Houston Personal Injury Lawyers

Personal Injury Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Below is our personal injury FAQ to help answer the most common questions about hiring a Houston injury lawyer, injury laws, filing an injury lawsuit, and what individuals can anticipate from us when representing clients.

How Long Do I Have to File a Personal Injury Claim in Texas?

The statute of limitations on personal injury claims for adults is two years. However, there are many exceptions including the following:

• The discovery rule. This rule extends the time to file on repressed injuries and hard-to-discover injuries until the harm and cause can reasonably be discovered.
• Minors. The two-year statute of limitations on filing personal injury lawsuits for minors does not start to run until their 18th birthday. Thus, minors are given until their 20th birthday to file claims. The claim for reimbursement for their medical bills as minors, however, falls under the parent’s two-year statute of limitations.
• The defendant leaves the state. When a tortfeasor leaves the state before the 2-year statute runs, this can be grounds for an extension.
• 1st party insurance claims. Claims against your own insurance may have a 3-year or 4-year statute of limitations depending upon what the contract states.
• Other exceptions. Other exceptions can apply to when you must bring personal injury litigation in certain circumstances so you must consult an attorney about your specific facts.

More about the Statute of Limitations under Texas law.

How Do I Know If I Have a Personal Injury Claim in Houston, Texas?

You should consider calling a personal injury lawyer if any of the following apply:

• You were injured in an accident and do not have the resources or means to get the medical care you need.
• You were seriously injured due to someone else’s negligence.
• You were injured in a multi-vehicle or disputed liability accident and want free advice on how to proceed.
• You were injured due to a dangerous condition on someone else’s property.
• You were injured due to someone else’s negligence and the other side is not responding or not accepting responsibility.
• You were injured due to a product or drug.
• You were injured on the job and there is no worker’s compensation or someone other than your employer caused the injury.
• You were injured and an adjuster is calling asking for a recorded statement.
• You were injured by someone’s animal.
• You were injured by a drunk driver.
• You were injured due to medical negligence.
• You want to make sure that you understand all of your rights and that your interests are looked out for.
• You simply want a free case evaluation with a lawyer with years of experience to better understand the legal process before you try to navigate it alone.

The choice is always yours whether to hire a Houston personal injury lawyer and file a claim. But be aware that insurance companies and corporations have trained investigators, adjusters, and lawyers at their service. Their job is to minimize your case value to save themselves money. We strongly advise talking to an experienced Houston personal injury lawyer near you before you talk to anyone from the opposing side if you are in the position of having to make a personal injury claim due to someone else’s negligent conduct.

Other Things to Know About Your Personal Injury Claim in Texas

• The 2-year statute of limitations is not the only deadline in many cases. If your case is against a city, county, state, or federal entity due to an injury on government property or by a government-owned and operated vehicle, you have strict written notice requirements that MUST be met or your case will have waived your right to bring a lawsuit.  Some of these are as short as 60 days from the date of the injury.
• There is no duty to preserve videotapes, inter-company reports,  emails, or certain other evidence UNLESS the victim or her team of attorneys sends written notice demanding the evidence be secured and preserved or requests it through a personal injury lawsuit.
• Insurance companies will typically not pay your medical bills as you incur them. They know that as the bills pile up, you are more likely to stop following through on needed medical care and by doing so, harm your own case. An experienced personal injury attorney can help you get the medical care you need without having to come out-of-pocket for the medical bills as you go.
• We offer a 100% FREE CONSULTATION to learn your rights so you can make an informed decision.

What Does it Take to Win a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

To win a personal injury lawsuit, you must prove to the jury by a preponderance of the evidence the elements of duty, breach of duty, proximate cause, and damages. Duty means a legal obligation to act or not act in a specific way under the law. Breach of duty means that the person failed to carry out his duty. The term ‘proximate cause’ means a cause that was a substantial factor in causing an event to happen, without which the event wouldn’t have happened. Damages refer to the harm done as a result of negligence.

Serving Houston for over 40 years, Simmons and Fletcher, P.C., has recovered countless verdicts and settlements while providing personal injury representation for injured clients in all types of personal injury claims from injuries in the oil and gas industry to common motor vehicle accidents. Whether you were injured or you lost a loved one, you may be able to recover for your injuries, medical expenses, lost wages, lost earning capacity, scarring, pain, suffering, mental anguish, physical impairment, and other intangible damages that often accompany an accident. Call us to discuss how an injury lawyer can help you with your personal injuries today.

What Does Christian Trial Lawyer Mean?

To us, this phrase provides a short answer to the question ‘What do you stand for?’ We strive to render services to our clients with the same core Christian values as we would render services to our Lord Himself. Honor, Integrity, Compassion, and Humility.

You can choose from many attorneys in Houston when hiring an attorney. You bless us when you put your trust in our law firm. We take that seriously.

What Does a Personal Injury Attorney in Houston, TX Do?

A personal injury lawyer in Houston helps you put your life back together by recovering compensation for your injuries and financial losses when you have been injured due to negligence. While every case is different, a personal injury lawyer helps you by drafting notice and demand letters to preserve your rights, collecting and documenting evidence that helps establish the other party’s fault and your damages, interceding between you and the adjusters, representatives, and attorneys for the negligent party, hires investigators, experts, and medical professions necessary to prove your case in court, advises you of your rights and options including helping you to decide whether to file a lawsuit, mediate, arbitrate, go to jury trial, and/or settle your case.

Do I Have to Meet With a Houston Personal Injury Attorney Near Me in Person?

No Time? No Problem. 95% of our clients sign up with us on their cell phones from the comfort of their own homes.  We know that your time is valuable too. If you do not have time to come in, all of our lawyers and staff are set up to communicate with clients via Zoom virtual meetings, electronic document signing software that allows you to sign documents on a smartphone using your finger, email, and remote and office phone software. We also offer hospital and home visits for those too incapacitated to come to see us. Our services come with as many or as few lawyer meetings as you require. Schedule a consultation in the most convenient way for you: phone, in-person, or virtual meeting.

What Damages Can I Recover in a Houston Personal Injury Case?

The damages you are permitted by law to seek when someone else causes your injuries include compensation for past and future medical expenses, property damage, physical pain and suffering, scarring, disfigurement, mental anguish, physical impairment, lost wages, and lost earning capacity. For more information read more about the types of damages you can recover.

How Much Do Houston Personal Injury Attorneys Take From a Settlement?

The going rate in Houston personal injury cases is 33.33% if the case settles before a lawsuit is filed, 40% if it settles after the lawsuit is filed and up through a verdict, and 45% if the case must be appealed. This is our rate. The attorney fee is in addition to the case expenses being reimbursed. Typically, the attorney fronts the case expenses and they are reimbursed out of the settlement proceeds in addition to the fee calculated on the total. However, not all contracts are the same and you should review any contract carefully and ask questions before signing. More complex matters such as medical malpractice may have higher rates and some lawyers may charge higher rates or make you pay the expenses as you go.

Should I Call a Personal Injury Lawyer Near Me?

Simmons and Fletcher, P.C., represent accident and injury victims across the United States in various capacities. If for some reason we cannot help, we will help you find someone who can.

Didn’t find the answer you were looking for? Get more answers from our personal injury FAQ.

Houston Areas Served

At Simmons and Fletcher, P.C., we handle cases in all areas of Houston, TX including Bellaire, Hunter’s Creek Village, Downtown Houston, Heights, Greater Fifth Ward, Midtown, South Central, Lawndale, Wayside, Clinton Park Tri-Community, Rice Village, Hunter’s Village, Galena Park, Jacinto City, Memorial City, Memorial Park, East Houston, River Oaks, Montrose, West University, Medical Center, South Main, Southside, Sunnyside, Meyerland, Sharpstown, MacGregor, Brasewood, Willowbend, Brook Haven, South Park, Astrodome, Hyde Park, Bayland Park, Galleria, Mt. Houston, Aldine, Jersey Village, Fairbanks, Acres Home, Magnolia Gardens, Settegast, Almeda, Cloverland, Memorial Villages, Piney Point Villages, Hedwig Village, Spring Branch, Channelview, Greater Hobby Area, South Acres, Cloverland, and Spring Branch. Note: we handle serious injury cases nationwide.