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As with any personal injury claim, the law requires you to prove certain elements to collect compensation. Truck accidents are often more complicated than other types of accidents and therefore help from the best injury attorneys can be invaluable to you.
There are five important elements you must prove to prevail in a truck accident lawsuit. These include:
The accused party must have had a duty to act in a way that would not harm others. The party breached that duty by doing something that was negligent, with truck wrecks, this can be things like speeding, failing to follow at a safe distance, not yielding the right-of-way or many other things. Your injury must be caused by the breach of the duty and the act would be generally considered harmful. In addition, you must have sustained actual injuries or damages because of the breach of duty, what might have happened (but did not), is not relevant.
Many cases can easily meet these requirements; however, sometimes proving them can be complex. Although you may have suffered a minor injury or an inconvenience, this alone does not meet the element of damages in a personal injury case. You must have sustained actual damages to be entitled to compensation. Actual damages in Texas can be things like medical bills, pain, inability to do things for a period, scars, and lost wages.
You have probably heard that a case to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. This statement has been drummed into your head if you have watched many legal television shows. However, knowing that it only applies to criminal cases is essential. In civil cases, such as a personal injury case, you must only prove your case by a preponderance of the evidence.
This standard is lower than that of criminal cases. A preponderance of the evidence simply means that your evidence must show it is more likely that the accused was negligent and caused the crash and your injuries.
Texas is a proportionate fault state, meaning that any party’s conduct can be examined and either a judge or most likely a jury will decide who was at fault and also that persons percentage of fault for the accident. In Texas, a person can be partly at fault and still recover damages as long as their percentage of fault is 50% or less. In this case, the percentage of their fault reduces the damages they suffered.
Gathering evidence for truck accident cases can be difficult because the trucking company may try to prevent your attorney from obtaining it. These records may be crucial in proving your case. For example, the driver log kept by the trucking company may reveal that the driver had driven longer than allowed by law and, therefore, may have been fatigued during the accident. Your attorney will make a legal request to ensure that the documents are not destroyed.
Damages like medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other economic and non-economic damages must be proven to be collected on a truck accident injury case. Often medical records are supported by a doctor’s testimony in the case.
It is always best to talk with an attorney who has built a reputation for winning lawsuits with 18-wheelers as soon as you are able after the accident. The longer you wait, the harder it is to find witnesses and obtain scene and vehicle data.
Because truck accident lawsuits are more complex than other types of cases, it makes sense to choose an attorney with truck accident experience to handle your case.
At Baumgartner Law Firm, we have helped thousands of truck accident victims get the money they deserved for their damages. Call us for a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer near me. We understand truck accidents because we have been taking on trucking companies for over three decades. Each case is different, so it is best to discuss the details of your case with our legal truck accident professionals.
Call attorney Greg Baumgartner at (281) 587-1111
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