Figuring out who is at fault in a personal injury case can be very complicated, especially in Texas. The law allows all defendants in a case to share financial responsibility for damages. When you meet with a lawyer, they can review the details of your case and help identify the responsible parties so they can be held accountable.
In this post, we explain what “responsible party” means in a personal injury lawsuit that involves multiple defendants and joint liability.
Texas’s Modified Comparative Negligence Law Lets You Seek Compensation From Multiple Parties
As a plaintiff, you can seek damages from other parties under Texas law as long as you are 50% or less at fault.
During insurance talks, your lawyer and the insurance company may disagree on who is mostly to blame. A court will decide fault based on the evidence. This lets you sue multiple defendants to recover all the compensation you are owed.
Here are some potential situations involving multiple at-fault parties:
- You’re waiting to turn left at an intersection when a car rear-ends the one behind you, pushing it into your vehicle.
- You’re hit head-on on a 2-lane street by a driver who was distracted by their cell phone and whose brakes failed due to faulty repairs.
- You’re hurt in a bank robbery by the assailants who took advantage of lax building security.
In these cases, you may share some blame, but other parties also caused your injuries. Therefore, you can gather evidence showing their fault and ask for the proper damages.
As a plaintiff, you can seek damages from other parties under Texas law as long as you are 50% or less at fault.
How Texas Approaches Joint and Several Liability
Let’s clarify the types of liability applicable in Texas:
- Proportionate responsibility: Each party pays only for the part of the damages they caused, unless the plaintiff is more than 50% at fault.
- Joint liability: Each defendant may be liable for 100% of the damages, under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 33.003.
- Several liability: Each defendant is only liable for their assigned percentage of fault.
In most civil cases, such as car accident claims, proportionate responsibility determines liability. However, if one defendant is found 51% or more to blame for your injuries, they can be held liable for 100% of your losses. The rule also applies if someone intentionally hurt you or committed certain crimes while causing your injuries, under Texas law § 33.013(2).
Determining the Responsible Party
Although the person who hurt you is also the responsible party, this isn’t always true. In legal terms, the responsible party is the one financially liable for paying damages to the plaintiff. Under Texas law § 33.011(6), a responsible third party is anyone said to have caused or helped cause the harm for which damages are being claimed.
If a person hurt you by accident or on purpose, you can make them responsible. If they caused a car crash, their insurance usually pays. Your lawyer may recommend suing the insurance company to get full compensation.
With multiple defendants, the same idea applies. Check all the evidence and make sure you are not mostly at fault, or you could lose your right to compensation under Texas law.
Check all the evidence and make sure you are not mostly at fault, or you could lose your right to compensation under Texas law.
Assigning Fault and Financial Responsibility with Multiple Defendants Is Complex
Suppose you are the plaintiff in a head-on car crash. The other driver was distracted, and their brakes failed because of bad repairs. If you were also distracted by looking at GPS directions, you might share some blame—say 20%. During negotiations, your lawyer argues for 15% fault on your side, with 40% going to the driver and 45% to the repair shop.
If your total claim is $200,000, your 15% fault reduces it to $170,000. The other driver’s insurance should pay $68,000, and the repair shop $102,000. But Texas auto insurance requires minimum coverage: $30,000 for bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage, so the driver’s insurance pays only $55,000. That leaves $13,000 unpaid.
Your lawyer may recommend suing the driver’s insurance company to recover the full amount. They may also need to negotiate or go to court with the repair shop’s insurer. If the driver has enough assets, your attorney might include them as a defendant to recover the remaining damages.
Going to Trial Can Dramatically Change How Much Compensation You Receive
Filing your lawsuit may make insurance companies offer more money, because a trial takes a lot of time and costs a lot for everyone. Another major concern with a lawsuit is that the judge may assign fault differently at trial.
For example, using a handheld device is illegal in Texas, but the judge may say your GPS distraction is 25% of the fault. This reduces what the defendants must pay and may leave you with out-of-pocket costs for medical bills, lost wages, and your pain and suffering.
On the other hand, a trial can benefit you if the jury is sympathetic to your side. With carefully prepared evidence, your lawyer can show the jury the harm caused by careless parties, especially if your injuries are life-changing. Defendants and their lawyers may also be willing to negotiate if it looks like your case is strong.
If you have a difficult personal injury case with multiple defendants and want to identify the responsible party, contact Liggett Law Group today to schedule a free consultation.