If your child has been injured at a daycare center, you wonder what you can do about it. Our daycare negligence lawyers in Houston have been helping families sue daycare centers for over three decades.
How to Sue a Daycare for Child Injury?
What You Need to Know About Lawsuits Against Daycare Centers in Texas
Here is what you need to know about lawsuits against daycare centers. Lawsuits against daycare centers are identical to other personal injury lawsuits in Texas. The exception comes when the case is settled. Upon settlement, the lawsuit procedure invokes specific actions to protect the minor.
The damages are the children’s
Texas courts take extraordinary steps to protect the interest of an injured child. The rationale for the law in Texas is that a child is too young to protect their own interests, so the judge oversees the settlement to ensure it represents the child’s real interests. If the case is settled, a hearing will be set before a judge.
The judge will appoint an independent attorney called an ad litem, paid for by the defendants, to advise the court on the fairness of the settlement relative to the minor’s interests.
Our Houston daycare injury lawyers have been winning maximum damages in daycare cases for over three decades. In over 35 years, we have never lost a daycare injury case. If you want to bring a lawsuit for a child, call us. Don’t settle for less. Get the best!
What is ad litem?
Ad litem is an attorney with one role in a child injury lawsuit. That role is to protect the children’s interests by advising the judge of their feelings regarding the settlement’s fairness. Typically, the lawyers are trained specially for dealing with minors and incompetent’s interests.
Ad litem will meet with the family and the daycare negligence attorney and review the medical records, the allegations, and other relevant material. The ad litem will speak with the attorney for the family and determine the fairness to the child.
What happens to the money?
There are two popular options for handling the child’s personal injury damages. Those options are:
- Deposit the money into the registry of the court.
If the money is deposited into the court registry, the funds will remain in the court’s bank account in the child’s name until the child reaches 18. Upon turning 18, the child can go to the district clerk, provide evidence of who they are, and obtain a check for their settlement money.
The benefit of this choice is that it is a straightforward procedure. Often, this is an avenue selected when the proceeds are relatively minor. The downside of this arrangement is that the interest accruing is small, and the money goes to an 18-year-old who may not have the maturity to save the money. There’s a high chance that the child would get the money and blow it.
- Purchase an annuity.
An annuity is buying an insurance policy for the child that pays specific amounts of money at predetermined dates. There are several benefits to choosing an annuity for child settlement money. The first benefit is it pays a higher rate of return than depositing into the registry of the court.
The parents and the ad litem can agree upon how the money is paid off over time. An annuity keeps an 18-year-old child from having access to a large sum of money when they are 18 years old. This choice also gives very flexible options for payment.
One popular payment plan includes funds for college and then lump sums at specified years and over time. However, the money can be paid out in about any way that the family wants.
How do you prove negligence against a daycare?
It is up to the attorney you hire to prove fault on the part of the daycare facility. Fault or negligence can be proven by showing the center violated a rule or regulation or acted unreasonably in the care of your child.
Failure to closely supervise is a common method our daycare injury lawyers use to prove fault.
Also, the daycare may have been negligent and grossly neglectful in some cases, leading to a punitive damage claim. If your child was hurt at a daycare center in Texas, call our experienced attorneys for a free consultation. Call (281) 587-1111!
How long do daycare lawsuits last?
Cases that settle early can be funded within three months of settlement. The money is usually either deposited with the court when the child turns 18 or used to purchase an annuity for later payment to the child. The delay is to file a friendly lawsuit and have an ad litem appointed as outlined above. Cases involving severe injury can take much longer and almost always involve a lawsuit to get fair compensation for your child.
Most lawsuits against daycare centers in Houston settle. However, when the injuries are significant, a lawsuit is usually required to obtain fair compensation for the child. Personal injury lawsuits in Harris County can last for two or more years. Most are resolved before then.
Baumgartner Law Firm Personal Injury Lawyer Practice Areas
At Baumgartner Law Firm, our personal injury attorney in Houston, TX helps clients throughout Texas maximize their damages to get the compensation they deserve. We have recovered millions of dollars and represented thousands of accident victims.
Since 1985, our firm has limited the practice to serious injury cases and produced exceptional results in the following areas:
- Auto & Car Accidents
- Catastrophic and Severe Injuries
- Construction Site Accidents
- Truck & 18-Wheeler Accidents
- Daycare Negligence & Child Injury
- Motorcycle Accidents
- Drunk Driving Accidents
- Dram Shop Lawsuits
- Wrongful Death
Our founder attorney, Greg Baumgartner, has over 35 years of experience and has been peer-reviewed preeminent for decades.
Contact a Child Injury Lawyer at Baumgartner Law Firm for Help
If your child was injured at a daycare center in Houston, contact our undefeated daycare injury lawyers at Baumgartner Law Firm. Call (281) 587-1111.
Related Articles:
What you need to know about children injured in fitness centers!
What You Need to Know About Pre-Injury Waivers of Children’s Claims in Texas
When Should I Hire a Child Injury Lawyer?
Challenges of Proving Negligence in Daycare Injury Claims
Can I Bring a Personal Injury Claim on Behalf of a Child in Texas?
Need an Attorney for Daycare Injury
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What kind of cases do you accept?
We are very selective in the cases that we agree to handle to provide the best possible service to our clients. By limiting the number of cases that we accept, we can provide the time attention, and resources required to maximize compensation for our clients.
Accordingly, our practice is limited to cases involving substantial injury or a family who has lost a loved one. We have gained a reputation for handling 18-wheeler truck accidents, car and drunk driving crashes, daycare injury cases, and other serious injury and wrongful death matters. To learn more about the cases we cover, visit our practice areas page.
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