduce the value of the claim.
Step 9: Negotiate, Mediate, or Prepare for Trial
A lawsuit does not necessarily end in a jury trial. Many cases settle through direct negotiations or mediation after both sides have gathered enough information to evaluate the evidence.
Settlement is not automatic, however. The plaintiff must be prepared to prove the case. That may require expert testimony on medical causation, future care, lost earning capacity, accident reconstruction, property safety, or other disputed issues.
If the case does not settle, the parties proceed to trial. At trial, each side presents evidence and examines witnesses. The judge instructs the jury on the law, and the jury decides liability and damages. Post-trial motions or an appeal may follow.
FAQs About Filing a Missouri Personal Injury Lawsuit
Can You File a Missouri Personal Injury Lawsuit Without an Attorney?
An individual generally has the right to represent himself or herself. The better question is whether doing so makes practical and financial sense.
Self-representation may be reasonable when the damages are truly small, fault is clear, the injuries have completely resolved, there is no future treatment or lost earning capacity, and there are no complicated insurance, lien, or causation issues.
Missouri small claims court may be an option in some low-value cases. Under Section 482.305, Missouri small claims courts can hear tort or contract cases when the amount in controversy does not exceed $5,000, excluding interest and costs. Small claims procedures are designed to be more accessible to people without lawyers.
Even then, you should consider what you may be giving up. If your damages exceed $5,000, choosing small claims court may require limiting the amount you seek. You may also need to identify and serve the correct defendant, present admissible evidence, prove causation, and collect the judgment if you win.
A minor property-damage dispute or a short-lived injury with very little medical treatment may not justify hiring an attorney or filing a full circuit-court lawsuit. On the other hand, cases involving significant medical bills, lasting symptoms, disputed fault, future treatment, commercial defendants, multiple insurance policies, wrongful death, or permanent injury are rarely good do-it-yourself cases.
What Are the Benefits of Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney?
Insurance companies handle injury claims every day. They have adjusters, investigators, lawyers, medical reviewers, and established systems designed to evaluate and defend claims. An injured person filing a lawsuit alone is expected to follow the same substantive law, evidence rules, court deadlines, and procedural requirements that apply to licensed attorneys.
An experienced personal injury lawyer can investigate the accident, preserve evidence, identify all responsible parties and insurance coverage, calculate the full measure of damages, retain appropriate experts, prepare the petition, complete service, respond to motions, conduct discovery, take depositions, negotiate medical liens, and present the case at trial if necessary.
Just as important, an attorney can help determine whether filing a lawsuit is the right move in the first place. Sometimes a fair settlement can be reached without litigation. In other cases, filing suit is necessary to obtain evidence, compel testimony, or show the insurance company that the injured person is prepared to take the case to a jury.
Talk With a Missouri Personal Injury Lawyer
If you were seriously injured in Columbia, Jefferson City, Fulton, Sedalia, the Lake of the Ozarks region, or elsewhere in Mid-Missouri, you do not have to navigate the lawsuit process by yourself.
At Duckworth Injury Law, I personally handle every case. I can explain your options, investigate what happened, deal with the insurance companies, and, when necessary, file a lawsuit and take the case toward trial.
Contact Duckworth Injury Law to schedule a free consultation. There is no obligation, and qualifying personal injury cases are handled on a contingency-fee basis, meaning you do not pay an attorney fee unless we obtain a recovery for you.
This article provides general information about Missouri law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. The law and the deadlines applicable to a particular claim depend on its specific facts.
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