Why Choose Koussan Law?
Holland Personal Injury Lawyer: Serious Counsel for the Lakeshore
Koussan Law represents people seriously injured in Holland and along the West Michigan lakeshore on a contingency fee — no fee unless we win. Our trial team has recovered tens of millions of dollars, including a $14.95 million jury verdict. Holland's profile is distinctive: a US-31 freight corridor slicing between manufacturing parks, a tourism economy that multiplies traffic every Tulip Time and beach season, and a two-county split that regularly confuses venue and notice questions. We handle all of it.
Quick facts for Holland injury victims:
- Filing deadline: generally 3 years from the date of injury (MCL § 600.5805); only 2 years for medical malpractice; just 120 days to notify a government defendant (MCL § 691.1404).
- Cost: no upfront fees, ever. Contingency representation, so there is no fee unless we recover money for you.
- Where your case is filed: the 20th Judicial Circuit Court for Ottawa County (Allegan County's 48th Circuit for the city's south side).
- No-fault basics: your own auto insurer pays medical bills and wage loss regardless of fault; a separate claim against the at-fault driver for pain and suffering requires a "serious impairment of body function."
This page covers Holland's highest-risk roads, the case types we handle most often here, how Michigan injury law applies to lakeshore cases, the local court system, and the deadlines that decide whether a case can be brought at all.
High-Risk Roads and Corridors in Holland
- US-31 — the lakeshore's main artery. Signalized freeway-speed intersections and heavy truck volume make the corridor between Lakewood Boulevard and 32nd Street a chronic serious-crash zone.
- I-196 — the Grand Rapids connector, with high-speed merges at the Adams Street and 16th Street interchanges.
- Chicago Drive (BL-196) — commuter and industrial traffic between Holland and Zeeland.
- M-40 (Lincoln Road) — the southbound route toward Allegan, mixing rural speeds with commercial development.
- 8th Street and River Avenue downtown — festival-season pedestrian density; Tulip Time alone brings hundreds of thousands of visitors into a compact core.
- Ottawa Beach Road — summer traffic to Holland State Park, with cyclists and pedestrians sharing the corridor.
Personal Injury Cases We Handle for Holland Clients
- Car accidents — US-31 intersection crashes, seasonal tourist-traffic collisions, PIP disputes, and serious-impairment claims.
- Truck crashes — West Michigan manufacturing freight on US-31 and I-196.
- Premises liability — lake-effect ice is a fact of lakeshore winters; Kandil-Elsayed (2023) restored many of these claims.
- Boating and watercraft injuries — Lake Macatawa and Lake Michigan recreation carries its own liability rules.
- Motorcycle accidents, wrongful death, and catastrophic injuries.
- No-fault / PIP disputes — including out-of-state visitors injured in Michigan, whose coverage runs through the priority rules and the Assigned Claims Plan.
Holland Hospitals and Your Medical Record
Holland Hospital, a state-designated Level III trauma facility, provides the city's frontline emergency care; the region's most severe trauma is transported to Grand Rapids — Corewell Health Butterworth Hospital (Level I) or Trinity Health Grand Rapids (Level II), about 30 miles east. That two-stage treatment path means records from multiple systems, and assembling a complete, consistent record across them is part of how we build lakeshore cases.
Treatment discipline matters: the McCormick serious-impairment analysis runs on objective medical documentation, and PIP reimbursement runs on proof of allowable expenses.
Ottawa and Allegan County Courts
Holland straddles the county line, and venue follows the crash site: Ottawa County claims are filed in the 20th Judicial Circuit Court, while incidents on the city's Allegan County side go to the 48th Circuit in Allegan. District-level matters for the city are heard in the 58th District Court's Holland courtroom. The split matters for juries too — lakeshore juries are conservative and detail-oriented, and we prepare accordingly.
Michigan No-Fault Insurance: Key Rules for Holland Drivers
Michigan's no-fault system controls almost every Holland crash case, and it runs on two separate tracks. The first-party (PIP) claim is against your own insurer for allowable medical expenses, wage loss, replacement services, and attendant care under MCL § 500.3107 — regardless of who caused the crash. Which insurer pays is set by the priority rules of MCL §§ 500.3114 and 500.3115, and pedestrians and cyclists struck by cars are covered too. Since the 2019 reform, your recovery is also shaped by the PIP medical coverage level chosen on the policy, and the Michigan Supreme Court's decision in Andary v. USAA (2023) preserved uncapped lifetime benefits for people injured before that reform.
The third-party claim is the lawsuit against the at-fault driver for pain and suffering and excess economic loss. It requires proof of a "serious impairment of body function" under MCL § 500.3135, judged by the three-part test of McCormick v. Carrier (2010): an objectively manifested impairment, of an important body function, that affects your general ability to lead your normal life. Insurers on the lakeshore fight this threshold in nearly every case, which is why treatment records and honest documentation of how the injury changed your daily routine matter from day one.
Vehicle damage is handled separately: Michigan's mini-tort provision, MCL § 500.3135(3)(e), lets you recover up to $3,000 in vehicle damage from an at-fault driver.
Deadlines for Holland Personal Injury Cases
Miss the deadline and the case is gone, no matter how strong it is. The clocks that matter most on the lakeshore:
- Most injury lawsuits: 3 years from the date of injury. MCL § 600.5805(2).
- Medical malpractice: generally 2 years, plus a mandatory 182-day Notice of Intent before filing. MCL §§ 600.5838a, 600.2912b.
- No-fault PIP benefits: the one-year-back rule of MCL § 500.3145 limits recovery to expenses incurred within one year before suit, so PIP disputes cannot wait.
- Government defendants: written notice within 120 days for highway-defect and most claims against public agencies. MCL § 691.1404.
- Wrongful death: the underlying statute of limitations still controls, and the personal representative must be appointed before suit. MCL § 600.2922.
Modified Comparative Negligence in Michigan
Michigan follows a modified comparative negligence rule, MCL § 600.2959. Your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault, and non-economic damages (pain and suffering) are barred only if you are found more than 50% at fault. Economic damages survive even above that line. Insurers use this rule aggressively — blaming the injured person is the cheapest defense there is — so do not accept an adjuster's fault assessment as final.
For premises cases, the Michigan Supreme Court's decision in Kandil-Elsayed v. F&E Oil, Inc. (2023) folded the old "open and obvious" doctrine into comparative fault. A visible hazard no longer automatically kills a Holland slip-and-fall case; it is one factor a jury weighs.
Why Holland Injury Victims Choose Koussan Law
Koussan Law is a Michigan trial firm, not a settlement mill. Our results include a $14.95 million jury verdict in a sexual assault and institutional negligence case — tried by Ali Koussan as sole plaintiff's counsel against four defense firms — a $6 million premises liability settlement, and a $1 million wrongful death settlement for the family of a disabled adult. Insurance carriers know which firms actually try cases, and that reputation changes settlement math long before a lakeshore jury is ever seated.
We serve the lakeshore as part of a genuinely statewide trial practice. Holland clients get direct attorney handling, aggressive evidence preservation, and a firm whose results — including a $14.95 million verdict — change how carriers price West Michigan cases.
Every case is handled on contingency: no consultation fee, no hourly billing, no fee at all unless we recover for you. You get direct attorney contact, not a case-number-and-call-center experience.
Frequently Asked Questions: Holland Personal Injury Lawyer
How long do I have to file an injury lawsuit in Holland?
Generally three years from the injury under MCL 600.5805(2). Medical malpractice is two years plus the 182-day Notice of Intent, PIP benefits run on the one-year-back rule of MCL 500.3145, and government-defendant claims require written notice within 120 days under MCL 691.1404.
What does a Holland personal injury lawyer cost?
Nothing upfront. We work on contingency — the fee comes out of the recovery, and if there is no recovery there is no fee.
I'm a tourist who was injured during Tulip Time. Can I still bring a Michigan claim?
Yes. Michigan law governs injuries occurring here regardless of where you live. For car crashes, PIP coverage for out-of-state visitors depends on the priority rules and whether your insurer is certified in Michigan; the Assigned Claims Plan can be the backstop. These are solvable, technical questions — ask before assuming you have no claim.
Where will my Holland case be filed?
It depends on which side of the county line the injury occurred: the 20th Judicial Circuit for Ottawa County or the 48th Circuit for Allegan County. City district matters go to the 58th District Court in Holland.
Does no-fault cover a cyclist hit by a car on Ottawa Beach Road?
Yes. A cyclist struck by a motor vehicle receives PIP benefits under MCL 500.3115 through the statutory priority chain, and a third-party claim lies against the at-fault driver if the serious-impairment threshold of MCL 500.3135 is met.
Can I recover if I was partly at fault?
Yes. Michigan's modified comparative negligence statute, MCL 600.2959, reduces the award by your percentage of fault; only above 50% are pain-and-suffering damages barred.
Who is responsible for an injury on a boat on Lake Macatawa?
Potentially the operator, the owner, or a rental company, under negligence and Michigan's watercraft statutes; alcohol and inexperience are recurring factors. Serious watercraft injuries deserve the same investigation rigor as a highway crash — and evidence sinks fast.
Schedule Your Free Holland Case Review
Evidence disappears fast — camera footage is overwritten, vehicles are repaired, and witnesses move. If you or a family member was seriously injured in Holland or anywhere on the lakeshore, call (313) 800-0000 or send us a message for a free, no-obligation consultation. You can also get an instant estimate range with our free case value calculator. There is no fee unless we win.
