Personal Injury Categories

What Are the Three Types of Personal Injury Cases in Texas?

If you’ve been injured due to another party’s negligent behavior, you may have merit in pursuing legal action against that party through a personal injury lawsuit.

In Texas, there are three types of personal injury categories in which these types of civil suits exist: negligence, strict liability, and intentional torts. While each instance is a form of negligence, they each contain particular characteristics that are tied to the circumstances of the accident. Consequently, pursuing justice in each category requires different legal options based on the type of personal injury case being pursued.

Negligence in a Houston Personal Injury Case

The most common category of a personal injury case are those involving negligence, which can be described as carelessness or recklessness. Texas law requires that all Texans owe each other a legal duty for public safety. Once that duty is violated, an act of negligence has likely occurred. For example, auto accidents that result in injury to a victim will be said to have been caused by negligent behavior. Such negligent behavior can occur in a wide number of ways, from a liable driver texting, or being somehow distracted while driving. Grossly negligent behavior is seen in instances where a liable party knew that the likelihood of an accident causing injury was great. For instances, drunk drivers would likely be accused of gross negligence since they should have been aware, before a drunk driving wreck, that choosing to drink and drive would pose a serious safety risk to both themselves and other drivers on the road. Proving negligence is a foundational aspect of any personal injury lawsuit in Houston or elsewhere in Texas.

Strict Liability in a Houston Personal Injury Case

Strict liability is said to have occurred when a liable party is automatically held responsible for an accident regardless of culpability for the accident. This often occurs in connection to product liability cases in which the manufacturer of a product provides certain legal duties to their customers in the act of creating or selling a product to them. In other words, if a defective product leads to a person suffering an injury, the manufacturer is, by default, liable by association. For example, if faulty brakes cause an auto accident resulting in injury, the part manufacturer would be held liable for the accident, regardless of the fact that the company was not directly involved at the accident site. Essentially, product manufacturers owe their customers certain legal rights to provide for their safety when using their products.

Intentional Torts in a Houston Personal Injury Case

The legal term “tort” refers to a wrongful act that is exacted on a victim in which the defendant violates the legal duty they owe to a plaintiff. An intentional tort is a deliberate act to violate that legal duty. For example, an intentional tort can occur in instances of assault. Civil action can be pursued against a party guilty of an intentional tort against a victim, regardless of whether or not criminal charges are pressed against the liable party. It should also be noted that many insurance policies do not cover instances of intentional torts. In other words, if you’re invited to a friend’s home and suffer an injury, the friend’s homeowners’ insurance policy may be litigated against in order to receive fair compensation for your injury. However, if the injury was caused by an intentional act by the homeowner, the insurance company may not cover such a situation.

Understanding the 3 types of personal injury cases can be helpful if you’re considering seeking legal action against a negligent party. Our Houston personal injury law firm can assist you in seeking such action. We will ensure that your case is properly pursued based on the correct type of negligence displayed so that you can stand to receive fair compensation for your injury.