It Wasn’t My Fault!

Any lawyer will tell you that determining who is at fault in an accident is one of the most complex aspects of a case. In the state of Texas, there are numerous types of evidence that can be used to determine fault, but it’s much more complicated than it seems. In many cases, determining who exactly is at fault for your personal injury is the cornerstone of the case, especially when it reaches the court system. Pinpointing who exactly was negligent is the first thing you should do in order to receive compensation for your injuries. Depending on the circumstances of your case, there may be just one person who is responsible, or there may be multiple parties that can be held liable.

Like most other states, Texas adheres to a fault-based system of personal injury recovery. This means that the party or parties who are found to be at fault for any type of accident will be responsible for compensating the injured party. In most cases, payment is made through insurance companies – which is where things get a bit more complicated. Each state mandates a minimum coverage amount through a financial responsibility law, which means that the amount of damages someone will receive will largely depend on the state’s at fault laws. Typically, the coverage amounts are based on three categories:

• The total coverage amount for all injured parties
• The total coverage amount per accident
• The total coverage amount for any property damage

In Texas, the minimum liability limits are as follows:

• $30,000 for each injured party
• Up to $60,000 per accident
• $25,000 for property damage

Please keep in mind that this is just the bare minimum and the actual compensation you will receive will depend on the extent of damage to each individual and/or property.

Determining Fault in Texas

 As mentioned above, evidence plays an integral role in determining fault in Texas. With this, fault is categorized into different intentions, based on the specific situation. Once the intention is determined, your Dallas injury attorneys may do one of the following to further prove fault:

• Establish intentional conduct – If the at-fault party’s conduct is shown to be intentionally negligent, your lawyer may use this to help your case. Another way of putting this is when someone else’s conduct ‘shows a desired purpose’.
• Proving negligence – This is one of the hardest parts of proving fault in a personal injury case. When proving negligence, your lawyer will try to show that the person or persons had an obligation which they did not carry out. Proving negligence is common in premises liability cases when the property owner or manager failed to maintain the area safely.
• Showing liability of standard of proof – When this is done, the lawyer will work to prove that the plaintiff suffered a ‘foreseeable injury’. This method is typically used when a dangerous action or activity resulted in injury.

As you can see, proving fault is relatively complicated and numerous different paths can be taken. If you were involved in any type of accident that was not your fault and you need to prove this, please contact Rad Law Firm today. Our Dallas injury lawyers have years of experience working with these types of cases and are prepared to fight for your rights today.