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A Dallas work injury lawyer helps you recover money after a serious on-the-job injury, either from an employer that carries no workers’ compensation or from a third party whose negligence caused the harm. A Dallas work injury lawyer at Tate Law Offices handles these claims on a contingency fee basis, so you pay no attorney fee unless we win money for you.
Call (903) 892-4440 any time, day or night, for a free consultation.
Dallas runs on physical work: construction across the metro, warehouses along the I-20 and I-35 logistics corridors, and delivery drivers on the road all day. When that work leaves someone seriously hurt, the path to recovery is not always the one people expect.
Texas is unusual in that employers can opt out of workers’ compensation entirely, and many do, which can actually open the door to a full personal injury claim against a negligent employer. As a family-owned firm based in Dallas, the Tate and Rehmet families handle these cases personally and ensure injured workers understand every option available to them under the law.
Why Choose Tate Law Offices as Your Dallas Work Injury Lawyer
Work injury cases turn on questions most injured workers never think to ask. Did your employer carry workers’ compensation, or opt out? Who else was on that job site, and whose negligence played a part? What records will the company quietly let expire? We start with those questions on the very first call, because the answers decide which claim you actually have and what it is worth.
- We find every path to recovery. A non-subscriber claim, a third-party claim, or both at once, we look past the obvious defendant to everyone whose negligence contributed.
- We move before the evidence does. Job sites get cleaned, repaired, and reset within days, so we work fast to preserve the proof of what really caused your injury.
- We stand up to the employer and its insurer. These companies have lawyers working against you from the first hour, and our fee comes out of the recovery, so there is never a bill on your end unless we win.
The Tate and Rehmet families run this firm, and we take that fight on personally, carrying both the cost and the risk. Your job is to heal, and ours is to prove what happened and make the responsible party pay for it.
Is a Work Injury Claim the Same
as Workers' Compensation?
No. A work injury personal injury claim is different from a workers’ compensation claim, and the difference often decides how much you can recover. Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system that pays limited benefits; a personal injury claim holds a negligent party responsible and can recover the fuller range of your losses.
- Workers’ compensation pays set medical and wage benefits regardless of fault, but not pain and suffering, and only when the employer carries it.
- A non-subscriber claim lets you sue an employer that opted out of workers’ comp, for its negligence.
- A third-party claim lets you pursue someone other than your employer who caused your injury.
- The recovery differs, because a personal injury claim can include pain, mental anguish, and full lost earnings that comp does not pay.
Knowing which of these fits your situation is the first thing we sort out. Our focus is the personal injury side of work injuries, the non-subscriber and third-party claims that can put full compensation within reach.
How Can You Bring a Work Injury Claim in Texas?
Usually through one of two routes, depending on who was at fault and whether your employer carried workers’ comp. The table below lays out both paths.
Type of Claim | When It Applies | Who You Pursue |
Non-subscriber claim | Your employer does not carry workers’ compensation | The employer, for its negligence |
Third-party claim | Someone other than your employer caused the injury | The at-fault party, such as a driver, contractor, or property owner |
These routes are not mutually exclusive, and some cases involve both. Figuring out which applies means looking at your employer’s coverage, how the injury happened, and everyone whose negligence contributed, which is exactly where our investigation starts.
What If Your Employer Has No Workers' Compensation?
Then you may be able to sue your employer directly, and Texas law tilts that fight in your favor. Under Texas Labor Code Section 406.033, an employer that chose not to carry workers’ compensation gives up its most powerful legal defenses.
- The employer cannot blame you for your own carelessness the way an ordinary defendant could.
- The employer cannot argue that you assumed the risk of the job.
- The employer cannot hide behind the actions of a coworker.
- You must still prove that the employer’s negligence caused your injury.
That loss of defenses is a significant advantage, and it is one many injured workers never learn about because no one tells them. You can read the non-subscriber rules in Chapter 406 of the Texas Labor Code. Making the most of it takes a lawyer who knows how these claims are built and proven.
What Compensation Can You Recover in a Work Injury Claim?
More than a workers’ comp check, and often far more. Workers’ compensation pays a fixed portion of your lost wages plus your medical bills, and stops there. A personal injury claim is measured by what the injury actually did to your life and your ability to make a living, so it reaches the losses comp leaves on the table.
For injured workers, the largest of those losses is usually future earning capacity:
- If a back injury or a damaged hand ends a career in a trade, the claim can account for every paycheck you will never earn doing that work, not just the ones you missed while healing.
- If you can still work but not at the same level, it can cover the cost of retraining and a lower-paying future.
- It can recover the pain and the mental strain of a serious injury and a long recovery, which comp does not touch.
- It can compensate permanent impairment or disfigurement you will carry from here on.
- And where an employer’s conduct crossed into gross negligence, it can add exemplary damages meant to punish that conduct, not just repay you.
The hard part is putting an honest number on a future you have not lived yet. We bring in the medical and vocational input to show what the injury has already cost you and what it will keep costing, so the figure reflects your whole career and not just your last pay stub. Because our fee depends on that result, the work goes in on our dime.
What Should You Do After a Work Injury in Dallas?
Report the injury, get medical care, and preserve the evidence before you give any statement to your employer’s insurer. What you do in the first days can decide the whole claim.
- Report the injury to your employer in writing, and ask for a copy of any incident report that is created.
- Get medical attention promptly, and tell the provider exactly how the injury happened on the job.
- Photograph the scene and the hazard if you can, before it is repaired or cleaned up.
- Get the names and numbers of coworkers or others who saw what happened.
- Keep records of your missed work and expenses, and decline any recorded statement until you have spoken with a lawyer.
Handled well, these steps lock in the proof a work injury claim depends on, from the hazard that caused the injury to the losses that followed. The sooner a lawyer is involved, the sooner that evidence is secured before it disappears and the insurer is dealing with someone who knows the case.
What Texas Law Applies to Your Claim?
Texas is a fault-based state for personal injury, so a negligent employer or third party and its insurer are responsible for your damages, and a few rules shape almost every work injury claim. Both of the ones below come up constantly.
How Long Do You Have to File
a Work Injury Claim in Texas?
Generally two years from the date of the injury, under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.003. Miss that deadline and the court will almost certainly dismiss your case no matter how clear the negligence was.
Because workplace evidence and witness accounts fade quickly, acting well before the deadline protects your case. Federal workplace safety data from OSHA reflects how often serious job injuries trace back to preventable hazards.
Can You Recover If You Were Partly at Fault?
Often yes, and in a non-subscriber case your own carelessness usually cannot be used against you at all. Against a non-subscriber employer, the law bars the contributory negligence defense, while in a third-party claim the ordinary rule applies and you can recover as long as your share of the blame is 50 percent or less. Either way, being partly at fault rarely ends a strong claim.
Between the filing deadline and these fault rules, Texas law gives injured workers more leverage than an employer or insurer will admit. Getting advice early is what keeps that leverage intact.
Get Your Free Case Review
Let one of our personal injury lawyers review your case, explain your
legal options, and answer all your questions in a free case evaluation.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a Dallas work injury lawyer cost?
Nothing up front. We work on contingency, so our fee is a percentage of the recovery and is owed only if we win or settle your case. If there is no recovery, you pay no attorney fee, and we front the case costs.
I'm already receiving workers' comp. Can I still make a claim?
Possibly, through a third-party claim. Workers’ compensation usually prevents suing your employer, but it does not stop you from pursuing a separate at-fault party, such as another driver or a negligent contractor. That third-party claim can recover losses comp does not pay, so it is worth a free consultation.
What if I was hurt in a crash while working?
You may have a personal injury claim in addition to any workers’ comp benefits. A worker injured in a vehicle crash on the job can often pursue the at-fault driver directly, which is a third-party claim separate from comp. We handle these crash-related work injuries as the injury cases they are.
What kinds of work injuries do you handle?
Serious ones, including construction falls and struck-by injuries, warehouse and loading incidents, and on-the-job vehicle crashes. The common thread is a preventable injury caused by someone’s negligence, whether a non-subscriber employer or a third party. If you are unsure whether your situation qualifies, a free consultation is the fastest way to find out.
Will my case go to trial?
Usually not, but we prepare every case as if it will. That readiness is what pushes an insurer toward a fair settlement, and if a fair number never comes, we are prepared to try your case to a Dallas County jury.
Can my employer fire me for making a claim?
Texas law protects workers from retaliation for pursuing certain legal rights, and an employer who retaliates may face additional liability. If you are worried about your job, raise it during your consultation so we can advise you on your specific situation.
What if my employer says the injury was my own fault?
That is a common response, and against a non-subscriber employer it usually carries no legal weight, because the law bars that defense. Even in a third-party claim, being partly at fault rarely ends your case, since Texas lets you recover as long as your share is 50 percent or less. Do not let an employer’s blame talk you out of a valid claim.
These answers are a starting point, not advice on your specific injury. A free consultation lets us apply them to your facts.
Legally Reviewed By
Tim Tate, of Tate Law Offices, PC, has represented victims of injuries day-in and day-out throughout the state of Texas as well as in numerous other states throughout America over the last two decades. In addition to being licensed as an Attorney at Law by the Supreme Court of Texas, Tim is a member of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and the American Association for Justice, both of which advocate and advance the rights of injured victims against insurance companies.
