Personal Injury Lawyer in Rio Grande Valley - Law Office of Richard Gonzales, P.C.

Have you been hurt in a car accident? Injured by an unsafe product? Slipped and fallen on someone else’s property? Regardless of the specific cause of your injury, if someone else’s careless, reckless, or intentionally harmful behavior is to blame, that person could owe you compensation. Rio Grande Valley personal injury attorney Richard Gonzales wants to help you demand it.

Richard understands the many ways an accident can impact someone’s life. As The People’s Attorney for the Rio Grande Valley, he’s dedicated his career to helping people in similar positions. Richard and his team have extensive experience with personal injury law and can pursue the money you deserve for your physical, emotional, and financial losses. We are prepared to take care of all the legal work for you, and we won’t charge you any upfront fee for our services. Instead, we only get paid if we win.

Ready to demand justice? Then call the Law Office of Richard Gonzales, P.C., today or visit our contact page for a free case review with a Rio Grande Valley personal injury lawyer.

What Are the More Common Injuries in a Personal Injury Case?

As a personal injury attorney, Richard has seen how accidents in the Rio Grande Valley frequently leave innocent people with severe injuries, such as:

External head injuries
Traumatic brain injuries
Spinal cord injuries, including partial or complete paralysis
Back injuries
Neck injuries
Severe burns
Scarring and disfigurement
Severed, crushed, or amputated limbs

Nerve damage
Broken bones
Soft-tissue injuries
Internal bleeding
Injuries to internal organs
Puncture wounds and lacerations
Emotional distress

What Are the Personal Injury Laws in Texas?

According to Texas law, you must file a personal injury lawsuit within two years of when the injury occurred, though there are some exceptions to this rule. For example, if someone sustains an injury before age 18, the two-year countdown starts on their 18th birthday, provided their family did not already seek compensation on their behalf. Similarly, plaintiffs with mental disabilities have two years from when the courts deem them mentally competent to file a lawsuit. Finally, you might have additional time to file a lawsuit if you did not immediately discover your injury when it first occurred, such as in the case of side effects caused by dangerous drugs.

Another key personal injury law in Texas concerns the legal concept of comparative negligence. State law allows you to recover compensation from other parties at fault for your injuries as long as you are not more than 50 percent to blame for them yourself. The compensation you recover will decrease in proportion to your share of fault, though. That’s why it’s critical that you work with an experienced Rio Grande Valley personal injury attorney who knows how to place the blame squarely on the person who hurt you.

What Types of Personal Injury Cases Does Richard Gonzales Handle?

Richard and his associates are prepared to handle a wide variety of personal injury cases, including those that stem from:

Workplace Hazards and Jobsite Injuries

You could be entitled to sue for a workplace accident if your employer does not carry workers’ compensation insurance; if you work as a contractor; or if a third party outside your chain of employment is to blame.

Offshore Oil Field and Oil Rig Accidents

Negligent supervisors, faulty equipment, and other hazards at oil fields can lead to severe burns and other catastrophic injuries.

Slip-and-Falls

Wet floors, broken sidewalks and handrails, poorly maintained parking lots, and other hazards can all cause lawful visitors to fall on someone else’s property. Slip-and-fall accidents frequently cause severe injuries like broken bones, nerve damage, traumatic brain injuries, and paralysis.

Property Hazards/Premises Liability

Property owners and their employees are legally responsible for protecting visitors from hazards on their grounds, especially if the visitor is a potential customer. Unfortunately, not all property owners take this duty seriously, leaving visitors to suffer from their negligence.

Mass Torts

A mass tort allows many different injured parties to individually sue a common defendant, such as a large corporation, over a similar harmful act. Many mass torts involve defective products made by companies that don’t care about safety or didn’t study the product long enough to determine if it’s safe for human use.

Truck Accidents

When commercial truck drivers, trucking companies, or maintenance workers don’t take safety seriously, other road users frequently suffer as a result. Truck crashes tend to cause more severe injuries than other traffic accidents because of how big and heavy semi-trucks are.

Motorcycle Accidents

Motorcycle riders frequently suffer severe injuries because other drivers do not exercise proper caution around them. However, this lack of awareness is no excuse for a crash, and we can help you pursue fair compensation from the careless driver.

Car Accidents

Every year, thousands of Texans die or suffer severe injuries from motor vehicle accidents and car wrecks. If a negligent driver or other party was to blame for the accident that caused you severe injuries, you have the right to compensation from them.

Construction Injuries

Open pits, heavy industrial equipment, construction vehicles, and other hazards at construction sites frequently lead to severe injuries. Depending on the circumstances, the property owner, the site manager, or subcontractors on the site might be responsible.

Catastrophic Injuries

Some accidents lead to long-term or permanent injuries that can dramatically impact the victim’s life. These victims deserve compensation not just for their past and present losses but also for the future that has been taken from them.

Crane Accidents

Mechanical defects and operator error can cause severe injuries if they cause a crane to malfunction, collapse, or strike someone in the vicinity.

Wrongful Death

When someone dies in an accident caused by another party’s harmful act, the deceased’s surviving family can pursue a personal injury claim against that party.

Fires and Explosions

Fires or explosions at residential or commercial properties can cause catastrophic injuries and are often the result of negligent property owners or employees.

Pharmaceutical Liability

Prescription drugs can work medical miracles, but they can also cause intense harm if the manufacturer doesn’t properly study the drug or tries to hide dangerous side effects.

Refinery Explosions

When petroleum companies don’t properly design their refining facilities or adequately train and supervise their workers, the result can be a devastating refinery explosion for which they should be held responsible.

Spinal Cord Injuries

Car accidents, physical assaults, and other traumatic events can cause severe damage to a victim’s spine. This can leave them paralyzed or with other serious health issues for which they deserve maximum compensation.

Human Trafficking Cases

Sadly, the U.S.-Mexico border is the site of considerable human trafficking. While human trafficking is a crime against society, it is also a wrong committed against ordinary individuals. Those who have been victims of personal injury because of human trafficking have the right to compensation.

Traumatic Brain Injuries

Car accidents and slip-and-falls are two of the most common causes of traumatic brain injuries. If someone else is to blame for you or your loved one’s TBI, they should have to pay for the consequences.

Guardrail Accidents

A guardrail that the government hasn’t properly maintained can’t do its job. In certain circumstances, it can even exacerbate the severity of a motor vehicle or trucking accident. Holding government agencies liable for a crash is often challenging, but an experienced personal injury lawyer can help you demand the compensation you deserve.

Drunk Driving Accidents (Dram Shop)

Drunk driving crashes are entirely preventable and the product of someone’s reckless indifference to others, which makes them even more tragic when they occur. Our personal injury attorneys know what it takes to hold a drunk driver and their enablers accountable for your injuries.

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What Kinds of Compensation Can I Obtain in a Personal Injury Claim?

A personal injury claim allows you to recover compensation for many losses, including money for:

Medical bills related to the accident
Lost wages while you heal from your injuries
Lost future income due to an injury or disability
Physical pain

Emotional distress
Reduced quality of life due to an injury or disability
Damaged personal property

How Long Do I Have to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Texas?

All personal injury claims in Texas are subject to a statute of limitations. In most cases, you must file a lawsuit two years after you sustained the injury, or the courts will automatically dismiss your case. Talk to a Rio Grande Valley personal injury attorney for more information on how long you have to file a lawsuit.

How Long Does a Typical Personal Injury Case Last?

Every personal injury case is different, so it is hard to say how long a particular one might last. It can take time to gather the necessary evidence and work through settlement negotiations with the liable party and their insurance provider.

Many personal injury cases conclude within a few months. However, if a defendant won’t admit to causing your injuries or negotiate for a settlement in good faith, you may need to take your case to court, which will make the case take much longer. Personal injury lawsuits that eventually go to trial can take a year or longer to resolve. No matter how long your case takes, patience is the key to recovering maximum compensation for your injuries.

How a Personal Injury Lawyer in the Rio Grande Valley Can Help with Your Case

Working with an experienced Rio Grande Valley personal injury attorney is critical to pursuing the full compensation you deserve. Richard Gonzales can help you by:

Gathering evidence to support your case
Filing paperwork for an insurance claim or lawsuit
Working with expert witnesses to substantiate your claim

Dealing with the insurance companies and handling settlement negotiations
Preparing your case for trial if the insurers will not negotiate in good faith

Contact Rio Grande Valley Personal Injury Attorney Richard Gonzales Today

At the Law Office of Richard Gonzales, P.C., we are committed to helping injured people in the Rio Grande Valley pursue the compensation they need from those who hurt them. We firmly believe that you should not pay the price of someone else’s bad behavior, and we want to get you the money you need for your medical bills, property damage, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Most importantly, Richard will treat you like family — because to him, you are.

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