School Bus Accidents in Colleyville
While traffic collisions involving school buses are fairly rare, they do still happen from time to time, and they can lead to serious and even life-threatening injuries to numerous people—many of them children—at once. On top of that, taking effective legal action over an incident like this can be much trickier than you might expect, thanks in large part to some unique rules and restrictions set by state law that apply only to civil lawsuits filed against the local government.
You should not take this as meaning that it is impossible to recover fairly for injuries your child sustained in a school bus accident in Colleyville, or that you should hesitate at all to enforce their and your rights in the wake of such an incident. That said, seeking help from a seasoned bus accident lawyer can be crucial not just to getting the best possible outcome from a case like this, but often to getting any compensation at all. Our tenacious team is here to help.
Can Parents and Guardians Sue on Their Kid’s Behalf?
Under Texas state law, children under the age of 18 cannot represent themselves in court, which means they cannot file suit over injuries they suffer due to an adult’s reckless or careless behavior until they have turned 18. In practice, this generally means that the person who must act on behalf of someone injured in a school bus accident in Colleyville is the parent or guardian of an injured minor child.
There are a few caveats to this sort of legal proceeding, most notably requirements to get court approval for settlement agreements and restrictions on how parents or guardians can hold and use funds recovered on their child’s behalf until they come of age to take possession of the money themselves. Most other aspects of the legal process work the same as other personal injury claims, though, meaning a parent or guardian can seek restitution for both short-term and long-term damages the child will experience due to their injuries like lost working and earning ability, medical expenses, physical pain, and various forms of psychological trauma.
Special Rules for Claims Against Government Entities
Another unique element of school bus accident claims in Colleyville and throughout the state is the fact that they are almost always subject to the Texas Tort Claims Act, which sets unique rules in place for situations where a government body does not have “sovereign immunity” for their actions leading to someone getting hurt. Perhaps most importantly, claims against units of local government like the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District cannot seek more than $100,000 worth of damages, and no such unit can be held liable for more than $300,000 of total damages from a single accident.
In addition, the Tort Claims Act requires prospective plaintiffs to provide written notice of their intent to file suit no later than six months after an injury first occurs, which is much shorter than the two-year filing deadline that typically applies to personal injury cases. The applicable notice deadline may be even shorter depending on what municipality has jurisdiction over the claim, so it is always a good idea to contact legal counsel quickly after a school bus crash.
Get Help from a Colleyville Attorney Following a School Bus Accident
No parent ever wants to think that putting their child on a bus to go to school or go on a field trip could lead to their kid getting hurt. If you have found your family dealing with this exact scenario, though, you have limited time to enforce your child’s legal rights and make sure they are compensated fairly for any harm they have suffered.
Working closely with a compassionate bus accident lawyer can be essential to achieving a successful case result after a school bus accident in Colleyville. Call today for a free initial consultation.