Austin Serious and Catastrophic Injury Attorneys

Austin’s Lawyers for You When Life-Altering Injuries Happen

A severe accident in Austin can instantly result in catastrophic, life-altering injuries, leaving you and your family facing medical and financial uncertainty. These claims demand specific legal experience to secure compensation for lifetime care. 

At Lee, Gober & Reyna, our dedicated Austin serious and catastrophic injury attorneys have the experience and resources to fight for your future. Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation to protect your rights.

How Much Compensation Can I Get If I Was Seriously Hurt in Austin?

The compensation available after a serious injury in Austin depends entirely on the verifiable damages you incurred. Because Texas uses a fault-based system, your total recovery is directly tied to proving the other party’s negligence and quantifying your losses over a lifetime. 

There is no predetermined average, but high-value settlements often reach seven figures due to the need for continuous care in cases involving serious and catastrophic injuries.

Key Factors Determining the Value of Your Injury Case

Your claim’s value is maximized by demonstrating the severity and permanence of your condition, especially when contrasted with the available insurance coverage.

• Injury Severity: Claims involving permanent impairment (TBI, paralysis, or amputation) are valued highest, requiring future life-care costs.
• Proof of Fault: Clear evidence that the other party was 100% at fault ensures no reduction occurs under Texas’s comparative negligence rules.
• Available Insurance: The maximum recovery is often capped by the defendant’s liability policy limits, making it important to identify all responsible parties and their insurance policies.

Types of Recoverable Damages

Compensation is divided into two primary categories:

• Economic Damages: Including past and future medical expenses, lost wages, diminished earning capacity, property damage, and other out-of-pocket expenses.
• Non-Economic Damages: Including pain and suffering, emotional distress, disfigurement, and loss of enjoyment of life. 

In some cases, punitive damages may be available. They target the defendant as a punishment instead of compensating the survivor for actual losses. Punitive damages are only available in cases of gross negligence or intentional wrongdoing. 

Do I Need a Personal Injury Lawyer After a Serious Injury Accident in Austin?

When injuries are serious or catastrophic, the financial stakes for both the victim and the insurance company are immense. Hiring a lawyer is not just beneficial—it is essential for protecting your future.

Protecting Your Financial Future

The costs associated with a serious injury extend far beyond initial medical bills to include lifetime care, lost earning capacity, and home modifications. Insurance companies use every tactic to avoid paying these high-value claims. 

An experienced Austin serious injury attorney works with financial and medical experts to accurately project these needs and demand maximum compensation.

Countering Aggressive Defense

Following a catastrophic injury, insurers immediately deploy aggressive legal teams who seek to shift blame to the survivor. An experienced serious injury law firm in Terrell and Austin like Lee, Gober & Reyna stands ready to counter this defense. 

We secure critical evidence, and ensure your rights are protected throughout the complex and high-stakes litigation process.

Lee, Gober & Reyna Is Austin’s Dedicated Serious Injury Law Firm

When dealing with severe and catastrophic injuries, you need a firm that treats your case not just as a legal file, but as a fight for your entire future. Lee, Gober & Reyna is dedicated to ensuring victims in Austin receive the focused representation necessary for major claims.

Our experience goes beyond standard auto accident claims. We understand the complex medical and economic calculations required to value life-altering losses, working closely with specialists to project long-term care costs. 

Our dedication to victims enables us to defeat the aggressive defense tactics employed by corporate insurance carriers who seek to avoid multi-million dollar payouts. We are prepared to take your fight to the courtroom to secure the financial stability your recovery demands.

• Lifetime Care Valuation: We utilize medical and economic experts to calculate the cost of lifetime care, ensuring future needs are fully covered.
• Focus on Catastrophic Injuries: We understand the nature of significant injury cases, and we know how to get the maximum amount of compensation possible.
• Experienced Trial Lawyers: We prepare every case for trial, which forces insurance companies to negotiate and offer maximum settlements.
• Personalized Advocacy: We combat insurer bias and shifting blame tactics with detailed investigations and client-centered strategies.

What Are Serious and Catastrophic Injuries in Texas?

In Texas personal injury law, the terms “serious” and “catastrophic” are used to define injuries that cause long-term disability, permanent impairment, or disfigurement. These injuries fundamentally alter a person’s ability to work, live independently, or enjoy life. 

Serious and catastrophic injuries are distinguished from minor injuries by their severity and the need for ongoing, expensive medical care.

Examples of Serious and Catastrophic Injuries Suffered by Victims in Austin

Lee, Gober & Reyna focuses on securing compensation that fully covers the ongoing needs of people who have suffered serious and catastrophic injuries, such as:

• Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs): Caused by severe jolts or direct impacts, ranging from severe concussions with lasting cognitive deficits to permanent impairment of memory, speech, and motor functions.
• Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI): Damage to the vertebrae or spinal cord resulting in partial or total paralysis, including paraplegia (loss of function in the lower body) or quadriplegia (loss of function in all four limbs).
• Amputation: The traumatic loss of a limb or extremity, demanding extensive surgery, prosthetic fittings, and vocational retraining.
• Burn Injuries: Third- and fourth-degree burns, often sustained in vehicle fires or chemical spills, requiring multiple skin graft surgeries and leading to permanent disfigurement and chronic pain.
• Internal Organ Damage: Trauma resulting in internal bleeding, ruptured organs (spleen, liver, lungs), requiring emergency surgery and causing long-term functional impairment.
• Permanent Disfigurement: Severe facial or bodily scarring and visible impairments that lead to psychological trauma, anxiety, and depression.
• Complex or Compound Fractures: Broken bones that shatter or pierce the skin, frequently leading to nerve damage and requiring complex orthopedic hardware.
• Electrical Injuries and Electrocution: Injuries caused by high-voltage contact, often resulting in severe internal organ damage, cardiac arrest, nerve pathway destruction, and deep tissue burns (entry and exit wounds).

Common Causes of Serious and Catastrophic Injuries in Austin

Catastrophic injuries are overwhelmingly the result of someone else’s negligence. Identifying the negligent act is the first step in building a successful claim for lifetime compensation.

High-Impact Motor Vehicle Collisions

The most frequent cause of catastrophic injury involves collisions on major Austin roadways like I-35, MoPac, and US 183.

• Commercial Truck Accidents: The massive weight disparity between an 18-wheeler and a passenger car often results in severe injuries. Negligence here typically involves truck driver fatigue (HOS violations) or corporate pressure leading to speeding.
• DUI/DWI Crashes: Accidents caused by impaired drivers frequently involve excessive speed and reckless disregard for safety, leading to head-on or high-speed T-bone collisions.
• Bicycle, Motorcycle, and Pedestrian Accidents: These victims lack any external protection, leaving them completely vulnerable. The injuries are often directly caused by a driver’s failure to yield or distracted driving.

Premises and Workplace Hazards

Catastrophic injuries can also result from dangerous conditions on property or construction sites.

• Falls from Heights: Common at construction sites due to safety violations (lack of guardrails or proper scaffolding), leading to severe spinal and head injuries.
• Negligent Security/Maintenance: Property owners who fail to maintain safe premises, resulting in swimming pool accidents, severe burns from faulty equipment, or dangerous structural failures.