Significance

• Lawsuits are generally filed to right a wrong. The plaintiff may feel he was wronged by the defendant. There are many different types of cases, depending on what the wrong might be. If the plaintiff wins a lawsuit, depending on the lawsuit, he will usually receive money from the defendant.
  
  

Types

• The most familiar types of lawsuits include:
  
  A. Personal injury, a type of lawsuit filed when someone may have been hurt at the hand of another person;
  B. Insurance claims, usually filed by someone trying to make an insurance company pay a claim;
  C. Criminal lawsuits, usually filed by the state through a prosecutor; and
  D. Family Law lawsuits, usually filed by one spouse against the other spouse, both during and after divorce proceedings.
  
  

Time Frame

• Once a lawsuit is filed, the time starts ticking. Depending on the sate and local rule, the plaintiff has a certain amount of days to serve the defendant. Once the defendant is served, she has a certain number of days, depending on state or local rules, to file an answer. A counterclaim (or counter petition for family law) is usually filed the same time as the answer. The plaintiff then files an answer to the counterclaim within a certain amount of time. Time frames may vary depending on which court and/or which state the lawsuit is filed in.
  
  

Geography

• Lawsuits are generally filed where the defendant resides, if an individual, or where the defendant does business, if the defendant is a business entity. Lawsuits may be filed in the residence or business location of the plaintiff, if the defendant signed a business contract stating that any lawsuit must be filed in the plaintiff's jurisdiction.
  
  

Size

• Most lawsuits involve two parties, but there is no limitation on the number of parties. A class action lawsuit has many parties suing one or more defendants. Sometimes an individual files a lawsuit against an individual and the individual's company if the rules permit piercing of the corporate veil, which is rare.
  
  

Expert Insight

• Lawsuits may take anywhere from a few months to years to finish. Sometimes, it benefits the plaintiff to accept a settlement. Always look at settlement offers carefully, and weigh the possibilities of winning or losing the lawsuit against a settlement offer. If the case is difficult to prove, it may pay to settle the matter.