Texas Injury Law Blog : Dallas Accident Lawyer & Attorney : Fears Nachawati Law Firm : Personal Injury, Wrongful Death : Ft. Worth, San Antonio, Austin, Houston, Texas

A catastrophic injury is an extremely severe injury typically characterized by the loss of the use of a bodily system or function. A person who suffers a catastrophic injury may have to undergo multiple surgeries, rehabilitation, lengthy hospital stays and full-time nursing/assistive care. Sometimes a person with a catastrophic injury never fully recovers and may even face a shortened life expectancy.

Examples of catastrophic injuries include:

• Traumatic brain injuries
• Severe burns
• Amputations
• Paralysis
• Spinal cord injuries
• Paraplegia
• Quadriplegia

Individuals who have suffered a catastrophic injury have far greater long-term medical needs than those who have suffered a less severe injury. A person who has suffered a catastrophic injury will likely have to manage the injury on a daily basis. Often treatment will require an entire team of healthcare professionals providing care.

It is important that you seek the immediate counsel of a qualified personal injury attorney because you do not want to make the mistake of settling too early. The long-term effects of a catastrophic injury may not be immediately apparent. The consequences of an injury can take months or years to manifest. That is why you want to be cautious about settling for an amount of money that will ultimately prove insufficient to cover your medical expenses.

If you have suffered a catastrophic injury due to someone else’s negligent actions, you may be entitled to damages for:

• Medical expenses
• Lost wages
• Loss of future earnings
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Disability
• Disfigurement

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No two cases are exactly alike. The amount of time it will take to settle your personal injury lawsuit depends on many factors, such as the nature of your injuries, the number of defendants involved and the complexity of your case.

The important thing to remember is that you don’t want to make the mistake of settling too early. It is important that you allow enough time to pass so that you and your attorney will know the full extent of your injuries. Only after a final medical report has been issued can you move forward with the certainty that you will be fully compensated for your injuries.

That is one reason why it is so important that you speak with a Texas personal injury lawyer before you sign any release. The insurance company may try to rush you into an early settlement in an attempt to settle for an amount of money that is less than what your claim is worth.

A Texas personal injury attorney will negotiate on your behalf to ensure that the final settlement offer is fair. If no settlement agreement can be reached, your attorney will take your case to trial to get you the compensation you deserve.

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Pedestrians always have the right of way, right? Not quite. Pedestrians actually only have the right of way in crosswalks. This myth is a dangerous one, as it can cause pedestrians to let their guard down and assume that motor vehicles will yield to them.

Pedestrians should remain aware of their surroundings and take responsibility for their own safety. To stay safe as a pedestrian, follow these tips:

• Always walk on the side walk if one is present.
• Look both ways before crossing the street.
• Cross at pedestrian crosswalks or at intersections.
• At controlled intersections, only cross when you have the pedestrian crossing signal. Even then, be aware of vehicles that may have a green light to turn.
• Walk facing oncoming traffic. Facing oncoming traffic allows you to see the traffic approaching you and increases your visibility.
• During the day, wear bright colored clothing when walking. At night, wear light-colored clothing. A reflective vest is your best bet for safety when you walk at night.
• Remain aware of your surroundings. This means you should not talk on your cell phone when walking or drown out all noise with your iPod.
• Walk on paths frequently used by other walkers and joggers.

Even if you exercise caution and good judgment when walking, pedestrian accidents can still happen. If you have been injured in a pedestrian accident, you should seek the immediate advice of a Texas personal injury attorney.

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Accidents of any kind, whether it’s a slip and fall or a motor vehicle collision, can be traumatic experiences. It is only natural that you would want to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.

Accepting a quick settlement offer from an insurance company, however, could cost you big time. An injury that may seem “minor” at first could turn out to be very serious in the months to come. But if you’ve already settled your claim for a small amount of money, then there is nothing you can do – you simply have to pay for the additional medical expenses yourself.

The wiser course of action is to wait and see how your injuries are going to affect you before you agree to any settlement. Only then will you know how much your claim is actually worth. An experienced Texas personal injury attorney can advise you on the appropriate amount of time to wait in order to evaluate the full extent of your injuries.

Insurance companies try to settle claims quickly because it is to their advantage to do so. The sooner the insurance company gets you to settle, the less they’ll have to pay because they won’t have to compensate you for medical treatments you receive after the settlement has been reached. Plus, your damages for pain and suffering will be less the earlier you settle.

Remember, you cannot go back and “reopen” a settlement claim. When you cash that settlement check, you are agreeing to release the insurance company from any further claims related to your accident. In lawyer speak, “you only get one bite at the apple.”

Before accepting any offer from an insurance company, it is in your best interest to speak with a Texas personal injury attorney who can evaluate your claim and determine whether the offer is fair.

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Mental anguish is a term that refers to the emotional suffering a victim experiences after a traumatic incident, such as a serious car accident or the wrongful death of a loved one. Mental anguish can include anxiety, stress, fright, grief, depression and feelings of distress. Emotional distress is another frequently used term for mental anguish.

It is sometimes possible to receive financial compensation for mental anguish in a civil lawsuit, such as a personal injury lawsuit or a wrongful death lawsuit. Compensation for mental anguish is a type of non-pecuniary damages, which are damages that represent non-financial losses or injuries suffered by an accident victim.

If you are suffering mental anguish because of an accident or the wrongful death of a loved one, contact Fears | Nachawati today for free legal advice. To speak with an experienced Texas personal injury lawyer, simply email us or phone us toll free at 1.866.705.7584.

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No. Governmental punishment, such as jail sentences and fines, is the result of a criminal case. A personal injury lawsuit, by contrast, is a civil case.

Defendants in personal injury lawsuits do not receive criminal sentences if the plaintiff wins their case. Rather, the defendant will be ordered to pay a certain amount of money to the plaintiff as compensation for their injuries, known as “damages.”

Note that there is a type of damages viewed as punishment that can be awarded in civil cases. These are known as punitive damages, and they are awarded in cases where the defendant’s conduct was reckless, intentional or malicious. Unlike a fine that goes to the government, however, punitive damages are paid to the plaintiff.

If you have been the victim of an accident, contact Fears | Nachawati today for free legal advice. Simply email us or phone us toll free at 1.866.705.7584.

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A tort is essentially a legal dispute between two individuals. One individual has been accused of committing a civil wrong against the other individual. The party who was wronged can bring a civil lawsuit against the party who caused their injuries and seek financial compensation for their losses.

A crime, on the other hand, is considered to be a wrong committed against society as a whole. Whereas the remedy for a tort is a civil lawsuit, crimes are redressed through criminal prosecution by the state of the offender.

Sometimes an act is both a crime and a tort. Battery (the use of force against another person that results in bodily injury), for example, is a crime in Texas punishable by law. However, it is also a tort and could serve as the basis for a personal injury lawsuit. Whether or not the wrongdoer is prosecuted and/or convicted does not have a legal effect on the injured party’s ability to bring a civil lawsuit.

For free legal advice about Texas personal injury lawsuits, contact the law firm of Fears | Nachawati today. To speak with one of our Texas personal injury lawyers, simply email us or call our toll free number at 1.866.705.7584.

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If you have been injured in an accident caused by the negligence of a third party, then you may have a personal injury claim.

There are numerous factors that can contribute to a personal injury. The most common causes of personal injuries include:

Motor vehicle accidents

Car accidents are the most common of all personal injury claims. These types of personal injury lawsuits can involve all sorts of motor vehicle accidents, including accidents involving passenger cars or those involving 18-wheelers. Car accident lawsuits can also be brought by bicyclists and pedestrians who have been injured by a negligent driver.

Dangerous prescription drugs

A company that produces a prescription drug for sale to the public has a duty to perform extensive testing to ensure that the drug is both effective and reasonably safe. A pharmaceutical company may be held legally liable for damages if they fail to perform adequate testing or neglect to inform the public of all of the drug’s potential side effects and risks.

Defective products

The makers of defective products are held strictly liable for injuries caused by those products. Strict liability means that the injured consumer does not need to prove negligence in order to bring a successful personal injury claim.

Poorly maintained property

Premises liability is a type of personal injury claim that arises when someone is injured while they are one someone else’s property. If the property is not properly maintained, then the owner of the property can be held legally liable for injuries incurred as a result of that poor maintenance or a dangerous condition. One of the most common type of premises liability personal injury claims is the “slip and fall” accident.

Workplace accidents

Workplace accidents vary widely in their severity and the factors which contributed to the injury. Personal injury claims for workplace injuries can involve employer negligence, premises liability and defective products, among other causes. In Texas, employers are not required to subscribe to workers compensation, so you may be able to bring a personal injury lawsuit against the company for which you work.

If you have been injured in any type of accident, contact Fears | Nachawati today for free legal advice. To speak with one of our experienced Texas personal injury lawyers, you can email us or phone us toll free at 1.866.705.7584.

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Personal injury settlements are one way of resolving a personal injury lawsuit. Rather than going through with a trial and obtaining a verdict from a judge or jury, the plaintiff and defendant can choose to settle the case between themselves. The legally binding agreement reached by the two parties is known as a settlement.

When you enter into a personal injury settlement, you – the plaintiff – agree not to pursue any legal action against the defendant with regard to a specific claim (such as a car accident) in return for an agreed upon amount of money.

Personal injury settlements can be beneficial to both sides of the dispute. Settlements are typically quicker and less expensive than a trial. Also, trials can be very stressful for both parties. With a settlement, you can avoid prolonged litigation, and you can choose to structure your settlement in a way that benefits you most.

However, a personal injury settlement may not be in a plaintiff’s best interest in all cases. There are times when moving forward with the lawsuit and going to trial will result in a bigger award. Only a qualified personal injury attorney can advise you on whether a personal injury lawsuit is the wisest course of action given your circumstances.

To speak with a personal injury lawyer today, contact Fears | Nachawati. Simply email us or phone us toll free at 1.866.705.7584 to receive free legal advice from one of our Texas personal injury attorneys.

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Medical expenses are at the heart of any Texas personal injury lawsuit. The goal of a personal injury lawsuit is to put the victim back into the position they would have been in if the accident had never occurred. An important part of that is compensating the accident victim for the various medical-related expenses they have incurred.

There are a wide variety of medical expenses that you can seek compensation for. These include both past and future medical expenses. That is, you can be compensated not only for the expenses you have already incurred but also for those you are likely to incur in the future as a result of the injuries you suffered in the accident.

The types of medical expenses you can recover in a Texas personal injury lawsuit include but are not limited to:

1. Doctor bills
2. Hospital care
3. Medication
4. Surgery
5. Medical equipment, such as wheelchairs and braces
6. In-house nursing care and assistance
7. Prosthetics
8. Modification to your home to accommodate a disability
9. Special furniture
10. Rehabilitation
11. X-rays
12. Lab and test fees

If you have been injured in an accident, contact Fears | Nachawati today to discuss the damages you are eligible to recover. One of our skilled and experienced attorneys will provide you with free legal advice about Texas personal injury lawsuits. Email us at info@fnlawfirm.com or call our toll-free number at 1.866.705.7584.

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The reasonable person is a legal fiction. It is a hypothetical person who uses average care, judgment and skills in conducting themselves. We use the reasonable person standard to determine whether a person’s conduct was negligent in a given set of circumstances. Typically a person is negligent if they fail to behave the way a reasonable person would under those same circumstances.

In general, negligence relates to a defendant’s actions rather than their state of mind. Therefore, we need a way to decide if those actions were reasonable. The reasonable person standard provides courts and juries with an objective test that can be used to decide whether a person’s actions constitute negligence.

The reasonable person isn’t perfect. A reasonable person is allowed to make mistakes in perception and errors of judgment – but only if that mistake or error was reasonable under the circumstances. If the mistake was consistent with exercising ordinary care, then making that mistake does not constitute negligence.

The reasonable person standard frequently comes into play in Texas personal injury lawsuits because most personal injury lawsuits are based on negligence. If you have been injured due to someone’s negligence, contact Fears | Nachawati to speak with a Texas personal injury lawyer. Just email us at info@fnlawfirm.com or call our toll-free number at 1.866.705.7584.

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It’s a common scenario: A truck driver for Company X is making some routine deliveries. The driver, Bill, is behind schedule, so he starts speeding and running stop signs, thinking he can make up the lost time. Bill runs a red light and hits Joan, who was proceeding lawfully through the intersection in her car.

Joan is seriously injured in the car accident and plans to bring a Texas personal injury lawsuit against Bill. Bill, however, has virtually no assets, and Joan would be unlikely to recover any damages the court would award her.

It may sound like Joan’s situation is hopeless, but a skilled Texas personal injury attorney knows that there is still another viable legal avenue to pursue: bringing a lawsuit against Company X, Bill’s employer.

Most of the time the law does not hold a person legally accountable for the action’s of another person. One exception is the doctrine of respondeat superior. Respondeat superior is a Latin phrase meaning “let the master answer.” Under respondeat superior, an employer can be held liable for the acts of their employees.

This means that a person injured by an employee, like Joan was, can actually recover damages for their injuries from the employer, even though the employer did not cause the plaintiff’s injuries.

There is no requirement that the plaintiff show that the employer was negligent.

In order to successfully establish a claim of respondeat superior, a plaintiff must prove three basic things:

1. The plaintiff was injured as a result of the tortfeasor’s negligent act.
2. The tortfeasor was an employee of the defendant at the time the negligent act was committed.
3. The negligent act was committed while the employee was acting within the scope of their employment.

The requirement that the negligent act be committed while the employee was acting “within the scope of their employment” is key. An employer obviously isn’t responsible for everything their employees do. If Bill had hit Joan’s car while he was on his way home from the grocery store rather than while he was on the job, Company X wouldn’t be liable for Joan’s injuries.

In order to prove that the employee was acting within the scope of their employment (making the employer potentially liable), the plaintiff must show that the employee’s act was:

1. Within the scope of the employee’s general authority
2. In furtherance of the employer’s business
3. The object of the employment

All of the Texas personal injury lawyers of Fears | Nachawati understand the complex doctrine of respondeat superior and know how to use it in the appropriate cases to ensure that their clients receive full and fair compensation.

Contact us today if you have been injured in an accident, and let one of our Texas personal injury attorneys provide you with free legal advice. You can email us at info@fnlawfirm.com or call us on our toll-free number at 1.866.705.7584.

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Your Texas personal injury lawsuit begins with an initial consultation with your lawyer. Most personal injury lawyers, such as our team here at Fears | Nachawati, will provide you with free legal advice during this first meeting.

The first meeting is a time for your lawyer to get know the facts of your case. You will tell your lawyer about the accident and show them any documents, such as police reports, that you have.

If your Texas personal injury lawyer decides that you have a good case, the next step is to contact the legal representative of the person or entity responsible for the accident.

In many instances, your case will be settled out of court with no need for a trial. If a settlement cannot be reached, however, your personal injury lawyer will move forward with preparations for trial in accordance with Texas law.

If your personal injury lawsuit goes to trial, there will be a deposition, which is a time for the defendant’s attorney to ask you questions about the accident. Your personal injury lawyer will thoroughly prepare you for the deposition by telling you what questions to expect and going over your answers with you. Your attorney will depose the defendant as well.

The good news for you as the accident victim is that your Texas personal injury lawsuit will generally require very little participation on your part. Your attorney handles all of the paperwork as well as the communications with the party against whom you are bringing the suit.

If you have been injured in an accident, contact us today for free legal assistance. At Fears | Nachawati, we provide accident victims with a no charge initial consultation during which we will determine whether you have a case and will explain how the personal injury lawsuit process works. Just email us at info@fnlawfirm.com or call us on our toll-free number at 1.866.705.7584 for a free consultation.

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