Toms River, NJ Car Accident Lawyer
Crashes on the Garden State Parkway, Route 37, Route 9 and the local streets of Brick, Lakewood, Seaside Heights send people to the hospital every week. If you were hurt in a car accident in Toms River, Dennis Shlionsky can handle the insurance companies while you focus on getting better.
Quick answers
How long do I have to file a car accident claim in Toms River, NJ?
In most New Jersey car accident cases you have two years from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2. If a town, county, state agency or NJ Transit may be responsible, a written notice of claim is generally due within 90 days.
Waiting also costs evidence: video is overwritten, vehicles are repaired and witnesses move. Calling early protects both the deadline and the proof. If the claim involves a Ocean County road, park or building owned by the government, the 90-day notice goes to that public entity.
Who pays my medical bills after a New Jersey car crash?
New Jersey is a no-fault state, so your own auto policy's Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage usually pays your medical bills first, no matter who caused the crash. Pain and suffering, lost wages beyond PIP and future losses are pursued from the at-fault driver's liability insurance.
If you have no auto policy, PIP may come from a household member's policy or from the policy of the vehicle involved under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.
What is New Jersey's verbal threshold, and does it apply to me?
Many New Jersey auto policies include a limitation on lawsuit option, called the verbal threshold. If yours does, you can recover pain and suffering only for injuries listed in N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a), such as a displaced fracture, significant scarring, or a permanent injury confirmed by a doctor's certification.
Your declarations page shows which option you chose. Lost wages and economic losses are not limited the same way.
Where is a Toms River, NJ injury lawsuit filed?
Most injury lawsuits arising in Toms River are filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, for Ocean County, which sits at the Ocean County Courthouse, Toms River. Most cases settle before trial, and many clients never need to appear in court except for a deposition or a trial if one happens.
A case can sometimes be filed in another county where a defendant lives or does business.
Do I have to travel to meet Dennis about a Toms River, NJ case?
No. Dennis meets clients at the Parsippany office of Einhorn Barbarito, 4 Campus Drive, Suite 300, Parsippany, NJ 07054, and also by phone or video. If you are recovering, home and hospital visits are available anywhere in Ocean County, at no cost to you.
The first consultation is free, confidential and comes with no obligation.
How much does it cost to hire Dennis?
Nothing up front. The consultation is free, and injury cases are handled on a contingency fee, which means the fee is a percentage of the recovery and is only owed if there is one. New Jersey Court Rule 1:21-7 caps contingency fees in personal injury cases.
You will get the fee agreement in writing before any work starts, and you can ask questions about it at any time.
Your own PIP pays medical bills first
New Jersey is a no-fault state. Your own Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage pays medical bills first, regardless of who caused the crash (N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4).
The lawsuit threshold
If your policy has the "limitation on lawsuit" option, you can sue for pain and suffering only if your injury meets one of the categories in N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a), such as a permanent injury, significant disfigurement or a displaced fracture.
If you were partly at fault
New Jersey uses modified comparative negligence (N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1). You can still recover if you were 50% or less responsible, but your award is reduced by your share of fault.
Deadline to file
Most New Jersey personal injury lawsuits must be filed within two years of the injury (N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2). Claims against a public entity, such as a county or town, also require a written notice of claim within 90 days (N.J.S.A. 59:8-8).
Local roads and courts
Toms River is in Ocean County, where Superior Court cases are heard at the Ocean County Courthouse, Toms River. Common crash corridors in and around Toms River include the Garden State Parkway, Route 37, Route 9, Hooper Avenue. We also serve nearby Brick, Lakewood, Seaside Heights, Berkeley Township.
Real results in Ocean County
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Common questions
- Do I have to go to court in the county where the crash happened?
- Usually a case is filed in the county where the crash happened or where a party lives. For many local crashes that means the Superior Court in the county seat.
- What does it cost to talk to Dennis?
- The consultation is free, and injury cases are handled on a contingency fee: no fee unless there is a recovery.
More about car accident claims in New Jersey
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