Personal Injury Law

There are a few things that you should do if you find yourself in a personal injury accident:

• Take photos of your injuries and any property damage that resulted from the accident, such as photos of your car after an auto accident. 
•  Visit a doctor if you haven’t already. 
• If you have already visited a doctor, follow their treatment plan and attend all follow-up appointments. 
• While the accident is still fresh in your head, write down a narrative that describes the accident and what happened to you.
• Make a list of any witnesses who saw the accident and their contact information if you have it.
• Follow any additional instructions from your attorney.

There is no fee upfront. We only take a small percentage of the settlement, and only if we win. Additionally, personal injury attorneys will deduct costs that they paid up front in order for your case to proceed. It’s important to ask any questions you have so that you’re on the same page and you understand the fee structure as your case moves forward. Attorneys must be transparent with their clients about their fee structures, and you are always entitled to ask questions.

Every personal injury case depends on the unique facts and circumstances of the case. As experienced personal injury attorneys, we can give you more specific answers to your questions based on your circumstances.

As your attorney, we will help you through each step of the process in a way that’s designed to help get you a result that is most favorable to you. We will get to know you on a more personal level, understand your priorities and the details of your case, and work accordingly to get you your desired outcome and get you the maximum compensation possible.

While there is no true monetary value you can place on your own injuries and your pain and suffering, as your attorney, Springdale Law Group will work diligently to ensure that you are compensated fairly according to the laws and legal protections available to injured persons.

There are a few things that you should do if you find yourself in a personal injury accident:

• Take photos of your injuries and any property damage that resulted from the accident, such as photos of your car after an auto accident. 
•  Visit a doctor if you haven’t already. 
• If you have already visited a doctor, follow their treatment plan and attend all follow-up appointments. 
• While the accident is still fresh in your head, write down a narrative that describes the accident and what happened to you.
• Make a list of any witnesses who saw the accident and their contact information if you have it.
• Follow any additional instructions from your attorney.

The deadline by which you must file your personal injury claim in Texas is known as the statute of limitations, and it depends on the unique circumstances of your case.

Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code establishes a general statute of limitations for personal injury cases, but application of these statutes to your real-life claim is more complicated and your attorney would need to evaluate the details of your case to determine whether there are any exceptions and other nuances that may change the statute of limitations for your claim.

Generally, the statutes of limitations for personal injury claims in Texas are as follows:

• General personal injury claims: 2 years (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003(a)).
• Products liability: 2 years or 15 years (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §§ 16.003(a), 16.012(b)).
• Medical and Legal malpractice: 2 years (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §§ 74.251(a), 16.003(a)).

Wrongful death: 2 years (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003(a)).

The average payout for whiplash is between $2,500 to $10,000, depending on the grade of your injury (between 0-4). The exact payout amount, of course, depends on the victim, type of injuries sustained and severity of those injuries. Additionally, if a victim suffers from whiplash as well as other injuries, such as broken bones, that will increase the payout. If you suffer from whiplash following an accident, it is important to seek medical attention as soon as possible and to document your injuries, pain, and symptoms to track your recovery process.

The nationwide average settlement amount for a personal injury case is anywhere from $19,000 (auto accidents) and up to $750,000 (wrongful death cases). In Texas, the average verdict in a personal injury lawsuit is $826,892, but the median award is around $12,281. This vast difference between the median and average jury verdicts in Texas is due to the distortion caused by huge verdicts that are awarded in Texas. While there have been verdict amounts awarded as high as $118 million, Texas has a cap on punitive damages that reduced that award to less than $12 million.

One of the best ways to maximize your personal injury settlement is to carefully, strategically build strong evidence to support your claim, as the success of your case will depend on the strength of your evidence. Take photos and/or videos at the scene of the accident, get any eyewitness’ contact information, request copies of accident reports from your local police department, and save all surveillance footage of the accident if there is any. The more evidence you have to prove the severity of your injuries, the other side’s fault in causing those injuries, and the total value of losses you incurred as a result of those injuries, the more likely the other party will be willing to offer a settlement amount that is closer to your desired compensation. 

In addition to documenting strong supporting evidence for your claim, you should also be sure to seek medical attention in order to have your injuries diagnosed by a medical professional and to ensure that you understand the total extent of your injuries. Your doctor will provide you with a treatment plan and prognosis, as well as refer you to other medical treatment that may be necessary in order to treat your injuries (for example, your chiropractor may refer you to a pain management center after evaluating your injuries).

Fair compensation for pain and suffering is proportional to the type of injury you suffered and the nature and extent of your medical treatment. “Pain and suffering” typically refers to physical pain caused by the accident, physical discomfort from necessary medical treatment, and psychological effects of the accident and resulting injuries, such as sleeplessness and anxiety. The more severe and permanent your injuries are, the more you will be awarded for pain and suffering.

Damages awarded in personal injury cases can be divided into two categories: economic (monetary) losses and non-economic (non-monetary) losses. Economic losses consist of medical bills/expenses, costs of living with a disability, lost wages, repair or replacement of property, and funeral expenses. Non-economic losses consist of pain and suffering and loss of consortium, among others.

A personal injury claim involves a plaintiff, the person who was injured, seeking compensation from a defendant, the person or business who allegedly caused that injury to the plaintiff. A personal injury lawsuit is a type of civil case in which both sides must follow applicable court rules and procedures. A judge supervises the entire claim process and resolves any pretrial conflicts and oversees a trial if the case doesn’t settle. In Texas, personal injury cases are governed by the Civil Practice and Remedies Code, which defines negligence, duties of care, statutes of limitations, liability, damages, and recovery–all of which are essential components of a valid personal injury claim.

The first step is to contact a Texas personal injury attorney and tell them about your accident. After some fact finding and investigative work by the attorney, your attorney will then notify the defendant of your claim.

Depending on the details of your specific claim, your attorney, as in other states, will likely try to negotiate an out-of-court settlement in order to protect your interests.

An out-of-court settlement can be particularly beneficial if you are unable to work or pay your bills because of your accident, as the settlement funds will help you get everything back on track. In addition to having money in your pocket, a settlement also keeps your claim out of court and prevents the defendant from media exposure and public scrutiny, making everyone happy.

If you are unable to reach a settlement at this point and your attorney advises you to file a suit in a Texas court, the next step will be your attorney filing a summons against the offender.  In most cases, you have two years from the date of your accident to file a personal injury lawsuit in Texas (this deadline is known as the statute of limitations). Your attorney will know what the necessary documents are and where to file them.

The following types of claims all fall within the legal scope of personal injury claims and may be actionable: 

• Motor vehicle accidents (trucks, cars, motorcycles, etc.)
• Workplace accidents
• Products liability
• Premises liability (e.g., slip-and-fall accidents)
• Medical malpractice
• Assaults
• Domestic animal bites (e.g., dog bites)
• Negligent security
• Wrongful death
• Child injury and abuse

Whether your personal injury case will go to trial depends on a variety of things, but a vast majority of personal injury cases do not go to trial and instead resolve by settlement before it reaches the trial stage.

Circumstances that will likely cause a case to go to trial are where there are facts in dispute or there’s a contested legal issue and the court may rule either way. This is why it is important to carefully build your case with plenty of supporting evidence, such as medical records to prove the substantiality of your injuries, photos of your damaged vehicle, and even receipts from your auto repair shop.

If your case happens to be one of the small minority of those that do go to trial, there’s no need to stress–your attorney will help prepare you for what to expect and how to conduct yourself in court.

At Springdale Law Group, we devote ourselves to keeping our clients informed and prepared for each stage of their personal injury case, and providing the tools our clients need to win their case.

The first step in a personal injury lawsuit is for the victim to make a demand for compensation called a “petition,” which states your claims against the defendant and is filed in a Texas district court. The defendant is then served with citation to let them know they are being sued. The defendant must file a written “answer” to your petition by the end of the 14th day after the day the defendant was served with the citation and petition (or the end of the 42nd day if the defendant was served by publication). Both parties and their attorneys will then begin pretrial investigations (known as the “discovery process”) and start gathering evidence, and soliciting written answers from the opposing party (known as “interrogatories”) or request sworn testimony under oath (known as “depositions”).

Shorter cases can be resolved in just a few weeks and without any formal litigation, depending on how quickly your attorney can negotiate directly with the other party or insurance company to reach an agreeable settlement amount.

In other cases that go to trial, litigation can continue for over a year; a majority of personal injury cases fall somewhere in the middle. If your case is more complicated, it will take longer to get through all of the court proceedings and obtain a ruling from the court. As the client, it is up to you to either accept or reject settlement offers, which will affect the length of your case.

Yes, but Texas personal injury law is governed by a modified comparative negligence rule (referred to as the “proportionate responsibility” or “shared fault rule”). This rule provides that if a person or business is partially to blame for your accident or injury, then they can be held liable for a damages amount proportional to their share of fault. If multiple parties contributed to your injuries, then the court will assign each party a percentage based on how much fault that they contributed, and then each party will pay a percentage of your total recovery equivalent to their assigned percentage of fault.

Yes, you can file a civil lawsuit without hiring an attorney. However, if you decide to bring your case on your own, you will be subject to the same standards and procedures as you would be if you had an attorney representing you.

You will be responsible for understanding and following formalities for your filing documents, rules of discovery, admission of evidence, and rules of civil procedure will apply to you just as they would to an attorney.

Usually, your best way to recover the maximum amount possible for your personal injury case is to hire an experienced attorney.

At Springdale Law Group, our clients and their wishes are our top priority, and we work diligently to ensure that you are compensated fairly and justly for the harm you experienced as a result of another’s negligence.

A Texas judgment is valid for 10 years from the date it is signed by the judge. After the expiration of that ten-year period, the judgment is dormant for two years, meaning that during that two-year period the judgment cannot be enforced.