Frequently Asked Personal Injury Questions

Anyone that has been hurt due to the negligence of others can file a personal injury claim. Even if you are partially at fault, or somehow contributed to factors that lead to your injury, you may still be eligible to compensation due to Texas' comparative negligence law.

Comparative negligence means that when an accident occurs due to negligence, the courts will assign a percentage of fault to all of the parties involved. As long as you found to be 51% or under at fault, then you may be eligible for some form of restitution for damages resulting from the accident. This 51% cut-off rule is known as modified comparative negligence.

Sometimes negligence in an accident is obvious and easy to determine. Other times, there may be hidden factors or disputed elements of the incident that can make the assertion of negligence difficult. A dedicated El Paso personal injury attorney at our firm can help you investigate these matters, collect evidence, and-if necessary-prove them in civil court on your behalf.

A personal injury suit can address a number of different costs and burdens that have been placed on a victim. Depending on the case, your legal counsel should personalize your injury suit to meet your needs.

These covered costs can include:

• Medical bill costs
• Pain & suffering
• Lost wages
• Rehabilitation costs
• Legal fees
• Funeral costs (in the case of wrongful death)
• Loss of companionship (in the case of wrongful death)

In some cases, yes-your insurance coverage and the coverage of the negligent party may cover all costs caused by the accident. However, this money subtracts from insurance companies' bottom line and they can take action to minimize the perception of your injury and limit the restitution they provide. Additionally, there may be limits to liability coverage and filing suit against the negligent party directly may be the only option to pursuing the proper compensation.

It is understandable that, following an injury, the victim and their loved ones are reeling from the shock, the medical costs, and other burdens they must now deal with due to the accident. That is why Guerra & Farah, PLLC is proud to offer contingency fees to all our personal injury clients. Contingency fees mean that you do not pay us unless we recover money on your behalf.

When an adjuster contacts an accident victim that is seeking compensation for their injuries, they are trying to determine if the claim is accurate and, if possible, discredit any claims of negligence. If you have been contacted by an insurance company wanting you to consent to a taped statement, seek the counsel of a personal injury attorney first to determine what your next steps should be.

Every personal injury case is different and the amount of prospective proceeds can vary. While some factors, like lost wages and medical bills, are easy to determine, other factors like pain and suffering need to be approximated, which can more difficult to assert. At Guerra & Farah, PLLC, we are well-versed in making the gravity of our clients' injuries plain, both in and out of the courtroom.

While filing your suit immediately may not be prudent, talking to a personal injury attorney as soon as possible is. Personal injury accidents should be investigated shortly after they occur and the more time your counsel has to develop and establish the case on your behalf, the better.

Yes, there is. All civil actions in Texas have very strict statute of limitations. All personal injury, product liability, and medical malpractice suits need to be filed within two years of the injury or harm occurring.

When structuring and filing a personal injury suit, it is important that the entire scope of the injury is addressed. Sometimes this can mean waiting to see how a patient recovers and when his or her maximum medical improvement (MMI) occurs. Maximum medical improvement means that the victim has improved the maximum amount from their injuries. This can still mean that they may require ongoing treatment, but that the financial future of these patients is reasonably foreseeable. Filing before MMI can be determined may mean that the suit will not address additional medical needs that were not initially anticipated.

Your personal injury attorney should have the resources to get you seen and evaluated if a personal injury accident is occurred. At Guerra & Farah, PLLC, we always make sure that our clients are reviewed by trusted medical professionals who can offer reliable and fair insight into the severity and scope of their injuries.