Houston Personal Injury Lawyers
Working with dedicated legal counsel may be essential to effectively pursuing a personal injury case, especially if you have never been part of a settlement negotiation or a civil court trial before. With a Houston personal injury lawyer by your side, you could have better chances of securing the compensation you deserve while avoiding legal pitfalls that often prevent unrepresented plaintiffs from obtaining positive case results.
How Do Personal Injury Lawsuits Work in Houston?
Personal injuries are those that result from negligence, and civil claims allow victims of personal injuries to hold those who cause harm accidentally accountable for the consequences of their irresponsible actions. Proving that someone is liable for a personal injury based on negligence requires proving:
- The defendant owed a duty of care to the injured plaintiff, meaning they had an implicit or explicit obligation to minimize the risk of foreseeable harm.
- The defendant acted recklessly or carelessly enough to breach their duty of care (i.e., violating a traffic law as a person driving a motor vehicle, or failing to maintain reasonably safe premises as a store owner opening their property to the public)
- A causal link between the defendant’s breach of care and the personal injury in question, meaning the accident would not have happened were it not for the defendant’s negligence.
- The accident caused at least one physical injury to the plaintiff that required medical assistance beyond basic first aid
Areas
Successfully proving someone’s responsibility for an accident allows the person filing suit to seek compensation for every “compensable loss” they sustained or will sustain in the future as a result of their injuries. Notably, “compensable” is not limited to losses with an objective financial value, as it is also possible in many cases to recover for non-economic damages with values that are based on an individual’s subjective experiences.
That being said, a comprehensive personal injury claim could potentially demand restitution for losses such as:
- Past and future medical bills
- Past and future income losses, including diminished future earning capacity
- Personal property damage
- Expenses related to long-term injuries, like home modifications and in-home care costs
- Physical and psychological suffering
- Lost consortium
- Lost overall quality of life
A personal injury lawyer in Houston could review what damages might be available in a particular civil claim during an initial consultation.
Contact a Houston Personal Injury Attorney Today
Immediately after an injury, you should consult with an experienced attorney. Failure to do so may lead you to accept a settlement amount much lower than you deserve. Insurance adjusters know that they can pay less money in damages to unrepresented claimants. Because they know this, they try to take advantage by offering you cash up front. Do not make the mistake of accepting their minimal offer. Often it limits your ability to be fully compensated in the unforeseen future.
Even if it seems obvious that another person’s unreasonable behavior was the direct cause of an accident, holding them financially liable for subsequent injuries can be a complicated and time-consuming ordeal. With support from a legal representative who has years of experience successfully pursuing similar cases, you can improve your chances of obtaining the compensation you need.