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After an accident, making a personal injury claim can be complex and stressful at first. But your case is much easier with an experienced Austin personal injury lawyer. Your personal injury attorney is your dedicated legal advocate who will ensure you receive the best legal outcome for your case. Whether you have broken bones, head trauma, neck injuries, or burns, your attorney will fight for the most compensation for your injuries.
If you or someone you love was injured recently by another person or entity, a Nix Patterson personal injury attorney can assist with filing a claim and obtaining compensation for your injuries and other losses. Below, learn about personal injury cases, types of compensation, and how an attorney can help.
A personal injury claim is a civil action filed by an injured party against the person or entity liable for the accident. Texas law states that when someone is hurt in an accident caused by the negligence of another party or entity, they may pursue a settlement from the at-fault party.
For instance, if someone slams into your car from behind at a red light in Austin and you break your nose, you can file a claim against the at-fault driver or their auto insurance company. Austin personal injury lawyers have extensive experience holding liable parties to account for their negligence and obtaining plaintiffs the compensation they deserve.
To win a personal injury claim, you must prove that the defendant is at fault for the accident and resulting injuries. This means proving that they were negligent or otherwise at fault for what happened. Once you have proven liability, the other party’s insurance company may offer a settlement. Failing that, your attorney can file a lawsuit and argue the case before a jury.
Several kinds of personal injury cases often happen in Austin:
Auto accidents are the most common personal injury claims in Austin and nationally. In the state capital, common accident intersections include Lamar Boulevard and Parmer Lane, Riverside Drive, and South Congress Avenue. Auto accidents in Austin at these and other intersections happen daily and are usually due to driver error, including distracted driving, fatigue, speeding, or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Many auto accidents cause minor injuries, but sometimes, injuries are severe or fatal.
If you are in an auto accident in Austin at I-35 and Highway 290, you should wait for the police, seek immediate medical attention, and retain an attorney if the accident caused substantial injuries and property damage. Taking these steps immediately after an accident may significantly influence the success of your claim.
Slip-and-fall accidents are another common type of personal injury case. These accidents are frequent in public areas, such as grocery stores, office buildings, shopping malls, apartment complexes, sidewalks, and parking lots.
Slip-and-fall cases occur because of many hazards, such as ice and snow on sidewalks, wet floors, uneven pavement, poor lighting, and more. The Texas property owner is legally obligated to ensure their property is reasonably safe for guests and visitors.
Proving liability is critical to a successful slip-and-fall claim. Holding the property owner liable for your injuries means showing they knew or should have known about the dangerous condition and did not fix it. If you fall on someone’s property, report the accident immediately to management or the owner. Document the accident with photos of the area and your injuries. Obtain contact information from eyewitnesses, too.
Workplace accidents are common in many work environments, including construction sites, office buildings, schools, etc. The most common job-related accidents are machinery accidents, falls, exposure to chemicals and toxins, and repetitive motion injuries. Your employer must provide a safe workplace; you may be eligible for compensation when they don’t.
After a work-related injury, report the incident to your employer. This is required to receive workers’ compensation in Texas. You should document the injury, how it happened, and any dangerous conditions that were present. Proving fault is not required for a workers’ compensation claim, but benefits are limited to lost wages and medical expenses.
You may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit against an employer in limited circumstances, such as gross negligence or intentional harm. You should speak to a Nix Patterson personal injury lawyer if you have a potential workers’ compensation claim.
A product liability case is when an unsafe or defective product hurts someone. The defective product might be a pharmaceutical, toy, medical device, electronics, power tool, etc. Distributors, manufacturers, and retailers may be liable in a product liability claim if the product is dangerous or proper warnings and instructions are not provided.
Proving a product is defective means showing that it had a defect inherent in the design or in its manufacturing and that the defect led to an injury. Document the injuries and keep the defective product if a product hurts you. Your product liability attorney will take possession of the defective item and other evidence from the incident.
There are two types of compensation in most personal injury claims:
Every personal injury case is different regarding the amount of a potential settlement. Some cases with minor injuries could settle for $5,000, while serious injury claims might result in hundreds of thousands in compensation. Several factors influence the amount of a personal injury settlement:
Fault and liability significantly impact whether you will receive a settlement and the amount. Fault means the person who caused the accident. Liability means the person who is legally liable to pay for your injuries and other losses.
A successful personal injury claim requires that the liable party demonstrate negligence. Negligence means that the person violated their duty of care by acting in a manner that put you in harm’s way.
If your Austin personal injury lawyers prove that another person caused the accident and was negligent, you can file a successful personal injury claim.
The type of injuries you have and the nature of the accident can influence your compensation amount. Those with more severe injuries usually get higher settlement amounts. Suppose a tractor-trailer T-bones you at an Austin intersection and breaks your hip and arm. You require surgery and days in the hospital. Your case would potentially be worth much more than a fender bender that sprained your back.
Texas law states you may file a personal injury case even if you partially caused the incident. Your personal injury settlement will be reduced based on the degree of fault you had. For example, if your brake lights didn’t work during a rear-end accident, you could be found partially at fault.
Respondeat superior can be critical in certain personal injury cases, such as auto accidents. It means an employer can be held liable for their employee’s negligence if an accident happened when the person was working. For instance, if an Austin delivery driver runs a stop sign and hits you in a crosswalk, you may be able to sue both the driver and the employer.
However, there are exceptions to this important legal doctrine. For instance, the employer will not be found at fault if the worker was off duty during the accident. So, if the delivery driver had clocked out and hit you in a crosswalk, you probably can only sue them personally for your losses.
Your personal injury attorney will determine if respondeat superior is a factor in your case. If so, the attorney will file a claim or lawsuit against the proper persons or entities.
Determining who was at fault in the personal injury case is critical to receiving compensation. For auto accidents, Texas is a fault state. This means that the accident victim files a claim with the at-fault party’s insurance company. But fault must be proven, not just claimed.
In many accidents, fault can be challenging to prove. If it is a car accident, these are the elements of fault that must be proven to receive damages:
Evidence that the insurance company — or jury, if the case goes to court — will use to determine fault in a car accident includes:
The police may indicate in the police report who they believe was at fault for the incident. However, only some officers will offer their opinion in the report. If the at-fault driver is cited for violating a traffic law, this is valuable information for proving liability.
The insurance company will consider all relevant evidence in the accident claim and determine who was at fault. The insurance company may accept or deny liability based on the evidence. If they accept liability, settlement negotiations will begin to resolve the matter.
The accident you had can leave you with medical bills, weeks or months of lost wages, and severe pain and suffering. Hiring an Austin personal injury lawyer to maximize your compensation may be best. Several ways a Nix Patterson attorney can help your case are:
All Austin accidents are unique, and you need an experienced, knowledgeable attorney to determine the best way to satisfy your needs. Some accident victims may assume that taking a quick accident settlement is the best course. But doing that can mean settling for a fraction of your case’s value. A skilled lawyer can help you decide if it is best to settle, for how much, and when it’s time to file a lawsuit in court.
After an accident, your focus should be on getting better, resting, and spending time with your loved ones. The last thing that should be on your mind is extended conversations with insurance companies and legal paperwork. A personal injury attorney can remove the burden of your case from your shoulders so you can make recovery your priority.
Many personal injury claims are ‘he said, she said’ affairs, meaning that you’ll claim it was their fault, and they’ll claim it was your fault. You must have strong evidence to prove liability and obtain compensation. An experienced lawyer knows the evidence needed to prove liability in your claim and will work tirelessly to collect it.
The other party’s insurance company or attorney will advocate for their client’s best interests. You do not want to go up against them without a personal injury attorney advocating for your legal rights. Your attorney will negotiate effectively with the other party’s insurance company to get a fair settlement for you. If settlement negotiations falter, the lawyer can take the case to court and make a convincing argument to the jury. Your best interests are always your attorney’s priority.
There is only a limited time to file a Texas personal injury claim. The law states that people hurt in accidents have only two years from the accident date to begin a claim. If it has been more than two years since your accident, your case will most likely be dismissed. So, it’s imperative to retain an Austin personal injury lawyer immediately.
Were you injured in an accident caused by another party in Austin? You may receive compensation in a personal injury claim or lawsuit if you prove the other person was at fault. Our Austin personal injury lawyers can assist with proving fault and obtaining compensation for your losses. We’re ready to help with every step of your personal injury case today. of your personal injury claim now. Contact our Austin personal injury attorneys today to find out more.
Nix Patterson only works on a contingency fee basis. Our clients pay us nothing unless we win. Schedule a free consultation today. Call 512.328.5333 or complete the form below.
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The information on this site is for informational purposes only. Though it deals with legal issues, it should not be taken as legal advice for any specific case or situation. The law changes rapidly, and we make no warranty or guarantee about the accuracy or reliability of the content or links on this site. Every case and legal issue is different. Speak with a lawyer for specific advice.
This site is not intended to create, and viewing it does not create, an attorney-client relationship. The verdicts and settlements shown on this site are intended to be representative of cases Nix Patterson handles. These listings are not a guarantee or prediction of the outcome of any other cases or claim. Results in litigation can never be guaranteed.
La información contenida en este sitio tiene únicamente fines informativos. Aunque trata de cuestiones jurídicas, no debe tomarse como asesoramiento jurídico para ningún caso o situación específicos. La legislación cambia rápidamente y no garantizamos la exactitud o fiabilidad de los contenidos o enlaces de este sitio. Cada caso y asunto jurídico es diferente. Hable con un abogado para obtener asesoramiento específico.
Este sitio no pretende crear, y su consulta no crea, una relación abogado-cliente. Los veredictos y acuerdos mostrados en este sitio pretenden ser representativos de los casos que maneja Nix Patterson. Estos listados no son una garantía o predicción del resultado de cualquier otro caso o reclamación. Los resultados en litigios nunca pueden ser garantizados.