06/17/2026
In New Jersey, we have lawsuits with people who have the limitation on lawsuit and people who have no limitation on lawsuit. It's easier to explain the no limitation on lawsuit. The no limitation on lawsuit, which used to be called no threshold, is when a person elects to have no limitation on their right to sue for pain and suffering. And in New Jersey, we do call it an election. You need to elect limitation or no limitation. It's part of the application process. So if you elect no limitation on lawsuit, you can sue for temporary and permanent injuries with no restrictions and no requirements other than presenting a doctor's report to explain what your injuries are. So you're not restricted in any way. If you're injured and want to bring a claim or a lawsuit with a limitation on lawsuit in your insurance policy, and that's the election, to sue for pain and suffering, a person has to prove one of six injuries to sue for pain and suffering to get compensated for the pain and suffering and the injuries. Death, loss of a fetus, dismemberment, which means loss of a limb, displaced fracture, meaning the fracture goes all the way through the bone, significant scarring or disfigurement, meaning someone can see it from five, 10 feet away and it's obvious. And then number six is permanent injury. Many cases, and I'd say most cases in car accident world, often are tried in the permanent injury category where the insurance company for the defendant or the defense firm is saying the person does not meet the requirements of a permanent injury in New Jersey. What does a permanent injury mean in New Jersey under the limitation on lawsuit? Permanent injury is defined as an injury that has not healed and will not heal with future treatment. And a doctor has to say that. And a doctor has to show that the injury is permanent with objective medical evidence, MRI, X-ray, CAT scan, some other diagnostic test.
