The basic advantage of fact-finding is thought to be that if a trustworthy and impartial person delivers findings of fact, this should carry great weight with the parties. Or the fact-finder may be appointed by a person who has the authority to appoint a fact-finder in order to determine the facts in a dispute, e.g. It is possible that the fact-finder would be selected by an agency if the agency has a role in the case. Neutral fact-finding is done by an impartial person, sometimes an expert of some kind, who is not a party but is selected by the parties. Such processes as interrogatories, depositions, and production of documents are the methods used in every civil lawsuit to determine what evidence there is and what it shows about the case. If fact-finding is done by the parties to a lawsuit, it is done through the discovery process and governed by the rules of discovery. In many cases, a pre-trial settlement may result after fact-finding reveals what actually occurred in the accident at issue in a personal injury case.

These are processes which aim to resolve a legal dispute without a trial. Fact-finding occurs during fact-finding hearings.įact-finding is a type of alternative dispute resolution (ADR).

The purpose of fact-finding is to establish which facts are true and not subject to contest in the trial of the case. What is Fact-Finding in a Personal Injury Case?įact-finding is a type of legal process wherein a neutral, third party interviews witnesses and reviews documents to determine exactly what happened in the accident that has led to a personal injury lawsuit.

Fact finding court