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Seriously Injured in an Accident in Texas? We Can Help!

Accidents happen every day in Texas. Some occur in public places, such as streets or sidewalks, while others occur in stores, restaurants, and hotels. The circumstances surrounding these accidents differ considerably, but they all share one thing: innocent people suffer serious injuries and need financial compensation. That is where Texas personal injury lawyers come into play.

Please contact our Texas personal injury lawyer at Baumgartner Law Firm immediately. For the past 35 years, our firm has focused exclusively on personal injury trial law. We have experience negotiating settlements or suing the person or business responsible for injuring you. If you or a family member has been injured in Texas, contact Baumgartner Law Firm. Call (281) 587-1111.

Award-Winning Personal Injury Attorney in Texas with Over 35 Years of Experience

Our founding attorney, Greg Baumgartner, holds double law degrees and is a graduate of Trial Lawyers College. Greg has been a peer-reviewed, preeminent-rated personal injury lawyer for decades and recovered millions of dollars for our clients.

Common Types of Injury Accidents in Texas

Our Houston personal injury attorneys have handled thousands of cases for over 35 years and won millions for our clients. Here are the most common accidents leading to personal injury claims in Texas.

The above is only a partial list. If someone accidentally hurts you, chances are we can assist. Please contact our Texas personal injury law firm today to schedule a free, confidential consultation. We can review the facts and identify whether you can claim compensation.

Texas Accident Statistics

If you were hurt in an accident recently, you are not alone. As the following statistics show, thousands of people suffer serious injuries in Houston and across the state:

  • In 2021, the Texas Department of Transportation reported  4,489 fatalities in the state, which was an increase over the 3,896 deaths in 2020.
  • That same year, 19,448 people suffered a serious injury in a car accident.
  • Houston specifically saw 312 fatal crashes in 2021, along with 1,595 people suffering serious injuries in car wrecks.
  • In 2021, 536 accidents involving tractor-trailers in the Lone Star State occurred.
  • An alarming 42,114 people across the country died in a fall, either at home or at work.

These accidents are often preventable—but only if people remember to act with sufficient care. If you believe that you have been injured due to someone else’s negligence or misconduct, call our lawyers today for a free consultation!

Actions to Take When Your Loved One Is A Victim of An 18-Wheeler Accident

How Can a Lawyer at Baumgartner Law Firm Help Me with my Personal Injury Case?

Accidents often leave victims in considerable pain. Victims don’t know what steps to take or how to seek compensation to cover their medical and other expenses. Some of them can do nothing but stay at home and take medication to help them get through the day.

This is where Baumgartner Law Firm can immediately step in and help you. We have the experience to build a compensation claim. You should not have to suffer financial stress because someone injured you. Instead, they should pay you—it’s that simple.

Steps We Take to Help Your Injury Claim

Our team can lift a heavy load from your shoulders and immediately take the following steps:

  • Analyze the evidence to determine who is responsible for injuring you.
  • Fill out paperwork and answer questions from insurance adjusters.
  • Help you secure medical care from a doctor, especially if you lack insurance.
  • Investigate the accident to uncover other helpful evidence.
  • Determine whether you have a valid legal claim under personal injury law.
  • Estimate the settlement value of your injuries.
  • Work with expert witnesses to reconstruct the accident and recreate how it happened.
  • Submit a demand for compensation to the person responsible for your accident and injuries.
  • Negotiate a fair settlement and resist insurance companies’ attempts to blame you for your own accident.
  • File a lawsuit, where necessary, to protect your rights.

Many of our clients want to know how long it will take to settle their claims. Unfortunately, there is no simple answer. Some cases are settled amicably within six months. Other cases could take years to resolve fully, usually with litigation in court. Contact us to schedule a free consultation with some of Texas’s best personal injury lawyers!

Understanding Negligence and Liability

Negligence is a critical concept in personal injury law, referring to the failure of an individual or organization to exercise reasonable care, resulting in harm to another person. In Texas, negligence forms the primary basis for personal injury claims. To establish negligence, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant had a duty of care, breached that duty, and caused harm.

Liability, on the other hand, refers to the defendant’s responsibility for the harm caused to the plaintiff. In Texas, liability can be established through various means, including negligence, strict liability, and intentional torts. Understanding these nuances is essential for building a strong personal injury claim. A skilled personal injury lawyer can help you navigate these complexities, ensuring that all aspects of negligence and liability are thoroughly addressed to support your case.

Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit

Filing a personal injury lawsuit can be a complex and daunting process. However, with the guidance of an experienced personal injury attorney, you can navigate the legal system and seek the compensation you deserve. In Texas, the statute of limitations for personal injury claims is two years from the accident date. Filing your lawsuit within this timeframe is essential to avoid missing the opportunity to seek compensation.

When filing a personal injury lawsuit, you must provide documentation, including medical records, police reports, and witness statements. Your attorney will help you gather this evidence and build a strong case to support your claim. The lawsuit will be filed in the appropriate court, and the defendant will be served with a summons and complaint. This process ensures that all legal protocols are followed and your case is presented effectively.

Trial vs. Settlement in Personal Injury Claims

In personal injury cases, the goal is often to settle with the defendant. However, in some cases, a trial may be necessary to achieve a fair outcome. A trial can be lengthy and costly, but it may be the best option if the defendant is unwilling to offer a reasonable settlement.

An experienced personal injury attorney can help you determine whether a trial or settlement is your case’s best course of action. They will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your case and negotiate with the defendant to reach a fair settlement. Many courts in Texas order mediation, which is a good tool for settling cases. If a trial is necessary, your attorney will prepare you for the process and represent you in court, ensuring that your rights are protected and your case is presented compellingly.

How Much Compensation Can I Receive From a Personal Injury Claim in Texas?

This is one of the most difficult questions in personal injury law. The fact is that no two cases are exactly alike. An experienced personal injury lawyer will need to learn more about your accident and injuries to determine how much you might receive from a personal injury claim.

Important Factors in Determining Compensation for a Personal Injury Case

Generally, the following factors will determine the size of most personal injury claims and settlements:

Are they permanent, or did your injuries heal in a few months? Do you suffer emotional injuries, like post-traumatic stress disorder? Do you have scarring on visible parts of your body, like your face?

Did someone intentionally harm you? Were they driving drunk? or did they suffer a momentary lapse of concentration and accidentally hit you?

Did you miss months of work to recuperate, or were you immediately back on the job after taking some painkillers? Do your permanent injuries prevent you from going back to your old job? Can you work at all?

Did you go quickly to the hospital and take all medication or rehabilitation prescribed by your doctor? Or did you self-diagnose and stop going to physical therapy?

Did the driver who struck you have the bare minimum required by the state, or are they completely uninsured?

Does your employer have workers’ compensation? Injured in a company car? Did a dangerous or defective product injure you?

Our experienced Houston personal injury lawyer can go over these questions with you. Based on your answers, he can estimate a ballpark amount of compensation to seek.

Call an Experienced Texas Personal Injury Lawyer for Help

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Texas Personal Injury Damages

Accident victims should seek compensation for their losses, called “damages.” Most personal injury victims will have economic and non-economic losses. Depending on the facts, you might seek punitive damages from the defendant as a form of punishment.

Top-rated Houston personal injury lawyers must individually evaluate personal injury cases in Texas for serious personal injury.

Economic Damages in Texas

Economic damages are fairly easy to calculate. They include any out-of-pocket expense caused by your accident, as well as missed income opportunities:

Human Damages in Texas (non-economic)

Non-economic damages are losses that don’t have a bill or statement with a dollar figure listed. Still, Texas believes anyone suffering from these losses deserves some compensation to make up for them:

If you lose a loved one in an accident, the damages you seek might differ slightly. Let us walk you through what compensation is available in a wrongful death claim.

Punitive Damages

Punitive damages are a type of damages that can be awarded in personal injury cases. They are intended to punish the defendant for bad conduct. In Texas, Punitive damages are capped at the greater of $200,000 in cases where economic damages are not awarded or an amount equal to double the economic losses plus an equal amount of non-economic damages up to $750,000.

To be eligible for punitive damages, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant’s behavior was grossly negligent or intentional. An experienced personal injury attorney can help you determine whether punitive damages are applicable in your case and build a strong argument to support your claim. This can significantly impact your overall compensation, providing a sense of justice beyond mere economic recovery.

Some clients will qualify for punitive damages. You might request them if the defendant intentionally injured you or acted with gross negligence or reckless disregard your safety.

Some common examples include a drunk driver who injures you or someone who doesn’t fix a property defect even though other people were injured by it before.

Comparative Negligence on a Texas Personal Injury Case?

Texas has a comparative negligence law called proportionate responsibility. Under the law, you can receive compensation even if your negligence contributed to an accident. Don’t be surprised if the defendant blames you for being careless and contributing to your injuries.

Examples of comparative negligence include:

  • Texting and driving
  • Not watching where you are walking
  • Using equipment carelessly at work
  • Not reading directions before using a product
  • Riding a motorcycle without a motorcycle license or helmet

Texas Shared Responsibility Examples

In Texas, you can seek compensation so long as you are not more than 50% to blame. If you are 51% or more responsible, then you are barred completely from receiving compensation.

What happens if you are under this threshold? You can still receive compensation, but you will receive less based on your proportion of responsibility. So someone who is 40% to blame will get 40% less than they would otherwise.

Baumgartner Law Firm is always ready for defendants to point the finger at you and blame you for the accident. We fully analyze all personal injury and wrongful death cases so we can put the responsibility where it belongs: on the person who injured you.

5 Mistakes to Avoid after a Texas Accident

Many motor vehicle accidents strike out of the blue, and accident victims are shocked to find themselves in the hospital. However, we strongly encourage anyone injured to avoid certain mistakes which can compromise their ability to seek a settlement:

  1. Resist the urge to admit fault for the accident. You might be tempted to take responsibility, but it’s important not to.
  2. Avoid self-diagnosing injuries. Instead, go to the hospital to have a doctor look at you. Your medical team can order diagnostic tests and then order appropriate treatment.
  3. Don’t give a recorded statement to an insurance adjuster. Odds are they are looking for evidence of your own negligence, which they will use to reduce the compensation they pay. Instead, tell them to call your Houston personal injury lawyer.
  4. Never agree to a settlement offer without a lawyer reviewing it first. No matter how generous the offer is, it is rare for an insurer to offer fair compensation right out of the gate.
  5. Don’t assume you have no case. Lawyers study for years to understand the law. You might be surprised that you have a serious claim for meaningful compensation.

If you follow these rules, you can improve your chances of getting fair compensation.

What Evidence Do I Need in a Personal Injury Case?

The key in a personal injury case is to prove who is responsible for hurting you. And proving your damages. This means establishing fault for the accident and providing medical evidence of injuries. Most accidents are caused by a negligent person, meaning someone who did not act with sufficient care. This person didn’t intend to hurt you, but they suffered a lapse and ended up accidentally causing you pain.

To prove negligence, you need evidence. Your Texas personal injury lawyer can find some vital evidence, but you might have some pieces in your possession. Let’s look at certain categories of evidence:

Liability Evidence

First and foremost, the victim’s attorney must prove negligence or what another did wrong to cause the injuries. Photographs of vehicles in car wrecks are one example of evidence that can show what or how something happened. The list of evidence that can be useful is long and includes the following:

Evidence of your injuries and damages

You need to prove that you suffered physical and psychological injuries in the accident. You can help by sharing the following with your lawyer:

  • Copies of test results or medical records.
  • The names of all doctors you met with so your lawyer can request medical records.
  • A pain journal is a place where you document where you feel pain every day and how it has interrupted your normal life.

Proof of your monetary losses

You need to prove your financial losses, so remember to hold onto:

  • Pay stubs or proof of income
  • Health insurance statements
  • Doctor’s bills
  • Prescription medication receipts
  • Repair estimates for your vehicle or other damaged property
  • Receipts for rental cars or wheelchairs

Our legal team is also skilled at requesting evidence you might not have access to. For example, a trucking company should have employment records, drug test results, and performance evaluations.

We might also ask to see the driver’s logs or electronic logging data. You might not have enough evidence to bring a claim without the right Houston personal injury attorney.

Deadlines and Texas Personal Injury

In Texas, the statute of limitations grants victims two years to file a lawsuit in most situations. The clock usually begins on the day you were hurt in the accident.

What happens if you miss this deadline? The results are devastating: the defendant can ask a judge to dismiss your case, and the judge will toss your lawsuit. You can’t file again later because you went over the deadline, which means you won’t receive any compensation.

Contact a Texas Personal Injury Attorney For Advise on Your Case

Some other accident victims have different deadlines. Someone injured by a government worker will need to submit a claim within six months to the appropriate government agency providing evidence about the claim. This step is necessary if you were struck by a government worker or injured in a government building, like a school.

It is critical not to miss these deadlines. If you do, the person who injured you can skate free without being held accountable. Reach out to our Houston personal injury attorney as soon as possible. We can take quick action to protect your legal rights.

Texas personal injury lawyer at Baumgartner Law Firm

Can I Afford a Top Texas Personal Injury Law Firm

Do you have no money to pay a lawyer? Helpfully, Baumgartner Law Firm works with our personal injury clients using contingency fee agreements. These agreements are simple: we agree to represent you without any upfront cost. Instead, you agree that we will take a percentage of your settlement or jury award if we win. That’s it. If we don’t get money for you, you can walk away without owing us anything.

Our Texas Personal Injury Law Firm Takes Cases on a Contingency Fee Basis

Please do not let fear of paying legal fees keep you from calling a top Texas personal injury attorney. We know that many accident victims are struggling with financial stress. Those who cannot work fear for their futures and whether they can stay in their homes. Let us explain our contingency fee agreements in more detail and help you decide whether we are the right law firm for you.

What if my Child was the One That Got Hurt?

If your child was injured in an accident, you need a lawyer attuned to your needs. You can also bring a personal injury claim on behalf of your child. Texas has unique laws related to children, impacting whether you can bring a case and how it is settled.

At Baumgartner Law Firm, our child injury lawyer has helped families for over 35 years when their child is hurt or lost in an accident.

Texas Procedures for a Child Injury Case

There are also unique rules regarding settling a child’s personal injury case. Generally, a judge will hold a hearing to review any proposed settlement, and the judge will likely appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the child’s interests. Texas judges want to ensure that a settlement properly compensates the child, especially because those under 18 in Texas can’t form contracts or legally protect their rights.

Baumgartner law can help any family whose child was injured. We have proven results and know how to negotiate and approve settlements. We can also help by filing a lawsuit on behalf of your child.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common Personal Injury Questions to Ask

What expertise do you have with cases like mine?

Knowing the attorney’s experience in cases similar to yours is one of the most important questions you can ask when hiring a lawyer for a personal injury case. Personal injury victims have trusted Baumgartner Law Firm for over three decades. We handle complex, serious injury and wrongful death cases. Call us, and we will gladly outline our expertise and list satisfied clients with similar cases.

What are your fees, and how are they structured?

At Baumgartner Law Firm, we work on a contingency fee basis. Our fees start at 33 1/3 percent and go up to 40% if the case might go to trial.

Who will be handling my case?

Knowing who will work on your case is vital to making an informed decision on lawyers. Many “sign up” with a senior attorney and only find out later that an inexperienced attorney developed the case. We are very selective on the cases we accept in order to provide the best possible representation by preeminent-rated personal injury lawyer Greg Baumgartner.

Will I have to go to court to get compensation for my injuries?

In Texas, most personal injury claims are resolved outside of the courtroom. Insurance companies and claimants often prefer settlement, as court proceedings can escalate costs for both parties. However, it may be necessary to pursue legal action in some cases if the insurance company is unwilling to provide a fair settlement for your injuries.

Having skilled Texas personal injury attorneys can guide you through the process, helping you determine whether it is best to accept a settlement offer or pursue further compensation through litigation. Rest assured that with the right legal representation, you will have support at every stage, including navigating the decision to go to court for your claim.

What is my case worth?

An experienced injury attorney can give a ballpark estimate of value, but an attorney can’t give an accurate evaluation without knowing the facts.

How long will my case take?

The timing of settling an injury case can vary substantially depending on the complexity of the case, liability, and seriousness of the injuries.

A clear liability minor injury case may settle in a few months after medical treatment has been completed. A case with severe injuries or disputed liability can take one year or more.

What can I do to improve my chances of being successful?

Hiring an experienced attorney to work on your case is an important part of winning it. Another part is treating your injuries promptly and following your doctor’s orders.

Contact Our Top-Rated Texas Personal Injury Lawyer for Help!

No one hurt in an accident should try to negotiate a settlement without a seasoned legal advocate in their corner. Sadly, many insurers in Texas try to confuse accident victims and pay them less than they deserve. Let us fight for the maximum compensation you are entitled to under Texas law.

Call Baumgartner Law Firm for a Free Consultation

Contact Baumgartner Law Firm today to schedule a consultation. There is no obligation and no fee—the consultation is on us!

Baumgartner Law Firm
6711 Cypress Creek Pkwy
Houston, Texas 77069
(281) 587-1111

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