Texas Texting Ban May Help Victims, But Not the Way You Think It Will
In September 2017, the Lone Star State implemented a new law that bans texting while driving. The number of people I've seen glancing down at their laps on the tollway suggests these new rules haven't soaked in just yet. Even if the fines don't persuade drivers to put down their phones, though, our lawyers argue...
Hurt in a Crash with a Faulty Underride Guard? Let’s Sue.
A semi-trailer's underride guard (also called a Mansfield bar or a Rear Underrun Protection System) is a crucial piece of safety equipment. Its purpose is simple: When a smaller vehicle crashes into the back of an 18-wheeler, the bar keeps it from traveling underneath the trailer—at least that's what should happen. Unfortunately the guards fail...
How Can New Crash Tests Make Automakers Increase Backseat Safety?
Automobiles used to be literal metal death traps, so crash data scientists and automotive engineers naturally spent decades examining crash patterns and innovating safer vehicles. By necessity, auto manufacturers focused on the most deadly aspects of cars, so front seat safety was a higher priority over the relatively safer back seats. "Relatively" is the key...
How Badly Hurt Do I Have to Be to Pursue a Product Liability Claim?
People have some pretty extreme ideas and opinions about lawsuits. On one end of the spectrum, there are individuals that believe a lawsuit is a horrible, evil mechanism that allows people to unjustly cheat others out of money. These individuals tend to view lawsuits as frivolous and assume a smooth-talking lawyer could help anyone with...
What Do I Do If a Uber or Lyft Driver Hits Me?
Ridesharing services such as Uber and Lyft are a fact of life in many areas. Given the rideshare company's recent arrival on the scene and its unconventional business model, many questions arise from crashes involving a rideshare driver. What happens if a rideshare driver hits you? Who is a fault, the ridesharing company or the...
Are Automakers Liable if a Roof Collapses in a Rollover Crash?
Rollover crashes account for less than 3% of all passenger vehicle accidents, but are responsible for almost 35% of all highway fatalities, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Of course, automakers cannot create vehicles that will never be in a rollover crash; however, most people assume that rollover crashes will be deadly...
Am I Eligible to File a Lawsuit Under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022?
It's a confusing time for those injured by their exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Law firms across the country have flooded practically every website, television station, and radio station with advertisements instructing those injured to contact their firm to pursue compensation against the government. You're being blanketed with ads because Congress...
Just Because Police Rarely Enforce Texas’ Texting Ban Doesn’t Mean it Doesn’t Have an Impact
Recently, the Dallas Morning News measured the enforcement of the texting-while-driving ban in Texas. The initial ban went into effect in September of 2017, in the wake of a horrific mass-casualty crash outside of San Antonio. In that incident, a young man was allegedly texting, when he crashed into a church bus, killing 13 people....
Offshore Injury Lawyer in Texas
An offshore injury can have devastating consequences. While working to provide for your family, you may have suffered an accident that affected your health and income. Now you’re wondering what to do in the face of overwhelming obstacles. During this stressful time, it’s important to have a trusted advocate on your side. Negotiating with your...
Catastrophic Injury Attorneys
Catastrophic injuries are injuries that are so severe that they leave you with permanent damage. The damage from catastrophic injuries prevents people from working, enjoying hobbies and activities, and providing for their family. People who suffer a catastrophic injury often bring lawsuits against those responsible because their life and their family’s well-being depends on the...
Client Stories: Motorcyclist Injured by Drunk Driver Served at Wingstop
The events of this case occurred in May of 2019 in Odessa, TX. According to the police report, a 34-year old man was driving west in a stolen BMW 325i sedan when he failed to yield the right of way to a motorcycle while attempting a left turn. This led the BMW to strike the motorcycle, ejecting our client.
Client Stories: Big City Wings Puts Young Woman in Peril at Work Outing
When bars decide to put their desire for alcohol revenues over fulfilling their obligation to public safety, it puts all of us at risk.
Client Stories: Man Badly Hurt in Crash After Drinking at Two Bars
Finally, the objective of a dram shop claim isn't to get the drunk driver "off the hook" for their reckless actions. Not only will they still face appropriate criminal charges for DUI or DWI, but they're also held to their share of the blame in any civil action.
Ford Recalls Almost 2,000,000 Trucks For Seat Belt Fire Hazard
A major auto manufacturer released a new recall for millions of affected pickup trucks, effective September 6. As a change of pace from the increasingly-predictable airbag recalls that fill automotive news, this recall involves another major Supplemental Restraint System—the seat belts. More accurately, it affects the components that actually make seat belts able to stop...
Worth the Weight? Cybex Recalls Weight-Lifting Equipment For Major Injury Risks
Most gyms may never have dangerously broken machines, and more power to them for keeping their members safe. It only takes one incident, though: For a lone weightlifter with God as his only spotter, it can be a harrowing experience if the machine malfunctions. That's the situation for 15,000 Smith machine-style weight racks that are...
Blender Blunder: Vitamix Recalls Over 100,000 Blender Containers for Possible Laceration Hazard
This isn't the first time we've written about a blender recall, and for all I know it won't be the last. I'm no engineer, but it feels like in 2018 it shouldn't be too complicated to put a cup on a weed-whacker. Despite that we've seen a rash of safety defects announced by various kitchen-device...
Can I Sue If an Intoxicated Person Hurts Me at a Bar?
We talk a lot at the firm about how dram shop law helps people who are injured by intoxicated drivers. As a matter of fact, as one of the state's leading dram shop firms we're proud of our record of advocacy for drunk driving victims. It occurred to me the other day that many people...
Harris County Drunk Driving Chronicle
Texas continues to be infamous for leading the country in drunk driving fatalities. Partly due to its size, but also due to a high rate of drunk driving, Harris County (primarily Houston) contributes more to that dubious distinction than any other jurisdiction in the state. In an ideal world, we would be able to analyze,...
Only In Houston: Two DUI Drivers Hit Disabled Car in Fatal Crashes
I've mentioned before that Houston ranks uncomfortably highly in matters of drunk driving. Not only does it have the most DUI-related deaths of any Texas city, but it consistently ranks in the top 5 cities throughout the entire U.S. Sometimes it seems like Houston actually wants to remind everybody who wears that tarnished crown in...
Kia, Hyundai Recall Over a Million Vehicles for Possible Electronic Airbag Defect
Injury Relief readers may notice a theme that often pops up in our blog: When it comes to automotive defects, the airbag seems to be a recurring culprit. That disturbing trend continues in a recall issued by Kia and Hyundai. According to the company and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Kia Motors (and...
