What is a motion to dismiss in a personal injury case?

Not every personal injury case that we handle requires that a lawsuit is filed, but when our clients are involved in lawsuits they often have questions about exactly what a Motion To Dismiss is filed in a Florida personal injury case.

Motions to Dismiss are generally filed to test the legal sufficiency of a plaintiff’s Complaint.  In Florida, the Complaint is the initial document that a plaintiff files in order to start a lawsuit.  Complaints may also be called Petitions, and are referred to in other ways in other states.

A Motion to Dismiss essentially asks a judge to strictly examine the contents of the Complaint, only.  A judge may not consider any evidence that may or may not be admitted into the underlying case.

Motions to Dismiss are generally technical legal motions, and usually only involve the lawyers involved in the case. Motions to Dismiss are usually not dispositive – in other words, they are usually not fatal or final (at least in the beginning.) Judges will almost always allow plaintiffs to cure any defect that the judge might find in the Complaint.  However, if the plaintiff cannot cure problems in the Complaint after several tries, a judge can dismiss the case with finality.

If you have any questions regarding a Motion to Dismiss, or litigation in Florida personal injury cases in general, please call us at 407-644-4444.