Accidents, even those that seem minor, can cause unexpected injuries. In the worst cases, accidents cause catastrophic injuries. This type of injury changes life completely. Often, victims never recover – at least not fully – from a catastrophic injury, leading to devastating consequences for themselves and their families.
While these severe injuries are typically physically or mentally disabling (or both) and emotionally stressful, they are also expensive. They bring new costs and limit opportunities to earn income. Though these consequences are overwhelming, victims are not without hope or without recourse. The personal injury team at Dax F. Garza, P.C., is here to help catastrophic injury victims in Texas get the financial relief and justice they need and deserve.
When Injuries Are Catastrophic
Catastrophic injuries can affect any part of the body. “Catastrophic” is a category of injury, not the name of any particular injury. Certain consequences or characteristics of an injury make it catastrophic. For example, catastrophic injuries:
- Are usually permanently disabling
- Require extensive, typically constant, care
- Reduce victims’ quality of life
- Have debilitating symptoms
- Require lengthy, difficult recoveries, if recovery is possible at all
Examples of catastrophic injuries include:
- Severe burns
- Amputations
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Organ damage
- Loss of sight or hearing
How a Texas Catastrophic Injury Lawyer Can Help Victims
It is not hard to imagine the obvious devastating effects of a catastrophic injury. Victims and families are immediately aware of the physical limitations, cognitive decline, emotional trauma, medical costs, and lost income that come with such severe damage. However, in such a stressful time, it can be difficult for victims or their loved ones to accurately calculate those losses and plan for their future needs. They may not have the energy, knowledge, or wherewithal to fight for fair compensation.
But that compensation is critical for the well-being of victims and their families. The catastrophic injury attorneys at Dax F. Garza, P.C., know this and will help you recover what you need and deserve in your personal injury case. Trust our legal team to handle your case so you can focus on recovery.
Texas gives a two-year deadline, called a statute of limitations, for filing injury claims. To have your case move through the process as swiftly as possible, and to give your attorney plenty of time to investigate and build your case, partner with our team as soon as possible after sustaining your injury.
Legal Options Available to Catastrophic Injury Victims in Texas
Texas’ catastrophic injury victims have the right to seek compensation for their injuries when the accident was caused by another party’s negligence. Whether your injuries occurred as the result of a motor vehicle accident, slip and fall or other event on someone else’s property, work injury, or any other kind of preventable accident, we can help.
You may be entitled to significant financial compensation that provides for your losses and holds the negligent party accountable. Your attorney will investigate the accident fully to identify the negligent party or parties and gather evidence to support your case.
How Compensation Helps Victims
Victims of catastrophic injuries in Texas can seek both economic and non-economic damages and possibly punitive damages as well:
- Economic damages cover income loss, potential lost earnings, benefits for those unable to return to work, medical tests, costs of continued medical care, and any other expenses incurred as a result of the incident.
- Non-economic damages cover the victims’ reduced quality and enjoyment of life, emotional and psychological trauma, and physical suffering.
- Punitive damages, also called exemplary damages, do not compensate victims for their losses. Rather, they punish the negligent party for their egregious behavior by imposing this additional financial payment. Victims must prove the at-fault party acted with gross negligence, fraud, or malice to collect.
Compensation Limits
Texas does not limit the amount victims can receive for economic damages. With regard to punitive damages, however, victims receive the greater of $200,000 or twice the amount of economic damages plus the amount awarded for non-economic damages, but not exceeding $750,000.
The Best Legal Option: Partner with an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer
Speaking to an attorney is probably not the first thing you or your loved ones will want to do following a catastrophic injury, but it is the best thing you can do for your future. Once you have established your partnership, you will also feel a sense of relief as your attorney will now handle all document collection, evidence gathering, conversations with the at-fault party’s insurance company or other representatives, and filing your claim.
Since your accident case will come with its own unique set of circumstances, you need a legal representative who can navigate those circumstances knowledgeably so you do not risk losing compensation.
Government Entities
If your case is against a government entity, there are different rules and procedures for filing a claim and pursuing compensation. Often, the timeframe for filing is shorter. You need an attorney who can manage those differences.
Powerful Defendants
The pushback you receive will also differ depending on whether you are filing a lawsuit against an individual or a powerful corporation. Major companies have major legal representation. You need an advocate who can match their representation.
Comparative Fault
If you hold any fault for the accident – and even if you do not – the at-fault party’s representatives will certainly try to assign you blame. Texas allows victims who are less than 51 percent responsible for an accident to seek compensation for their losses. However, if they hold some percentage of fault, their compensation is reduced proportionally.
It is in the other side’s best interest to put the blame on you. By doing so, they can reduce their payout – or even eliminate it. Unfortunately, insurance companies are quite willing to use unethical or sneaky practices to assign you unfair blame to save themselves money. You need legal representation that fights against those practices to protect your financial recovery from an unwarranted reduction.
Dax F. Garza, P.C. Is the Best Legal Option for Texas Catastrophic Injury Victims
For over 20 years, Dax F. Garza, P.C., has successfully represented victims of catastrophic injuries. We will handle your case with tremendous care and put our extensive resources to work for you. Reach out today for a free consultation, and feel the peace of mind that comes with knowing a compassionate, highly skilled catastrophic injury lawyer is on your side.
