Proportionate Responsibility vs. a Full Payout - Your Damages in a San Antonio TX Injury Case

Determining liability and winning just compensation for an injury in San Antonio, Texas, is difficult enough when there is only one liable party. Due to Texas’s proportionate responsibility laws, however, your accident may have multiple parties sharing liability. You may even be found partially liable for your own injury.

The San Antonio personal injury attorneys at Carabin Shaw know how to cut through the noise in shared liability cases. For over three decades, we have been maximizing injury compensation by building strong cases and minimizing victim liability. To learn more about how we can help you win valuable compensation, even if you are partially at fault for your accident, call us toll-free at 800-862-1260 to set up a free consultation today!

Liability regarding personal injury in San Antonio TX is determined based on negligence. If any party fails to practice a reasonable level of care, such as breaking traffic laws, that is considered negligent behavior. If negligence can be proven to have caused your injury, then negligent parties can be held financially liable for insurance claims and lawsuits. Some common examples of negligence that lead to personal injury liability are:

• Driving under the influence
• Failure to maintain safe property conditions
• Medical errors
• Defective product design
• Failure to provide a safe workplace
• Poor hiring or supervising practices
• Failure to post warnings
• Modified Comparative Fault Rule

The modified comparative fault rule in San Antonio, Texas, means that liability for one injury may be split between multiple parties. You may even hold partial liability for your own injury. However, according to the Texas 51% bar rule, you can still pursue compensation through insurance claims and lawsuits as long as you are 50% liable or less. The money you are awarded will be reduced by the percentage of fault you hold to determine how much compensation if partly at fault, you receive.

When insurance alone doesn’t provide enough money to finance your recovery, you should look to pursue compensation by suing liable parties for damages. With the help of an experienced attorney, you can use damages to pursue compensation for the economic impact of your accident as well as its emotional toll. Some common forms of damages you may qualify for include:

• Reimbursement of medical expenses
• Property damage
• Pain and suffering
• Lost wages
• Loss of consortium
• Permanent disfigurement

Economic damages, like medical reimbursements, can be calculated by adding up your documented expenses. Non-economic damages, like pain and suffering, are calculated using the multiplier method. In this method, a number between 1.5 and 5 is chosen based on the severity of your accident. That number is multiplied by your total economic damages to determine the amount of non-economic damages you are entitled to. If you are partially liable for your accident, your compensation will then be reduced by your percentage of fault.

If you are partially liable for your accident, working with a San Antonio comparative negligence lawyer is the best way to ensure positive results. A good lawyer can maximize your compensation by fighting to reduce the percentage of liability you hold, sometimes to zero percent. Working with a local attorney, like the ones at Carabin Shaw, provides the added benefits of increased availability and familiarity with local laws and officials. Your lawyer can even collect evidence for you, negotiate insurance claims on your behalf, or conduct a private investigation if necessary.

At Carabin Shaw, our team of personal injury attorneys has spent the last thirty-three years winning cases for Texan victims just like you. We specialize in reducing stress and maximizing your compensation. To hear from some clients we have helped in the past, check out our client reviews page.

Next, give us a toll-free call at 800-862-1260, where our English and Spanish-speaking staff is available 24/7 to set you up with a free case review. Best yet, we offer our services on a contingency-fee basis. This means we don't collect any upfront payment and only get paid when we win your case. There is no reason to delay. Call Carabin Shaw today!

For more information:

• Cornell Law
• Texas Statutes - Civil Practice