A Kingsville personal injury lawyer can help you address the multiple challenges that a personal injury brings. An accident brings you physical injuries, emotional turmoil, and financial instability. Navigating these obstacles can be overwhelming in Kingsville, Texas. That’s where we step in – as your steadfast ally and guide.
At Roderick C. Lopez Personal Injury Lawyers, it’s not just our job–it’s our mission. We are here to advocate for accident victims in Kingsville, TX. If you were injured in an accident, contact our Kingsville personal injury attorney for a free consultation. Contact us today at (956) 529-7336
How Roderick C. Lopez Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help After a Kingsville, Texas Personal Injury
Our founding partner, Roderick C. Lopez, has 20 years of experience practicing personal injury law. Our firm’s commitment to excellence is reflected in the awards that Mr. Lopez has earned, including the prestigious Client’s Choice Award from Avvo and membership in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum As a former insurance claims adjuster.
A Kingsville personal injury lawyer can transform your struggles into strength At our firm, you’re not just a client-– you’re a part of a family. We promise to fight tirelessly for your best interests and your rightful compensation.
Below is a list of a few of the many ways that we can help you win your personal injury claim in Kingsville, TX:
- In a truck accident, we can retrieve Event Data Recorder (EDR) data: Obtaining data from a truck’s EDR can provide crucial information about the truck’s speed, braking, and more. This will help reconstruct the accident.
- Interpret Kingsville traffic laws: Analyze relevant state and local traffic laws and how they apply to your case.
- Evaluate the relevant insurance policy: We review the legalese and fine print of insurance policies.
- Pursue economic damages: Calculate your economic damages, including medical expenses and lost wages, among other losses.
- Pursue non-economic damages: Seek compensation for intangible losses such as emotional distress and loss of enjoyment of life, which are recognized under Texas law.
- Handle medical liens: Negotiate with healthcare providers to reduce the amount of any medical liens on your settlement.
- Uncover hidden insurance coverage: Identify potential additional insurance coverage, such as umbrella policies.
Our Kingsville personal injury lawyer will work diligently to evaluate your claim and pursue all available compensation.
Types of Kingsville, TX Personal Injury Cases that We Handle
We handle the following types of personal injury claims, among others:
- Assault and Battery: Claims arising from intentional harm or threats of harm by another person, including physical attacks and other forms of violence.
- Bicycle accidents: Claims involving cyclists injured by vehicles, road hazards, or other cyclists, often due to traffic law violations or negligence.
- Boating accidents: Claims related to injuries sustained in boat accidents, often due to operator negligence, equipment failure, or violations of maritime laws.
- Car accidents: Claims arising from collisions involving cars, trucks, motorcycles, or other vehicles, typically due to driver negligence, recklessness, or traffic law violations.
- Construction accidents: Injuries occurring on construction sites, often due to falls, machinery accidents, or failure to follow safety regulations.
- Dog bites: Injuries caused by dog attacks or bites, with liability often falling on the dog owner for failing to control or restrain the animal.
- Medical malpractice: Claims against healthcare professionals or institutions for injuries arising from medical errors such as misdiagnosis, surgical errors, or improper treatment.
- Nursing home abuse and neglect: Cases involving elderly or disabled individuals suffering harm due to abuse, neglect, or substandard care in nursing homes or assisted living facilities.
- Pedestrian accidents: Injuries to pedestrians caused by vehicles or other hazards, often due to driver negligence or unsafe walking conditions.
- Premises liability: Injuries occurring on someone else’s property due to unsafe conditions such as poor lighting, lack of security, or faulty equipment. Typically, a customer in a retail establishment will file a premises liability claim.
- Product liability: Injuries caused by defective or dangerous products, including manufacturing defects, design flaws, or inadequate safety warnings.
- Slip and fall accidents: Cases where individuals are injured due to slipping, tripping, or falling on another’s property, often due to hazardous conditions like wet floors or uneven surfaces. Victims are typically customers in retail establishments.
- Workplace accidents: Claims related to injuries sustained at work or occupational diseases, covered under workers’ compensation laws or through civil lawsuits against employers.
- Wrongful death: Claims filed by the survivors of a deceased personal injury victim whose death was caused by someone else’s wrongful act, negligence, or other misconduct.
Most of these claims are based on negligence. In a negligence claim, you must prove your case on a “preponderance of the evidence” basis–a ‘more likely than not standard.
Calculating Damages in Kingsville
Texas, like other states, recognizes different forms of damages. Hiring an injury attorney can help you determine what damages may be available in your case.
Economic Damages in Kingsville, TX
Typical economic damages include medical bills, lost earnings, and out-of-pocket expenses. If they arose from your accident and they are easy to count, they are probably economic damages.
Non-economic Damages in Kingsville, TX
Non-economic damages compensate you for intangible losses such as:
- Physical pain and suffering
- Emotional or mental anguish or pain
- Loss of consortium
- Physical disability
- Disfigurement
- Inconvenience
- Loss of society and companionship
- Loss of enjoyment of life
It can be difficult to ascertain the value of your noneconomic damages without the help of a skilled personal injury attorney.
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are used to punish defendants for particularly bad conduct.
Punitive damages are capped at either $200,000, or double the total amount of economic damages plus the amount of non-economic damages up to $750,000–whichever is greater.
Wrongful Death Damages in Kingsville, TX
A wrongful death claim arises when someone dies from a personal injury.
Wrongful death claims may involve the following damages:
- Funeral expenses
- Loss of future earnings
- Costs of medical treatment for the deceased (to the probate estate if it originally paid these expenses)
- Loss of future savings and inheritance
- The psychological and emotional suffering endured by family members
- The absence of love, companionship, comfort, and society
If you file a survival action, which is a closely related claim, you can also seek compensation for the deceased’s pain and suffering as well as their injuries between the time of injury and the time of death.
Defenses
Any number of defenses might apply to a personal injury claim, depending on the facts surrounding your case. Some of the most common defenses include:
- The statute of limitations: A personal injury claim must be filed within specific deadlines set by Texas law. In a personal injury case, this deadline is typically two years after the accident occurred.
- Comparative negligence: Comparative negligence applies if you share responsibility for your injuries. Plaintiffs can only recover damages if they are less than 51% at fault. A court will reduce your damages proportionate to your percentage of fault.
- Assumption of risk: You voluntarily and knowingly engaged in risky activities, thereby accepting those risks and limiting their liability for your injuries.
- Release of liability/waiver: Defendants may use waivers or release forms you signed to argue that they waived your right to sue.
- Necessity: Used in rare cases when defendants argue their actions were necessary to prevent greater harm.
- Consent: The victim consented to the risk of harm, such as in a boxing match.
- Self-defense: Particularly relevant in intentional tort cases like assault, where defendants argue that they acted to protect themselves. “Defense of others” is a closely related defense.
- Failure to mitigate damages: You cannot claim damages for the harm you suffered if you did not reasonably attempt to reduce the costs of your injuries.
- Governmental immunity: Some Texas government entities and employees may claim immunity from liability under certain conditions.
- No duty of care: You must prove the existence of the defendant’s duty of care. The defense can argue that the defendant owed you no legal duty of care.
- Lack of causation: You must prove causation, and the defendant can argue that you failed to establish it.
- Pre-existing condition: The defendant can argue that your injuries existed before the incident and were therefore not caused by the defendant’s actions.
- Sudden emergency: The defendants might claim that an urgent, unexpected situation forced actions that were otherwise viewed as negligent.
- Intervening Cause: An unforeseeable event, such as a hailstorm, was the real cause of the injury.
- Illegality: Your involvement in illegal activities at the time of injury limits your right to claim damages.
An experienced Kingsville personal injury lawyer can help you combat defenses and recover the compensation you deserve.
Meet With a Kingsville Personal Injury Lawyer for a Free Case Review
Meet with a Kingsville personal injury lawyer to tell your story and explore your legal options. Since we charge no upfront fees, you can retain us for no out-of-pocket costs.
Contact us online or call us 24/7 at (956) 529-7336. Act quickly before your Kingsville, TX personal injury claim grows stale. You can be confident that when you do, we’ll be ready for action.
