After a lawsuit is filed in civil court, it is almost guaranteed that it will take longer to resolve than a claim handled through insurance settlements. However, just because a lawsuit has been filed does not mean that it will go all the way to a jury trial. When a lawsuit is filed, this officially starts the discovery process, where both sides will continue to gather evidence related to their claim and exchange this evidence with one another. Negotiations between both parties will continue, and it is still very likely that there will be an out-of-court settlement before the case goes to a jury. That said, this process can take well over a year to conclude, even if a settlement is reached. In the event a personal injury case has to go all the way to trial, the claim may not be resolved for one, two, or even three years or more.