Our San Antonio personal injury lawyers understand how traumatic an accident can be. Whether you’ve lost a loved one in a car accident or suffered a severe head injury in a motorcycle crash, you likely face extensive costs for medical bills, lost wages, future lost income, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and more.
But you don’t have to struggle alone.
If you’ve been wrongfully injured in an accident in the San Antonio area, the Patino Law Firm can help.
After spending more than 20 years caring for injured victims as a chiropractor and serving as a U.S. Army Combat Medic, Law Ninja Dr. Louis Patino — or Doc, as his clients call him — started his law practice in San Antonio, Texas.
Doc and his team are compassionate yet aggressive trial advocates who have just as much experience in the courtroom as they have negotiating settlements with insurers. We’re a veteran-owned business that seeks to make a local impact to help injury victims and always strives to get you the maximum settlement you’re entitled to.
You can find us at 13974 Nacogdoches Rd, San Antonio, TX 78217, or book an online consultation by calling 855-LAW-NINJA or sending us a confidential message on our contact page. We can also come to you.
The best personal injury lawyer 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, even if it’s nowhere near enough to cover all your expenses.
When you choose Patino Law Firm, we guarantee:
Dr. Louis Patino and his personal injury attorneys in San Antonio specialize in helping victims navigate the legal minefield when they’ve been in an accident that wasn’t their fault. Medical bills can pile up quickly, especially if your injuries worsen or you need further treatment. Then, you might need additional time off work or even be unable to return to the job you did before. On top of that, you might have chronic pain or depression following your accident. Whatever your situation, you deserve compensation for your losses.
Just some of the accident types our San Antonio personal injury lawyers can help you claim compensation for are:
Whether or not you have a case depends on if 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 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 thought for how their actions could impact another person. A negligent act may be something as simple as failing to check blind spots or following another vehicle too closely.
A personal injury case rests on the ability to prove that 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 and looking at legal precedents that are challenging to interpret. That’s why you should always consult our personal injury lawyers in San Antonio to determine if you have a case.
Each state has a time limit for how long you can take legal action after an accident. This time limit is called the statute of limitations.
The statute of limitations for personal injury in Texas is two years from the date of your accident, although there are exceptions. If you wait too long to file a claim and the deadline passes, you won’t be able to recover compensation.
But just because you have a full two years doesn’t mean you should wait to speak to a personal injury attorney. The biggest advantage of filing early is that there’s no chance of the statute of limitations expiring, but there can also be strategic reasons for filing a lawsuit earlier. Evidence can be easier to gather early on, witnesses will be more likely to remember the accident, and negotiations can begin sooner, which means you may not have to wait as long for your settlement check.
Our San Antonio personal injury lawyers can help secure financial compensation for a range of damages. These typically fall into three categories.
Economic damages are tangible, verifiable costs you’ve incurred due to your accident. These include:
Non-economic damages compensate you for the long-term impact of your injuries on your life. These are subjective, as you can’t put a number on them in the same way you can with medical bills and other provable costs.
Non-economic damages include:
Punitive damages — also known as exemplary damages in Texas — is the third type of damages you may receive — but only if your case goes to trial. Punitive damages are reserved for particularly heinous conduct, such as driving under the influence, where the court desires to punish the defendant, set an example, or send a message to the community. Punitive damages are at the discretion of a jury.
How much you will ultimately receive in your personal injury claim depends on several factors, including who’s responsible for your accident, whether you contributed to your accident, the extent of your injuries, and the strength of your evidence. The best way to get an accurate estimate of how much you might recover is to contact our personal injury lawyers in San Antonio. We offer a free consultation, during which we’ll look at the details of your case and explore the damages you could recover.
Every personal injury attorney operates differently. Some charge up-front fees, while others only charge if they win your case. At our law office, we operate on a contingency fee basis. This means we take on your case at no initial charge and instead receive a percentage of any settlement or judgment obtained. This allows you to benefit from the knowledge and expertise of our attorneys without worrying about how you can afford it. In many cases, people who hire accident attorneys receive much higher payouts than those who DIY their claims — even after paying legal fees.
When you choose our San Antonio personal injury lawyers, we guarantee you will never pay up-front costs or be stung by unexpected bills. You will never pay any fees until we win your case, and we’ll let you know throughout the process how much those fees will be.
Getting injured or losing a loved one in a tragic accident is a devastating experience, so we believe that making a personal injury claim should be as stress-free as possible.
We handle your personal injury claim on your behalf, so you don’t have to make or answer calls, manage an investigation, or regularly interact with the opposing party. Your dedicated San Antonio personal injury attorney will be your single point of contact, keeping you up to date on your lawsuit every step of the way and always being available to answer your questions.
Every personal injury case is unique and complex. Our personal injury lawyers in San Antonio are experts in their field. They will evaluate your case to identify how likely it is to succeed, how much compensation you could recover, and what steps to take to advance your legal claim.
When choosing a personal injury lawyer, working with someone you can trust is vital. That’s why we offer a free initial consultation. We won’t pressure you into making a decision and promise not to make false promises about how much you might be entitled to or accept an unfair settlement to win your case. Our success is built on our clients trusting us to get them the compensation they deserve.
To successfully make a personal injury claim, you must satisfy the court’s strict evidentiary and burden-of-proof requirements.
We’ll collect medical records, accident reports, and witness testimonies to support your case. We can also refer you to specialists and experts to help you get the medical care you need, including advising on how to pay or postpone treatment payment while you wait for a settlement.
Throughout the pre-trial stage, our accident attorneys will file motions to the court to act or force someone to act as needed. We’ll draft, interpret, and respond to motions, which play a vital role in determining your case’s outcome.
Insurance companies often try to lowball injured parties to maximize profits and avoid massive payouts.
Hiring the best personal injury lawyers in San Antonio shows insurance companies you are serious about seeking appropriate and fair compensation.
We’ll work to negotiate a fair settlement and coach you on whether you should accept or reject an offer.
If your case goes to trial, we’ll present the facts and evidence to secure you a successful outcome. We do not get paid unless we win your case, so you can be assured we will fight to get you a favorable result.
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.
A personal injury case rests on the ability to prove that 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 and looking at legal precedents that are challenging to interpret. That’s why you should always consult an attorney to determine if you have a case.
Typically, the earlier you contact a personal injury lawyer in San Antonio to handle your case, the better. There are sometimes strategic reasons for filing a lawsuit earlier, but the biggest advantage of filing early is that it’s more likely the statute of limitations hasn’t yet expired.
In Texas, you usually have two years from the date of your accident to file a personal injury claim, but there are exceptions. If you wait too long, you waive your ability to bring a lawsuit and recover compensation for your incurred damages.
Our San Antonio personal injury lawyers can help secure financial compensation for a range of damages, including:
To receive compensation for your injuries, you must be able to show 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.”
Comparative negligence divides the blame for an accident by assigning a proportionate share of responsibility. In Texas, as long as you are less than 51% at fault for your accident, you could still recover compensation. 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.
If you or multiple individuals contributed to an accident in San Antonio, you should contact our personal injury lawyers for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your case.
The length of a case can vary depending on many factors, including if 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 legal counsel may advise rejecting a poor settlement if they are confident they can secure you a much bigger payout by taking the case to court. 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.
Every personal injury case is unique, so it’s difficult to offer a precise figure. The best way to get an accurate estimate of how much you might recover is to contact a personal injury lawyer. We offer a free consultation, during which we’ll look at the details of your case and explore the damages you could recover.
Patino Law Firm operates on a contingency fee basis. This means we take on personal injury cases at no initial charge and instead receive a percentage of any settlement or judgment obtained. This allows you to benefit from the knowledge and expertise of our attorneys without worrying about how you can afford it. In many cases, people who hire a personal injury lawyer receive much higher payouts than those who DIY their claims — even after paying legal fees.
Every personal injury attorney operates differently. Some charge up-front fees, while others only charge if they win your case. At our law office, we operate on a contingency fee basis. This means we take on your case at no initial charge and instead receive a percentage of any settlement or judgment obtained. This allows you to benefit from the knowledge and expertise of our attorneys without worrying about how you can afford it. In many cases, people who hire accident attorneys receive much higher payouts than those who DIY their claims — even after paying legal fees.
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. Unlike in criminal cases, where the legal standard is “beyond a reasonable doubt”, you need only prove the burden “by a preponderance of the evidence” — or more likely than not — in a personal injury case. This makes the burden much easier to prove, but that doesn’t guarantee a successful case, and you still need sufficient evidence.
To win your case, you need to show:
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 that it may result in harm to others. Common examples of reckless behavior are speeding or driving while intoxicated. Negligence means acting carelessly or without thought for how their actions could impact another person. A negligent act may be something as simple as failing to check blind spots or following another vehicle too closely.
No two personal injury lawsuits are the same. Therefore, the exact claims process your case will follow will depend on several factors, including how willing the insurance company is to make a fair offer, what you’re willing to accept, the strength of your legal representation, and whether you have a strong case.
The case will always begin with notifying the other party of your intent to claim compensation, filing the relevant forms, and gathering evidence to support your claim. Sometimes, an investigation will be the first step to determine the best party to claim from, especially if multiple people are liable or it’s unclear who caused your accident. You must also calculate your damages, such as your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and emotional distress. Then, negotiations with the responsible party’s insurance company can begin. This will end in one of two ways: either the insurance company makes an acceptable offer that you accept, or you decide to take your chances at trial. Only a tiny percentage of cases go to court, as it’s a risk for everyone involved and can be time-consuming and costly.
If you decide to go to trial, the legal process begins again. It starts with discovery — or gathering evidence. Items discovered during this phase — such as medical records, police reports, and witness statements — are shared with the other party.
Before your case goes before a judge, negotiations will also happen again, sometimes with the help of a third-party mediator. Most claims settle at this stage, preventing the need to go to trial. However, in the rare case you still want to proceed to trial, your legal representation will present your case to a judge and jury, aiming to secure you a liable verdict and a court order for the compensation you deserve. Your attorney will explain your legal options and help you make the right choice for you.
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.
Typically, the earlier you contact a personal injury lawyer in San Antonio to handle your case, the better. There are sometimes strategic reasons for filing a lawsuit earlier, but the biggest advantage of filing early is that it’s more likely the statute of limitations hasn’t yet expired.
In Texas, you usually have two years from the date of your accident to file a personal injury claim, but there are exceptions. If you wait too long, you waive your ability to bring a lawsuit and recover compensation for your incurred damages.
Were you injured by a negligent person, company, or government entity in San Antonio?
Your San Antonio Law Ninja can help.
We will start with a free consultation and case evaluation to help you determine your best path forward. If we feel you have a good legal claim and you decide we’re the best San Antonio personal injury lawyers for you, we’ll start investigating your case right away and work to secure you the best settlement or judgment allowed by the law.
We promise you’ll never pay a fee unless we win.
Call us today at 855-LAW-NINJA or write to us through our confidential contact page.
You can reach us 24/7.
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