What Is the Thin Skull Rule in Texas Personal Injury Law?
A discussion of the Eggshell Plaintiff Rule (Thin Skull Rule) And Its Effect On A Personal Injury Case We've all met "sensitive" people in our lives---those who cannot take criticism, good-natured joking around, or any perceived slight about them. If you're like us, these folks can drive you crazy. But in personal injury cases, courts...
Does Texas Law Recognize a Workers’ Compensation Defense?
Workers Compensation Shields Employers from Lawsuits. Therefore, it Can Be Raised as a Defense. This is a tricky subject to explain since it runs afoul of most people's understanding of what workers' compensation is, but lawyers who defend companies can argue workers' comp participation as a defense. Here's how... Questions Answered on This Page: Can...
Can the Suicide Defense Impact my Wrongful Death Case?
How suicide can change how your wrongful death case is decided: Suicide is always a tragedy, impacting countless victims left behind. Why people take their own lives is a dark mystery, and we've all known the collateral damage it causes. It may seem insensitive to even ask, but: How does suicide impact a wrongful death...
How Do Defendants Use the Sudden Emergency Defense in Texas Personal Injury Lawsuits?
How The Sudden Emergency Defense Works In Texas Law In our continuing series on damages, we're going to look at how courts apply the sudden emergency doctrine. This defense is not often employed successfully, but it's commonly invoked by defense attorneys seeking to lessen their clients' potential exposure. Questions Answered on This Page: What exactly...
How Does the Consent Defense Work?
An overview of the defense known as consent, and how it impacts Texas personal injury claims: In our continuing series on damages, we're going to examine how the concept of consent can be used to try to bar your personal injury claims. Questions answered on this page: How is the consent defense used in Texas...
How Does the Competitive Sports Doctrine Defense Works Under Texas Law?
How The Competitive Sports Doctrine Defense Works Under Texas Law In our continuing series on defenses, we now look at what is known as the "competitive sports doctrine." Below, we explain what it is, and also how it has exceptions. Questions answered on this page: What defines the "competitive sports doctrine" defense in Texas personal...
What is the Plaintiff’s Duty to Mitigate Damages?
The injured party has a duty to mitigate their injuries following an accident. If you've read our main page on defenses (be sure to click here for our Comprehensive Guide on Defenses, you've probably figured out that most of these arguments seek to place blame for the accidents on victims for one reason or the...
What Is the New and Independent Cause Defense to a Personal Injury Lawsuit?
How The New And Independent Cause Defense Work In Texas Personal Injury Cases. In our series on defenses, we're now going to be looking at what the new and independent cause defense is, and how we can fight back against the highly-paid defense lawyers who want to unfairly ruin your case. Questions answered on this...
How Does the Act of God Defense Work in Texas?
How The Act of God Defense Applies To Texas Personal Injury Cases. Imagine this scenario: you come home to find your neighbor's car halfway into your living room. You'd probably assume that your neighbor lost control of his car (perhaps due to drinking too much) or maybe his 10 year-old went for an ill-fated joyride....
What Does it Mean if My Attorney Failed to Prove Elements of Case?
What Does It Mean If A Plaintiff "Fails To Prove The Elements" Of A Texas Personal Injury Case? In any Texas personal injury case the burden is on the plaintiff to prove the elements of their case. Elements are legal requirements to have a valid personal injury claim. The defendant does not actually have to...
What Are the Most Commonly Used Defense Arguments In Texas Injury Law?
An Overview Of The Most Commonly Used Defense Arguments In Texas Injury Law From the time we were small children, we've understood the benefits of shifting blame to others. We all said something like "he made me do it!" or "she started it!" by the time we were in 1st grade. And in fact, sometimes...
How Do Evidentiary Hearings Work In Texas?
How Evidentiary Hearings Work In Texas Personal Injury Cases A lot of lawyers are great at disagreeing with each other, that's for sure. One of the many things many lawyers like to argue about is whether some piece of evidence should be allowed in before the jury. The rules of evidence can be a little...
How Does The Assumption Of The Risk Defense Work Under Texas Law?
How The Assumption Of The Risk Defense Works Under Texas Law. After we've done something a little unwise, we've all probably looked in the mirror and said, "What was I thinking?" Assumption of the risk is a legal doctrine, dating back to English common law, that essentially asks us that same question. Just as it...
What Is a Motion In Limine?
Your personal injury lawyer must keep out evidence that needlessly hurts your case A parent or teacher probably told you at some point, "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say nothing at all." In personal injury cases, lawyers can basically ask a court to enforce this rule in a motion in limine....
What Is a Motion for Summary Judgment in a Texas Court?
Motion For Summary Judgement - When The Defendant Asks The Judge to Dismiss Your Case Just like in a criminal case, everyone knows that ultimately, it's up to a jury to decide your personal injury claim. That's the crown jewel of our legal system: letting a jury of our peers decide if we're right or...
What Do Lawyers Mean When They Refer to Motions and Hearings?
What do lawyers mean when they refer to "motions" and "hearings"? People often think the court only gets involved in wrongful death and personal injury cases at trial when jurors are assembled. That's not the case. In fact, throughout the many months (or years) of the lawsuit process, plaintiffs and defendants repeatedly ask the court...
What Is Inflammatory Evidence in a Texas Court?
What is considered to be inflammatory evidence under Texas personal injury law? We've all had arguments that devolved from a disagreement about the subject matter at hand to something personal and mean. When this happens, one or both parties to the argument were no longer trying to prove a relevant point, but were instead simply...
How Are Medical Records Used As Evidence in Texas Personal Injury Cases?
How medical records are used as evidence in Texas personal injury cases. When someone files a personal injury suit, they're alleging that their physical body has undergone damage. For most injuries, it's not exactly apparent how much you're hurt. For example, if you or a loved one experienced a serious brain injury, then it will...
How Are Psychological Records Used as Evidence in a Texas Personal Injury Lawsuit?
How psychological records are used as evidence in a Texas personal injury case. It's not just bones that get broken in personal injury cases. People experience deep emotional trauma after such a catastrophic event, and it can impact their home-life, work, and relationships. Further, serious accidents can leave lasting brain damage that will alter victims'...
Can Texas Juries Order Subsequent Remedial Measures?
What are subsequent remedial measures and why can't you talk about them in front of a jury? Imagine you're injured after a slip-and-fall at the front door of a Walmart. You lawyer tells you the case will focus on whether Walmart SHOULD have had safety mats near their front doors. He'll be arguing to the...