Dallas Personal Injury Lawsuit

What Exactly is a Personal Injury Lawsuit? Attorney Michael Grossman Explains

In The State of Texas, a personal injury lawsuit is a preceding brought forth in a court of law whereby a plaintiff claims to have incurred some manner of damages as the result of the defendant’s actions and is requesting some form of restitution. Essentially, the accident victim asks the court system to consider the circumstances by which they were injured and asks the court to enforce the laws and make the defendant compensate them for their injuries.

Negligence and Liability

In order for the lawsuit to be successful, the plaintiff’s attorneys must prove that the defendant acted negligently and caused the plaintiff’s injuries. The plaintiff’s attorneys will present evidence to exemplify the defendant’s negligence before the jury. Contrary to popular belief, in Texas personal injury cases, there is not always one person who is entirely at fault. Liability is often assigned to more than one person to a varying degree or another. In many cases, the jury will find that both the defendant and the plaintiff are liable and the amount of money awarded to the plaintiff will be split proportionately based on the percentage of liability assigned to each party. For example, in a car accident where both parties were changing lanes into the same lane at the same time, one driver may be found to be 70% liable and the other driver 30% liable.

Damages

Once negligence has been established, the court must then consider the amount of damages that the plaintiff has incurred. Damages are essentially the amount of money necessary to compensate the plaintiff for the injuries sustained. Common damages requested in a personal injury case include medical expenses, pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of consortium, physical impairment, lost wages, and many others (See our page All About Damages for a full list of the damages that a personal injury victim is entitled to recover). The plaintiff’s attorneys will present the jury with their requested damages and will attempt to justify the amount requested. Naturally, the defense counsel will attempt to convince the jury that the damages should be reduced. Much the same way the jury assigns liability, they will also determine the amount of damages in total. That total amount of damages is then awarded to the plaintiff proportionate to the liability as described above. For example, if the jury finds that the plaintiff has $100,000 in damages and is 20% liable in their accident, they plaintiff will be awarded $80,000 in damages.

The most important factor in a personal injury lawsuit is hiring an experienced attorney to help you with your case. Our firm has represented personal injury victims for the past 20 years and has made millions of dollars for our clients. If you are considering a personal injury lawsuit, we invite you to call for a free consultation.