5 Reasons Why a Personal Injury Lawyer Will Not Take Your Case

When injured by another person or an entity’s negligence, you might be eligible to seek compensation for your losses. One key factor required for maximizing compensation,  ensuring your rights are protected, and your interests adequately represented is having a personal injury lawyer. While attorneys are often eager and willing to help victims hold at-fault parties accountable, there are instances where they will have no choice but to reject a case.

Having a lawyer reject your case might be disappointing and off-putting. To help you understand why this is likely to happen, below we discuss five reasons why a personal injury lawyer will not take your case.

These reasons are only a guide and will not apply to every case. Schedule a free initial consultation today to have your case examined by a personal injury attorney and get advice based on its unique facts. You can contact Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law now at (713) 973-8888 or toll-free 1 (800) 444-5000 for a free case review if you were injured and wondering if you are eligible for compensation.

Why Contact Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law?

At Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law, our lawyers have dedicated their careers to helping victims seek justice and holding the responsible parties accountable. We will examine the strengths and weaknesses of your case and will advise you on which next steps are in your best interest.

Sometimes this can mean not pursuing legal action but if you have a strong case with adequate evidence to prove the other party’s liability, we can help you take action. We have a successful track record and have secured favorable settlements and verdicts for our clients for over 35 years. We will always prioritize what’s best for you and guide you to make decisions that benefit your case.

If you need a reliable law firm that is honest, ethical, and dedicated, contact us. We do not charge upfront fees and you only have to pay us when you secure a favorable recovery for your case.

We know the Texas legal system and applicable laws and use this knowledge and our wealth of experience to serve our clients better. 

5 Reasons Why a Personal Injury Lawyer Cannot Help You

The following are reasons why you might experience a personal injury case rejection:

Difficult to Prove Liability

Liability is the bedrock of personal injury cases. Failing to establish liability will affect the claim, and in most cases you’ll be unable to recover compensation. Proving fault means establishing that the at-fault party was negligent and that the negligence caused your injuries. If you cannot show negligence, your case will not stand.

Establishing negligence involves showing that the responsible party . . .

• Owed You a Duty of Care: This involves behaving in a way or taking actions that do not jeopardize your safety and life. For example, property owners under premises liability laws must keep their property in safe conditions free from hazards.
• Breached the Duty of Care: Breaching the duty of care means doing something a reasonable person under the same circumstances would not have done — for example, drinking and driving.
• Caused the Injuries Suffered: Causation must be direct in order to have a valid claim. This means the at-fault party’s actions must have directly caused your accident for them to be liable.
• Led to Damages: Damages refer to your losses from the event caused by negligence. It can be monetary or non-monetary but must be related to the injuries suffered for the responsible party to be accountable for them.

Aside from establishing the elements of negligence, you must also have sufficient evidence to back your claim. The type of personal injury claim determines the proof needed. However, if you cannot establish the elements of negligence and lack the evidence to back them, you might be unable to prove liability.

If proving liability is difficult, it would be challenging to take on your case, as there will be little chance of success. This is why we always advocate for injury victims to gather and preserve evidence and hand it over to a lawyer immediately to keep it from getting damaged.

Our attorneys can help you establish the elements of negligence and investigate to gather the proof needed to support your case.

Elapsed Statute of Limitations

The Texas statute of limitations applies to every civil claim for personal injury. Under it, you normally have two years to file a personal injury lawsuit against the party responsible for your harm. Usually, the time starts counting from the accident date and elapses when the two years run out. Once the time elapses, you could be statute-barred from taking legal action, thereby losing your right to compensation. As a result, lawyers do not accept cases where the statute of limitations has elapsed because the court will not hear the case unless an exception applies. (*Always speak directly to an attorney to learn the exact deadlines that apply to your potential claims.)

Some exceptions include the following:

• Involves a Minor or Someone Legally Disabled: If you were a minor when you suffered an injury or were of “unsound mind,” the statute of limitations will toll till you turn 18 or become mentally healthy
• Is a Wrongful Death Case: If the death date is different from the accident date, the two years will start counting from the day the victim died and not when the incident happened.
• Involves Inherently Undiscoverable Injuries: Your claim will be subject to the discovery rule if your injury qualifies as inherently undiscoverable. This means, the statute of limitation starts counting from when the injury was discovered, not when you sustained it.
• Involves a Defendant Leaving the State: A defendant’s leaving the state will toll the statute of limitations until they return.

Your case might also involve different deadlines if it is against the State of Texas, is filed under maritime law, involves first-party automobile insurance, or is a claim for asbestos and silica-related injuries. However, it is always best to commence your claim on time to avoid expiration of the statute of limitations and trying to determine if you meet any of the above criteria.

Extremely Minor Injury

While we encourage victims to seek compensation for all injuries, there are instances where it is not worth it to file a claim. If the minor injury is not significant and filing a claim will not lead to substantial compensation, it might be rejected. This is because the desired end result for every case is maximum compensation.

The amount should be enough to cover your economic and non-economic damages and pay your lawyer’s fees. However, if the minor injury is insignificant, it means the compensation will be very little and there will be no chance for non-economic damages. Also, the amount recovered might not be enough to pay your attorney’s fees.

For these reasons, most attorneys will turn down a minor injury case that has little financial prospect. At the end of the day, lawyers want to get adequate payment for the time and resources they invest in a case, and they want to get you a recovery that is worthwhile, given the stress you will experience through the life of a claim – often two years or even considerably longer.

If you think your injury might be too minor to qualify for a personal injury case, you should still speak with our personal injury lawyer, who may disagree.

Strength and Weakness of the Case

Personal injury case rejection also depends on the strength and weakness of a case. A strong case is one that has all the elements needed to win and secure a fair settlement. On the other hand, a weak case is one without adequate proof needed to establish liability and secure maximum compensation.

If your case is weak, it will likely get rejected as contingency fee lawyers must carefully choose the cases they invest in, as they could end up with nothing. Attorneys spend a lot of time on cases, and since they work on a contingency fee basis, they will use their resources to handle the case until you get compensation and reimburse them for legal expenses and pay their attorney fees.

The only way to avoid personal injury case rejection on this ground is to gather enough evidence to build a strong case and retain the services of a lawyer as soon as possible.

Incompatibility of the Lawyer and Client

Lawyers and clients are not always compatible and do not always agree on the legal strategy to use. If after the initial consultation a lawyer believes that they will not work well with you, they will not take your case. Often, this does not involve money, but the ability to communicate effectively and get along, two factors important to a successful client-attorney relationship.

Do You Think You Have a Valid Personal Injury Claim? Contact Us Now!

It is always wise to consult an attorney if you think you have a valid claim. Our attorneys at Terry Bryant Accident & Injury Law will give you their unbiased legal advice on your case and represent you to the best of their abilities if you have a strong case. Call us now at (713) 973-8888 or toll-free 1 (800) 444-5000 for your free and confidential consultation.