There is nothing worse for a parent to have to hear than that their child has been harmed in any way. Unfortunately, a parent cannot protect their child from every danger in the world we live in. If your child is injured due to someone else’s negligence, call Simmons and Fletcher, P.C. to talk to a Houston child injury lawyer and discuss your rights. (713) 932-0777.
Children hold a special place in our hearts. But did you know they also have special rules under the law? Because a child may not be old enough to appreciate the same dangers that an adult would appreciate, there are many special laws and, rules that apply to protect children. Thus, if your child is injured, even through what seems like their own doing, you may want to consult a child injury attorney to determine whether you may have rights.
Special Laws for Kids Reducing the Standard of Care for Negligence
The Age of Negligence
The law recognizes that children of tender years do not have the maturity level to appreciate all potential dangers and guard against them. As a result, when a child is under the age of 5, many states, including Texas, hold that the child cannot be negligent as a matter of law. This means that if someone else is even slightly negligent and that negligence contributes to an accident happening, that person can be found liable for the damages and contributory negligence of the child is not a defense to prosecution. Additionally, for children ages 5-14, the law recognizes they are not adults and places a slightly lower standard of care on them than adults. So For an adult, determining whether they violated the standard of care means asking “What would a reasonable person have done under the same circumstances?” whereas for kids ages 5-14, you ask “What would a reasonable person of the same age have done in those circumstances?”
Example: If a child on a bicycle gets hit by a driver who didn’t see them, a child under five cannot be negligent so the driver’s negligence will make them 100% liable. However, if the child is 14, then the jury will consider whether a reasonable 14-year-old would have crossed when they crossed, looked for cars, and known to stop. If they find that the child did not act as a reasonable 14-year-old, they can impose all or part of the negligence on the child. This can result in the child receiving no recovery or a partial recovery. The child will only be able to recover a partial recovery if her own negligence is determined to have contributed 50% or less to the cause of the collision.
The Attractive Nuisance Doctrine
The attractive nuisance doctrine is a doctrine under common law premise liability that acknowledges the inability of children to comprehend the concept of trespassing and certain dangers and shifts the burden of looking out for the safety of the children to certain landowners. An attractive nuisance is a condition on land such as a lake, pond, swimming pool, excavation, cave, or other condition that a reasonable land owner ought to recognize might attract children onto the property to explore. If you have such a condition and do not block it off from public access, you are legally responsible if a child under six comes onto your land to investigate and gets injured by the condition. If a child ages 6-14 comes onto the land, their actions will be judged by the reduced standard and you will likely not be able to claim a trespasser defense. This is the reason homeowner’s associations require you to maintain a fence around your swimming pool.
Adults Obligations Around Children
When the child is of too tender an age to appreciate a danger, whether it be in the street or on your land, typically the law shifts the burden to watch out for kids to you, the adult. So as a driver, you have a duty to keep a proper lookout and your failure to do so can make you liable even though the child may have darted out into traffic. As a landowner, you have a duty to anticipate that kids might trespass on unenclosed property and get injured by any enticing but dangerous conditions, Your failure to erect a fence and/or warning signs could result in legal responsibility. Even chaining a dog in your front yard where a child can access it can result in legal liability if the dog has known dangerous tendencies or is classified as a dangerous dog under the law.
Common Types of Child Injury Cases
There are many ways our children can sustain injuries. Indeed, some are not preventable. But when they can be prevented but are not due to someone’s neglect, we can help. Some of the child injury cases we often help with include:
- Daycare Injuries
- Sexual Abuse
- Bicycle Accidents
- Dog Attacks
- Car Accidents
- Child Birth Injuries
- Trampoline Accidents
- Drowning Accidents
Free Consultation With a Child Injury Attorney in Houston
It should never happen. Let us fight for your child.
If your child is injured as a result of an accident, call 800-298-0111 for a free consultation with our child injury attorneys. We will help you sort through your legal options and determine what rights and remedies you may have. The consultation is free and, if we take on the case, we charge no attorney fees nor expenses unless we make a recovery.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can a minor sue for personal injury?
- What is a minor settlement hearing?
- What is a friendly lawsuit?
- Are pre-injury releases for minors valid?
- What is the applicable statute of limitations by State?
- What are the Texas legal requirements for babysitting?
- Questions to ask before letting your child spend the night.