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3 Generations Fighting for Corpus Christi Injury Victims

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Corpus Christi

Personal
Injury
Attorneys

Corpus Christi Personal Injury Lawyers

Attorney David Burkett has over 40 years’ experience in personal injury law and The Burkett Law Firm has been part of the community for 60 years. Pride and connections in the community are the cornerstone of our law firm.

Board Certified Personal Injury Trial Law

Certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. This is the highest certification a personal injury attorney can achieve in the state of Texas. Attorneys with this certification have the experience, knowledge, and documented success of bringing injury cases to trial.

Every Case is Personal

Every case that comes into The Burkett Law Firm is given every resource the firm has to offer. Medical experts, investigators, case specialists and over 40 years of legal experience. We are a family and treat each client as such.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Corpus Christi Injury Victims Pursue Full and Fair Compensation

The Burkett Law Firm is a Texas law firm dedicated to providing professional, intelligent and effective legal assistance to individuals in the Corpus Christi metro and Coastal Bend region. We concentrate our practice on personal injury law.

Whether you were injured by a reckless driver or by an unreasonably dangerous product, we can help you pursue the maximum compensation you deserve for your medical bills, suffering and loss. We have worked on multimillion-dollar personal injury cases, and we handle claims involving car wrecks, truck accidents, motorcycle crashes, dangerous drugs, defective medical devices and much more.

Contact Our Corpus Christi Personal Injury Law Firm
Call The Burkett Law Firm at 361-882-8822 for a free initial consultation for all personal injury cases in Corpus Christi and the Coastal Bend Region in Texas. For your added convenience, we also offer evening consultations by appointment.
Corpus Christi injury attorney David Burkett explaining the impacts of car accident injuries including whiplash and spinal injuries.

Since 1960, our Corpus Christi attorneys at The Burkett Law Firm have been dedicated to helping injured people, grieving families, and other individuals obtain justice and compensation.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Personal Injury

Most Corpus Christi personal injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis, allowing you to file a claim without any upfront costs on your part.

With a contingency fee, your attorney only receives a percentage if and after they win your case. The most common contingency fee percentage is 33 percent, although this number can vary.

With a contingency fee of 33 percent here’s an example of what would happen in the event of a $1 million settlement offer: You would receive $670,000 and your attorney would receive $330,000.

Be sure to ask about your personal injury attorney’s contingency fee during your free consultation.

The average cost of a personal injury lawyer varies based on the following two factors:

  • The agreed-upon contingency fee; and
  • The amount of your settlement or jury award.


For instance, if you receive a $1 million settlement and you agreed on a contingency fee of 33 percent, your personal injury attorney will receive $330,000. However, your attorney only gets this percentage if and after they win your case.

The advantage of working with experienced Corpus Christi personal injury lawyers on a contingency fee basis is that you don’t take on any financial risk or upfront costs. If your attorney doesn’t win, you never owe your attorney any money.

If you’ve never hired an attorney in the past, you may wonder if it’s worth getting a personal injury lawyer after your accident.

While you can certainly try communicating directly with the tricky insurance companies on your own, doing so puts you at risk of making a mistake that could ruin your chances at any compensation.

Consider the real benefits of working with an experienced personal injury lawyer.

For example, he or she will manage the entire claims process for you from start to finish, including difficult and lengthy negotiations with the at-fault party’s insurance company.

In addition, your lawyer will accurately calculate the full value of your accident and damages so you don’t have to accept a low-ball offer from the insurance company.

This leaves you with less stress on your plate during an already difficult time, and allows you and your family to focus on your physical recovery.

Some of the most common type of cases that personal injury lawyers take include:

  • Car accidents
  • Truck accidents
  • Motorcycle accidents
  • Bicycle and pedestrian accidents
  • Oil rig accidents
  • Maritime injuries
  • Premises and product liability
  • Wrongful death

These types of personal injury accidents are broad categories that can include more specific cases. For example, a car accident case can include accidents caused by a drunk, sleepy or distracted driver, rear-ended accidents, and more.

Not sure which category your accident falls under? Consult with experienced Corpus Christi personal injury lawyers who can review your case.

In general, a good settlement offer is one that pays at least enough money to cover your accident injuries and associated damages (both current and future).

This is where an experienced personal injury lawyer can help. Not only can they calculate the full value of all of your damages and ask for a good settlement amount, but they’ll also fight to ensure that you receive maximum compensation from the at-fault party.

It’s most common for your personal injury attorney to negotiate directly with the other party’s insurance company. In this case, your settlement will be paid out in the form of a lump-sum check.

Keep in mind, once you receive this “final payment” from the at-fault party’s insurance company, you will sign a release form that absolves the insurance company and defendant from further liability associated with your claim.

A personal injury claim only costs you money if your attorney wins your case. If this happens, your attorney will take a percentage of your settlement money. This percentage is agreed upon at the moment of hiring the attorney.

However, even though you don’t pay for personal injury claim costs upfront, this doesn’t mean that there are no expenses associated with your case at all. It just means that your attorney will foot the bill for a variety of expenses associated with collecting evidence for your claim, filing paperwork, hiring investigation experts, and more.

All of these expenses will likely be deducted from your personal injury settlement.

If you want to hire a good personal injury lawyer, here are some steps anyone can rely on to reduce the stress that’s often associated with such a big decision:

  • Browse the attorney’s website to make sure they accept your type of accident case.
  • Read online reviews on Google or lawyer directories such as Avvo.
  • Contact the lawyer directly to ask questions and obtain information on next steps.
  • Ask family, friends, and co-workers for a recommendation.

These are the most basic steps of finding and hiring good Corpus Christi personal injury lawyers, but they’ll form the foundation for making a confident decision.

Pain and suffering is often associated with a personal injury case. However, even if you feel that you should receive money for this type of damage, it’s not always easy to do so.

The reason for this is because it’s difficult to put an exact monetary value on things like mental anguish and emotional pain resulting from the accident.

As an estimate, your attorney is likely to ask for roughly three to six times the amount of your out-of-pocket damages. But this can be more or less depending on your ability to prove your pain and suffering.

It’s always best to consult with a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after your accident.

It’s better to speak with a lawyer soon because he or she can help you preserve vital evidence that you’ll need in order to prove your accident, and to begin negotiations with the insurance company for your full compensation.

Also, keep in mind that in Texas, there’s a two-year statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit. Should you wait too long to consult with an attorney, you may miss your opportunity to collect compensation for your damages.

While it differs from case to case, pain and suffering damage is typically calculated using one of the following two formulas:

  • Per diem: Your damages are calculated on a “per day” basis. This method uses an agreed-upon dollar amount per day between the date of your injury and the date your doctor determines you no longer need regular treatment.
  • Multiplier method: By using your medical expenses as a basis for damages, this method multiplies them by a number generally between 1.5 and 5, relating to the severity of your injuries.
There are three types of damages associated with a personal injury claim:

  • Special damages: These damages are for direct financial loss, such as lost wages and medical expenses (current and anticipated).
  • General damages: These damages are for non-economic losses, such as pain and suffering or loss of companionship.
  • Punitive damages: These damages are rare and they’re designed to punish the at-fault party for their wrongful behavior.

Your personal injury attorney can help you decide what types of damages to seek, along with how much compensation you can expect to obtain.

A personal injury is any injury sustained in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, such as in a distracted driving car accident or a slip and fall in a store. Common types of personal injuries that qualify for a claim in Texas include:

  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Spinal cord injury
  • Broken bones
  • Lacerations
  • Severe burns
  • Soft tissue injuries, such as torn muscles
  • Loss of limb


If you suffer an accident and you’re unsure about what qualifies as a personal injury, consult with an experienced attorney near you who can help you file a claim and demand full compensation.

In general, in order to qualify as a personal injury case, your accident should have resulted from someone else’s negligence.

Furthermore, it’s up to you to prove that the other person was negligent. If you can’t prove that the other party caused the accident and subsequent injuries, you can’t collect compensation.

This is called having a “burden of proof” and it’s difficult to prove without a knowledgeable attorney by your side.

That’s why it’s best to consult with an experienced personal injury attorney who can review the facts of your accident and help you decide what to do next.

A bodily injury claim is a request for compensation related to physical injuries resulting from your accident. A bodily injury claim generally covers two things:

  • Medical expenses; and
  • Lost wages.


In Texas, these expenses are paid by the at-fault party’s insurance company.

Here’s what you can do to improve the odds of obtaining compensation for a bodily injury claim:

  • Receive immediate medical attention.
  • Maintain comprehensive medical records and bills.
  • Collect evidence, such as a copy of the police report and photos of your injuries.
  • Consult with a skilled personal injury attorney.


There’s compensation to be had if you understand the ins and outs of a bodily injury claim so make sure to speak with experienced Corpus Christi personal injury lawyers.

While they sound like the same thing, there are differences between “bodily injury” and “personal injury”.

Bodily injury is a type of damage that you can collect compensation for. Personal injury is a claim that you file to obtain this compensation.

If you were injured as a result of another person’s negligence, you can file a personal injury claim with the goal of obtaining compensation for your bodily injuries.

If you’re going to file a personal injury claim, you want to put yourself in the best position to win. It’s your goal to not only win your personal injury case, but to also maximize the amount of compensation you receive.

Although there’s no guarantee that you’ll win your personal injury case, here are some steps to take to improve your chances:

  • Receive immediate medical treatment after your accident.
  • Collect evidence from the accident scene, including photos and witness statements.
  • Maintain all your records to prove your damages, such as medical records, medical bills, and pay stubs to show lost income.
  • Don’t give recorded statements to the insurance company.
  • Hire an experienced personal injury attorney.

If your lawyer is successful in winning your personal injury case, you’ll want to receive your compensation as soon as possible.

The timeline of how long it takes to get money from a settlement will vary based on a variety of factors, but it’s likely that you’ll receive your check within eight weeks.

If you hired a Corpus Christi personal injury attorney, your settlement money will be sent directly to them. They’ll process your settlement amount based on their contingency fee percentage and any other legal expenses, before forwarding you the remaining amount.