How to file a lemon law case

Lemon laws ideally protect customers from being deceived, or rather from getting a raw deal when buying a car.  The mischiefs the laws are supposed to cover include failure to disclose information about the vehicle history, mileage, accident history and the physical condition of the automobile.

 

The purchaser who has a lemon has to try to have the defect fixed before taking any legal action. It’s when all the pre-litigation steps have been taken and proven unsatisfactory; the purchaser may proceed to file a lawsuit. Most auto companies would rather settle the matter privately with the purchaser than go to court; the reason being defending a lemon law suit can be costly for the company.

 

Furthermore, some statutes allow an aggrieved consumer to collect triple damages. This means, if the car was worth $18,000, the manufacturer stands to lose up to $54,000. And of course car companies would loath the publicity brought up by high damages. Thus ideally, it is in their interest to settle the matter with the purchaser out of court.

 

But in some cases, companies may take their chances with the court, or they may offer inadequate resolution, and this is when one may file a lawsuit with a hope of getting a more satisfactory relief. The first step would of course involve seeking legal representation, as it’s almost a certainty that the vehicle owner will be represented.

Any practicing lawyer can handle a lemon law case, but one is well advised to find an attorney who specializes in prosecuting lemon law cases. They are familiar with the terrain, and will not need to reinvent the wheel. They can anticipate the tricks the manufacturer has on its sleeves. At first, the attorney will evaluate the case for you, before deciding it the matter can be taken to court. But before the attorney does that, the consumer will need to pay some retainer.

 

Lemon lawyers are inexpensive, and because a portion of the money will be paid by the manufacturer, the money paid as a retainer is affordable to many people. After the preliminaries, which include sending correspondence to the manufacturer hoping for a settlement but should that also fail to result in any favorable resolve, its time to file summons and complaint under the lemon law. This is where your prudence in keeping all the documentation needed will be called into play.

 

After the complaint is filed, then the parties can agree on a date when the case can be heard. In larges jurisdictions, the date when the matter is heard may be a year from the time the case was filed. The manufacturers know this and they hope this should discourage the potential litigants. At the time of filing, it’s better to get a jury trial.

 

Manufacturers are fearful of jury trials, because jury members tend to lean towards a consumer who was sold a bad car for which the manufacturer doesn’t want to take responsibility.

 

Afterwards will be a process called “discovery” where short questions and documentation will be supplied to the opposing side. There is still a chance that the manufacturer will want to settle, though if they have delayed up to this point, they are unlikely to be reasonable in the amount of offer that they will give.