Our personal injury lawyer in San Antonio, Texas, can get you the compensation you deserve after your accident. You pay no fees until we win.
The best personal injury attorney in San Antonio is someone you can trust to fight for the compensation you’re owed, not someone who will push you into accepting an early settlement for a quick win, especially when it’s nowhere near enough to cover all your expenses.
Here’s why you can trust our accident attorneys in San Antonio to get the best result.
Every San Antonio personal injury claim is unique, and the overall process of securing compensation will vary based on the specifics of your accident and injury, who is at fault, and the willingness of insurance companies to cooperate and make a fair offer for compensation.
That said, there are specific steps our personal injury attorneys in San Antonio will always take. Underpinning the entire process is our belief that a personal injury claim should be as stress-free as possible.
That’s why we’re committed to handling as much of your claim as possible while keeping you updated. This means you won’t have to chase us to find out where your claim is at, answer relentless phone calls from insurance adjusters, manage an accident investigation, or regularly interact with the opposing party.
The personal injury claims process is complex, so you’ll likely have questions about filing for compensation. Here are answers to questions we commonly receive.
Whether or not you have a case depends on whether you can prove your injuries occurred due to another person’s (or party’s) negligent or reckless behavior.
But what does that mean?
To understand what negligence is, it helps to know what criteria your claim must meet. Having a successful personal injury claim requires you to meet a specific burden of proof. If you’ve watched any crime show or have a passing knowledge of the law, you might have heard the phrase “beyond a reasonable doubt.” This is the legal standard in criminal cases, where if there is any doubt that a defendant is guilty (assuming that doubt is reasonable), the jury must find them not guilty. This is a high burden, but fortunately, civil cases have a much lower standard.
In a personal injury claim, you need only prove the person was responsible for your accident “by a preponderance of the evidence,” or, in other words, more likely than not. If the evidence is 51% in your favor, you win your case.
While this is an easier burden to prove, you still need sufficient evidence that shows:
The duty of care can vary depending on your situation. For example, if you’re on the road, other drivers owe you a duty of care to drive responsibly and follow state and federal laws. If they breach that duty of care and it causes your injury, you can hold them responsible. The other party can breach this through negligence or recklessness.
The main difference between reckless and negligent behavior is that the former involves taking a risk knowing it may result in harm to others. Common examples of reckless behavior are speeding or driving while intoxicated. Negligence means acting carelessly or without considering how one’s actions could impact another person. A negligent act may be something as simple as forgetting to check a blind spot or glancing at a cell phone to read a notification.
A personal injury case rests on the ability to prove your injuries occurred due to someone else’s negligence or recklessness. But the law is complex, and the last thing you want to do while recovering from an accident is to spend hours researching the law and interpreting long-winded legal jargon. That’s why you should always consult a personal injury attorney in San Antonio to determine if you have a case.
To receive compensation for your injuries, you must show that another party is liable. However, if you were partially responsible for the accident, you may still be entitled to compensation under a legal principle called “modified comparative negligence.”
As long as you are less than 51% at fault for your accident, you can recover compensation in Texas. The compensation you receive will then be reduced by your liability, so if you are 20% responsible for your accident, you will receive 80% of the settlement amount.
The share of responsibility is determined by a jury when you file a personal injury lawsuit. Comparative negligence can become especially complicated when multiple parties are involved, and each is partly to blame for an accident. Contact our San Antonio personal injury lawyer for a free, no-obligation case review and advice on whether you can claim.
The length of a case can vary depending on many factors, including whether you’ve sustained a serious injury, the amount of evidence you have, the size of the court’s docket, and whether you decide to settle.
Most injury victims receive a fair offer during negotiations and settle relatively quickly. But your San Antonio personal injury lawyer may advise rejecting a poor settlement if they are confident they can secure you a much bigger payout by taking the case to court, or if you’re still seeking treatment for severe injuries. While we’ll always aim to resolve your personal injury claim as quickly and with as little stress to you as possible, we don’t rush cases. We will never settle early if it means leaving you with a drastically low and unfair settlement.
The first thing you should do after getting injured in an accident in San Antonio is to seek medical attention. Documenting your injuries is vital so you can recover damages as part of your claim. These include the cost of your medical bills and lost wages from being unable to work. If it’s safe to do so, you should also document the scene. If you’re in a car accident, this might include taking photographs and writing down the contact information of any witnesses.
Then, you should contact a San Antonio personal injury attorney to learn about your legal options and begin the claims process.
In Texas, you have two years from the date of your accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. This deadline, called the statute of limitations, is outlined in Section 16 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code and is strictly enforced by Texas courts. If you miss this window, you may lose your right to pursue compensation entirely, regardless of how strong your case is or how severe your injuries are.
Two years might sound like plenty of time, but it can pass by quickly. The statute of limitations applies to filing a lawsuit, but most cases start with negotiations with insurance companies. If those talks drag on for months (which insurance companies often encourage), you could find yourself running out of time to take legal action if negotiations fail.
There are a few rare exceptions to the two-year rule. For example, if you discover an injury years later that you couldn’t have reasonably known about at the time of your accident, the discovery rule might apply. However, these exceptions are very limited and typically only apply in specific circumstances, like medical malpractice cases where something was left inside your body during surgery.
For wrongful death cases, the two-year clock starts ticking from the date of death, not the date of the original accident that caused the injuries.
The key takeaway is not to wait to contact a San Antonio personal injury lawyer. Aside from the benefits of early action, such as gathering evidence before it disappears or deteriorates and speaking to witnesses before they forget key details or move away from the area, giving your attorney more time to build your case often means a better outcome for you.
The answer depends on what type of accident you’ve been involved in and who you need to report it to.
If you’re involved in an auto accident in San Antonio, such as a car, truck, or motorcycle accident, Texas law (Chapter 550 of the Texas Transportation Code) requires you to report any crash resulting in injury or death immediately. If your accident caused property damage exceeding $1,000, you must report the accident to the Texas Department of Transportation within 10 days (Section 550.062 of the Texas Transportation Code). However, we strongly recommend you report even these accidents as soon as possible.
You might think a fairly minor crash doesn’t need to be reported, or that there’s no urgency, but what seems like minor damage could turn out to be a lot worse — and a lot more expensive. Plus, if you don’t report the accident but the other driver does, you could find yourself at a disadvantage later.
There’s also a chance that you were injured but adrenaline masked the pain, and it’s not until you get home hours later that you realize you were hurt.
You also need to report your San Antonio accident to your insurance company. The time limit on this varies by insurer. Most policies require you to report accidents “promptly” or “as soon as reasonably possible.” This usually means within 24-48 hours. It’s best to err on the side of caution and report your accident as soon as you are well enough to do so, as failing to report within your policy’s timeframe could jeopardize your coverage.
If you suffer a work injury in Texas, you typically need to notify your employer immediately or within 30 days, depending on your company’s policies and whether you’re filing for workers’ compensation.
For accidents on someone else’s property (like a slip and fall at a store), there’s no legal requirement to report immediately, but you should document the incident with the property manager or business owner as soon as possible. This creates a paper trail that can be crucial evidence for your claim later.
When in doubt, report it as soon as possible. It’s much better to have documentation you don’t need than to explain why you didn’t report your accident straight away. This can lead to insurance adjusters claiming your injuries occurred later or that they’re not as severe as you claim. Remember, you can always contact our San Antonio personal injury attorney for guidance on what steps to take after any type of accident.
The short answer is no. Most personal injury claims in San Antonio never see the inside of a courtroom, as the majority of cases settle through negotiations between your accident attorney and the insurance company.
After we gather evidence and build your case, we’ll issue a demand to the at-fault party’s insurance company. From there, we negotiate back and forth until we reach a fair settlement. This process can take weeks or months, but it allows you to resolve your claim without the stress, time, and uncertainty of a trial.
However, sometimes going to court becomes necessary. If the insurance company refuses to make a reasonable offer, denies your claim entirely, or if your damages exceed policy limits, filing a lawsuit might be your best option for getting the compensation you deserve.
However, even after filing a lawsuit, it doesn’t mean you’ll end up in court. Many cases settle during the litigation process (sometimes just days before trial). Filing a lawsuit often motivates insurance companies to make more serious settlement offers because they know we’re prepared to present your case to a jury.
If your case does go to trial, we’ll be with you every step of the way. Dr. Louis Patino is an experienced attorney who’s earned recognition for his trial advocacy, including being awarded Litigator of the Year by the American Institute of Trial Lawyers. We’ll prepare you for what to expect, handle all the legal procedures, and present a compelling case to the jury.
The decision of whether to settle or go to trial ultimately rests with you. We’ll give you our honest opinion on both options, including the potential risks and rewards, so you can make an informed decision about what’s best for your situation.
Remember, we work on a contingency fee basis, so you won’t pay attorney fees until we win your case, whether through a settlement or winning a trial.
Your initial consultation is an informal chat where you can tell us about your accident and injuries and learn about your legal options. We understand this can be difficult to talk about, so we will go at your pace and aim to put you at ease. During this meeting, we will ask how your accident happened, the injuries you’ve sustained, and any treatment you’ve had, are still having, and are expected to need in the future. If you have documentation such as medical records, accident reports, and photographs of the accident scene and your injuries, it can be helpful to your attorney to bring them to your appointment. However, don’t worry if you do not have these — we can help you get them.
During your free case review, we’ll also explain the claims process, how we can help, the next steps, and our fee structure. We’re here to address any concerns you have about choosing our San Antonio personal injury firm. We want you to feel comfortable asking questions about our experience and track record.
This meeting is not just about seeing if you have a claim — it’s about giving you all the information you need to help you decide if we are the right firm for you. We promise to give you honest feedback about your chances and will never pressure you to make an immediate decision.
We appreciate that you may be busy and want to focus on your health and treatment, not be stuck in meetings with attorneys. We value your time and won’t take up any more of it than we need to. Our case reviews generally last between 15 minutes and half an hour, but if you need more time to chat, we will always accommodate you.
Your relationship with your personal injury lawyer can last months or years, so we know how important it is to be kept in the loop and feel comfortable reaching out when you have questions or need advice. We never want clients to feel like they are getting anything less than world-class service, which is why we hate to hear about negative experiences with other firms, such as feeling like a burden or forever chasing their attorney for an update on their case and never being able to reach them. When you choose our firm, you’ll have direct access to your attorney through multiple channels:
Unlike in larger firms, where you might speak to a different person each time, we ensure you work consistently with the same team members who know your case inside and out. We believe this personal approach leads to better outcomes and a less stressful experience for our clients.
The best personal injury attorney knows from experience that obstacles are part of the process of recovering compensation. Insurance companies won’t simply roll over and pay up — they will fight to dispute claims so they can get away with paying out less. Some firms might say they can guarantee a specific outcome and that it will be smooth sailing, but we are honest about the challenges we may encounter during your claim.
For example, insurance companies can argue:
Insurers might even delay proceedings, hoping you’ll accept a lower settlement out of frustration or financial pressure. We take these challenges in our stride because we know how to overcome them. Our clients know we have the knowledge and experience to anticipate these objections and develop a strategy to shut them down. You can trust us to get the best possible result as we handle all aspects of your claim so you can concentrate on getting better.
While we cannot guarantee a specific amount, personal injury settlements in San Antonio can range from thousands to millions of dollars, depending on several factors.
The key is understanding that every case is unique. Two people might suffer similar injuries but receive different compensation based on their specific circumstances, such as their ability to return to work or their need for ongoing treatment.
Your potential settlement depends on multiple factors, including:
Our San Antonio personal injury lawyer will thoroughly evaluate these factors and fight to secure the best possible outcome.
You might consider dealing with the at-fault party’s insurance company directly — if you can negotiate a settlement without an attorney, you won’t have to pay legal fees. However, accident victims who hire a lawyer typically receive larger settlements than those who handle claims alone. An experienced personal injury lawyer knows how to:
When you have a personal injury lawyer in your corner, you can rest assured that we’ll explore every potential avenue for compensation. We’ll demand damages you might not know you can claim for — such as the emotional distress you experience because you can’t play with your children because of your injuries — and consider what other parties might be liable. For example, if the at-fault party’s insurance limit caps the settlement the insurer is willing to offer, we can investigate whether we have a case against their employer or another party, allowing you to recover much more.
Plus, going it alone can have an emotional and physical toll, potentially compromising your recovery. We will handle it all, leaving you free to get the care you need.
Texas law allows you to recover several types of damages in a personal injury claim, split into two categories: economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic damages comprise:
Examples of non-economic damages include:
Our San Antonio personal injury attorney will pursue every type of compensation you’re entitled to under Texas law.
San Antonio personal injury claims are typically calculated by taking the sum of your economic damages — your tangible losses — and applying a multiplier to determine your non-economic damages (to compensate you for pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of consortium, and other such subjective losses). This multiplier ranges between one and five, depending on the severity of your injury and its overall impact on your life, with catastrophic, life-changing injuries with little to no chance of recovery warranting a higher multiplier. However, the formulas used by insurers to determine which multiplier to apply vary by provider.
Some insurance companies instead calculate damages on a “per diem” or “for each day” basis, where they calculate how much your losses are worth for a single day and multiply it by the number of days you have suffered and are expected to continue to suffer.
However, an insurance company’s calculation does not necessarily show how much you will receive. Our San Antonio personal injury lawyer will push back to secure the maximum amount you’re entitled to, consulting medical and economic experts to determine your future medical costs and lost income potential to ensure your compensation provides for you long into the future.
We strongly advise against accepting the first compensation offer made by an insurance company. While it can be tempting to settle quickly so you can put your accident behind you and move forward, insurance companies are notorious for lowballing, and your initial offer will likely be far less than what you deserve. You may even find your settlement isn’t enough to pay for additional treatment or provide for your family while you take time off work, especially if your injuries worsen.
An insurance company might pressure you into making a decision or use scare tactics to persuade you that you do not have a strong case and will be left struggling to pay your bills, but you should always seek legal advice to see where you stand.
Our personal injury attorney can handle all communications with insurers to protect you from being taken advantage of while you’re vulnerable. If you’re worried about finances and your main motivation for accepting the first compensation offer is to pay for treatment or other bills, your attorney can defer payment, negotiate a payment plan, or help you claim on your insurance to alleviate the burden until you receive the full, fair compensation you’re owed.
Our Texas accident attorney has successfully recovered maximum compensation for injured individuals and their families all over the state, from the Rio Grande Valley to the Permian Basin.
