COVID-19 and Your Injury Case: Court Closures, Treatment, and Keeping Your Claim on Track

Published May 5, 2020 · Injury Law Basics

Your physical therapy clinic called to cancel your next six sessions. The orthopedic surgeon's office says your knee surgery is on hold indefinitely. Your court date is gone, and the insurance adjuster, who had not returned a call in two months, suddenly wants to "get this resolved." Over the last eight weeks, many injured people in the Dayton area have found themselves in some version of this situation.

The pandemic has changed the timeline of injury cases. It has not changed what a legitimate claim is worth or what it takes to prove one. This post covers what is happening with courts, how to protect your treatment record, and how to handle an insurer that sees the slowdown as an opportunity.

The deadline pause, briefly

At the end of March, Ohio enacted House Bill 197, which tolls (pauses) many legal deadlines that are set to expire between March 9 and July 30, 2020. The pause ends when the Governor's emergency declaration ends or on July 30, whichever comes first, and no one yet knows which date that will be. The Supreme Court of Ohio issued a matching order for deadlines set by its court rules.

I explained how the tolling works, and its limits, in my March 31 post on H.B. 197. The short version: if your deadline falls in that window, you may have more time, but the end date is uncertain and some deadlines are not covered. Do not treat the pause as permission to wait.

What courts are doing

Courts around Ohio have postponed jury trials and many in-person hearings to protect the public, and most are handling what they can by phone and video. The Supreme Court's March 27 order expressly allows courts to permit appearances and service by technology when it protects the integrity of the proceedings and the parties' rights.

For an injury case, that means:

• Trials are being pushed back. If your case was set for trial this spring or summer, expect a new date. That delay is frustrating, but a trial date that moves is not a case that weakens.
• Depositions are moving to video. Sworn testimony is still being taken, often with the witness, the lawyers, and the court reporter in different locations. Preparation matters just as much on a screen; my 2017 post on what to expect at your deposition still applies.
• Mediations are moving online, too. Many mediators are running sessions by video, with each side in a private virtual room. The process is otherwise the one I described in my post on mediation.
• Pre-suit work continues. Gathering records, documenting losses, and negotiating with insurers do not require a courthouse.

Every court is handling this a little differently, and the rules have been changing week to week. If you have a pending case, your lawyer should be telling you what your court is doing.

Your treatment record is still the case

The most important evidence in an injury claim is your medical record. When appointments are canceled, the record develops gaps, and adjusters have long used gaps in treatment to argue that a person got better or was never badly hurt. Our guide chapter on focusing on treatment explains why that argument is often unfair and why it still works.

A gap caused by a pandemic is not your fault, but you need to make sure the record shows that. Here is how:

• Write down every cancellation. Note the date, the provider, who called, and the reason given. Keep any cancellation letters, emails, or portal messages.
• Reschedule right away. Ask to be put on the list for the first available appointment when the office reopens, and write down that you asked.
• Ask about remote options. Many doctors and therapists are now offering video or phone visits. A remote visit that records your symptoms is far better than no visit at all.
• Do your home exercise program. If your therapist gave you exercises, do them, and keep a simple log of what you did and how it felt.
• Do not skip urgent care. If your symptoms get worse, new numbness appears, or your pain changes, call your doctor or seek emergency care. Hospitals and emergency rooms are taking precautions; do not let fear of the virus keep you from care you need.

Keep a symptom journal now

When visits are fewer, the days between them matter more. Keep a short journal: your pain level, what you could not do, medications, how you slept, what your injury cost you that day. Was your surgery postponed? Write down how you are managing in the meantime, what you cannot do, and who is helping you. That record helps your doctors, and later it helps a jury understand what the waiting was like.

Do not let an adjuster use the crisis against you

Some insurers are using the slowdown as leverage. You may hear:

• "The courts are closed, so if you don't settle now it could be years."
• "Our offer is only good for the next two weeks."
• "Your doctor stopped treating you, so your injury must have resolved."
• "We just need a quick recorded statement to move things along."

Each of these is designed to get you to accept less. Courts are delaying trials, not erasing claims, and an insurer that owes money owes it after the emergency too. A gap caused by a canceled appointment is not proof of recovery. And you are never required to give a recorded statement to the other driver's insurer. The chapter on dealing with insurance adjusters covers these tactics in detail.

Most important: do not settle and sign a release before you know the full extent of your injury. If your surgery has been postponed, you do not yet know what your case is worth, and neither does the insurer.

What this means for you

• Your claim is not on hold just because the courts are slow.
• Keep treating in whatever form is available, and document every cancellation and delay.
• Keep a symptom journal.
• Do not let an adjuster rush you into a settlement or a recorded statement.
• Check your deadline against the tolling rules, and do not count on more time than the law clearly gives you.