Our attorneys have more than 30 years of handling personal injury matters.
We put our clients first, and are a locally owned and family run firm in Austin.
From beginning to end, we work as team with you to achieve a favorable outcome.
Bonilla Law Firm PLLC is a top rated, Austin based personal injury law firm, focused on helping victims of accidents secure justice and compensation for their injuries. Our team of trial and accident attorneys have more than thirty years of combined experience, fighting on behalf of victims in the state of Texas. We work in close collaboration to protect the rights of accident victims from beginning to end and to achieve a favorable outcome. If you were injured due to another’s negligence, contact Bonilla Law Firm PLLC today for a free consultation. Our legal representation is dedicated to helping you recover.
Our legal team of Austin personal injury lawyers was founded on the principle of providing our clients and our community with effective legal services through experience, integrity, and results.
If you have serious injuries, you need experienced lawyers, you need the Bonilla Law Firm.
Personal injury is a legal term that is used to describe a wide array of injuries that can impact the body, emotions and mind of an injured victim. A personal injury case can help protect victims that have suffered damages from an injury.
Based on the unique nature of the injury suffered, different damages are available to help compensate a victim for the physical and emotional harm suffered in an accident. Every personal injury case includes liability and damages. If the defendant in a personal injury case is found to be at fault for liability and damages, the justice system can award compensation to a plaintiff for the losses suffered.
If you have been injured in an accident or sustained major property damage, it is important to engage legal services shortly thereafter.
Insurance companies have experts and legal resources that are out to protect their own interests. An Austin personal injury attorney will handle all discussions with an insurance company and carriers and represent you in negotiations. This will ensure that your medical bills and property damage claim to your vehicle are paid in a timely manner. Frequently, insurers will attempt to mitigate payments by offering low settlement offers that do not accurately take into account the full amount of damages that have occurred. With the assistance of experienced personal injury attorneys, an injury victim can feel confident that their legal representation is fighting for maximum compensation to help restore your well-being.
An experienced lawyer will be knowledgeable of the personal injury laws in Texas, qualifying them to find essential medical experts. Experts who can not only provide you with the best possible treatment for your injuries but if necessary can later testify on your behalf during trial regarding the extent of your injuries and their effect on your future.
The team of investigative staff that comes with hiring an attorney will also prove beneficial to your personal injury claim, especially during settlement negotiations or trial. Your lawyer will use the information they discover from recreating the auto accident, or scene of the injury, to examining the facts surrounding your case in order to prove liability and pursue the maximum amount of compensation that you deserve.
Compensatory damages are awarded to plaintiffs to help compensate for the damages caused from an injury or injuries. In order for an accident victim to recover compensatory damages, the plaintiff must be able to prove that the loss occurred and that the defendant caused these financial damages. A few common examples of compensatory damages include:
Punitive damages are different from compensatory damages in how these damages are intended to punish the defendant. These types of damages are designed to help deter the defendant from acting in the same reckless manner in the future. Punitive damages are awarded when the court has determined that compensatory damages are inadequate in compensating the plaintiff for their physical suffering and emotional impact.
Our legal team offers experienced Austin personal injury attorneys to anyone searching to recover compensation lost as a result of negligence and we strive to hold negligent parties accountable for damaging misconduct. We have experience in, and have chosen to focus on, the following specific areas of the law to better serve our injured clients:
The statute of limitations to file a lawsuit in the state of Texas for personal injury cases is two years from the date of the injury. After the specified amount of time has passed, more than likely the civil court system will refuse to hear your case and you will not be able to seek compensation.
Dependent on the facts and events surrounding each unique injury case, the injuries sustained could potentially impact permanently impact victims. Individuals that have suffered serious personal injuries may have impairments and disabilities that impact their mobility for the rest of their lives.
Our attorneys understand the severities that injured victims have to adapt to after an accident. Some of the damages available for victims include medical expenses, property damage, pain and suffering and loss of earning capacity. We fight for the appropriate and necessary compensation for the damages already suffered, and the damages that victims can suffer in the future.
The vast majority of personal injury cases in Austin are going to be resolved through settlements with insurance carriers before a personal injury lawsuit is even filed. Think about one of the most common types of personal injury claims that arise – vehicle accidents. In these situations, individuals typically file a claim against the at-fault driver’s insurance carrier. Even though insurance carriers may put up some resistance towards paying total compensation, they usually end up making a settlement in the end.
Most other types of injury claims are also resolved through some type of insurance carrier. Property owners have insurance that they carry to handle incidents like slip and fall accidents. Homeowners carry insurance to cover accidents that happen at private residences.
However, there are many situations where personal injury lawsuits do become necessary. Even when this occurs, the likelihood of a case going all the way to trial is low. When a lawsuit gets filed, the case enters the discovery phase, and attorneys for both sides will continue negotiations. There is a good chance that a settlement will be reached or that the case will be dropped before it goes all the way to a jury trial.
Even though most injury cases are settled out of court, we do not want to dampen the importance of juries in some situations. There are certainly times when it is necessary for a case to be heard by a jury in order for an injury victim to recover the compensation they are entitled to.
Every state in the United States has their own unique requirements regarding injuries suffered from an accident. In the State of Texas, Texas is a “comparative fault” state. Meaning that Texas operates under a tort liability system.
Simply put, the at fault individual’s insurance carrier will be responsible for paying for the claim. In the event an individual involved in an accident suffers a personal injury, that injured victim can turn to the responsible party’s insurance carrier to pay for the damages.
Texas’ at-fault insurance laws permits individuals to file a claim with the at-fault party’s insurance carrier, rather than their own insurance carrier. In the event that the other party does not have adequate coverage required to cover the damages caused, the injured party can file suit against the at-fault party to recover the necessary compensation for the injuries sustained.
Texas’ at-fault system allows victims to hold individuals accountable for causing an accident. This allows the victim to recover damages from the responsible party.
One of the most common questions that get asked when a personal injury claim is started is, “What happens if I was partially at fault for the incident?”
Many people are falsely led to believe that they will not be able to recover any compensation if they played a role in causing their own injury. That is simply not true. States across the country have adopted various forms of modified comparative negligence laws to account for what happens if a person is partially responsible for causing the incident that led to their injury. Texas does follow a modified comparative negligence law with a 51% bar.
What this means is that a person can recover compensation so long as they are not 51% or more to blame for the incident. However, the total amount of compensation a person does receive will be reduced based on their percentage of fault.
For example, suppose a person is rear-ended at a stoplight and sustains $10,000 worth of property damage and minor medical bills. In general, a rear-end driver will be found to be at fault and would have to pay $10,000 in compensation to the victim. However, suppose it is discovered that two of the three brake lights of the injury victim were not functioning, and the other brake light was dim. In this situation, it could be possible to hold the victim partially responsible. Suppose it is determined that the crash victim was 40% at fault. In this scenario, they would receive $6,000 instead of the full $10,000 to account for their percentage of fault.
Our Austin injury attorneys have three plus decades of combined experience fighting for victims of personal injury. Our law firm has served the city of Austin and Central Texas, and we strive to recoup maximum compensation for all of our clients. A serious injury to a person can have short-term and long term repercussions that involve, loss of income, loss of consortium and loss of quality of life. To discuss the unique circumstances of your personal injury case, please contact us via our online contact form.
Net to client: $1,338,262.75
Net to client: $1,397,063.18
Net to client: $626,838.46
Net to client: $489,694.65
Net to client: $569,138.30
Net to client: $503,251.21
Net to client: $392,256.40
Brad and his team did a great job in helping me navigate the claims process. I was in a rental vehicle within hours of my accident and Bonilla stayed in constant contact with me, giving me important updates and information. My case was successfully settled within 6 months. I highly recommend the Bonilla Law Firm.