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    [post_date] => 2015-05-27 02:18:29
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    [post_content] => At the insistence of her daughter, co-workers and another lawyer that was a family friend, I walked into my new client’s and eventual friend’s, hospital room. Just one day after her collision with a large commercial vehicle, she had already endured two surgeries. More surgeries and months of painful rehabilitation would follow. After quizzing me about my age and experience, she said “Nate this ought to be easy.” As she lay in a hospital bed, I explained to her what too many people have learned the hard way. Negligent corporations and big insurance companies fight very hard to protect their money.

I assured my new client that my partner Katrina and I as well as our staff were up to the challenge. Within two hours of the time we were hired, we had a professional photographer taking high-resolution images that could be used at trial. By the end of our first day on the case, we had found the isolated lot where the company stored its damaged vehicles. Within 48 hours of the time we were hired, we had engineers mapping the scene. In less than a week, we found the driver of the vehicle. He willing provided us with detail about the vehicle and his dealings with the company.

As is par for the course, the company denied all liability and blamed others. They hired one of the largest law firms in the world to protect their money. Despite their efforts we worked diligently to locate past drivers of the vehicle and obtained a court order to perform a top to bottom inspection of the vehicle. Working with engineers and mechanics, we examined every inch of the vehicle and found a number of failures that caused the wreck that injured my friend. Unlike many lawyers, we did not sit back in our office and wait on a report, we braved 20 degree temperatures, freezing rain and crawled around the truck with our mechanics and engineers to make sure we fully understood the issues and could explain them to a judge and jury.

Having handled hundreds of cases and recovered millions of dollars for clients, we knew that simply identifying the cause of the collision was not enough. We would have to make sure a jury understood our case completely and would deliver justice to our friend and client. We worked closely with economists and life care planners to make sure the jury could completely understand how the negligence of the company impacted my friend’s family and her finances. We worked closely with a videographer to document her journey.

In the weeks leading up to trial we tested our theory of the case and our presentation on not one, but three mock juries. In the end, we were able to prove to the big company and its lawyers that we were prepared to prove its negligence to a jury. With that information in hand, we ultimately achieved a settlement of $3,700,000 for our friend that had suffered numerous broken bones and endured multiple surgeries after her collision with the commercial vehicle. After medical bills, expenses and legal fees, the friend that once told us she wanted a million dollars, received more than $2,200,000.

Our success in this case was not based upon the wreck, but because we dedicated our time, resources (more than $81,000 spent on engineers, economists, focus groups and private investigators) and past trial experiences to the cause of justice for our friend.
    [post_title] => This Ought to Be Easy
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$3,700,000

At the insistence of her daughter, co-workers and another lawyer that was a family friend, I walked...

Read the full story>.
											
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    [ID] => 71
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    [post_date] => 2015-05-27 02:19:37
    [post_date_gmt] => 2015-05-27 02:19:37
    [post_content] => For more than 20 years, our client worked diligently serving others as a patient care technician.  She loved the satisfaction of knowing that what she did helped to make the lives of others more comfortable. While the work was physically and emotionally demanding and the hours were long, she loved it. Unfortunately, in less than 30 seconds, the negligence of a large furniture company and its driver took her career away from her.

Our client learned what many injured people learn far too late. Not all lawyers have the experience, tenacity or resources to fight big companies.  For more than a year, her case lingered with another lawyer. The company denied liability and refused to make a settlement offer.  Shortly before her statute of limitations expired, our client and her husband decided to hire The Washington Firm. We immediately did what should have been done nearly two years earlier. We obtained a complete history of the vehicle, we conducted thorough background checks on the driver and we deposed company officials. We uncovered what we believed to be dangerous internal policies. We worked closely with an economist to make sure the jury could fully understand how the negligence of the company and its driver impacted our client.

The furniture company that told the other lawyer and The Washington Firm that they would never pay, ultimately settled the case for $750,000. After paying lots of outstanding medical bills for her knee surgeries, legal fees and case expenses our client received more than $281,000.

After seeing the hundreds of hours dedicated to the case and seeing the more than $23,847 we spent on investigators, economists, videographers and court reporters, our client commented that the other lawyer would have never spent the time and money required to secure justice for her and her family.

 
    [post_title] => Never Say Never
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$750,000

For more than 20 years, our client worked diligently serving others as a patient care technician.  She...

Read the full story>.
											
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    [post_date] => 2015-05-27 02:21:48
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    [post_content] => On an early December morning, our client’s mother received the worse possible call a parent can receive. There had been a terrible collision and her son was rushed to a local hospital. Upon arriving at the hospital, the mother received more heart-breaking news. Her son was in a coma.  His vehicle had stopped on the highway and was rear-ended by a negligent driver that sped from lane to lane with an empty trailer as he rushed to pick up horses. The impact was violent beyond imagination and our client’s vehicle enveloped him. The damage would eventually result in paralysis and traumatic brain injury.

Unfortunately, for the mother and her family they would have to fight multiple battles at once.  As our client lay in a local hospital fighting for his life, the insurance company issued a letter denying all liability. As the bills mounted and our client’s survival was uncertain, the insurance company had already began acting to protect its $1,250,000 insurance policy. They hired a large law firm. At the urging of a friend and past client of the Washington Firm, our client’s mother called us to fight for her son and her family.

Our first step was to rush to the wrecking yard before the car was used for scrap metal and obtain high-resolution images that we planned to use at trial. From there, we conducted a thorough investigation into the life of the man that drove the speeding truck. We worked closely with a local engineer to perform skid mark calculations. We served the driver and his insurance company with a subpoena for the black box data from his truck.  We tracked down witnesses and took recorded statements from them about the driver’s actions on that morning. Within a month, we knew beyond all doubt that that the driver was negligent. Unfortunately, the story did not end there. The insurance company still refused to pay our client.

Faced with stubborn indifference towards our client and his family, The Washington Firm propounded a 48-page lawsuit to the driver and his insurance company. Less than two weeks after receiving our petition and discovery requests, the insurance company and their law firm reluctantly agreed to pay our client their full $1,250,000 policy. Their again, the story does not end.

At discharge, our client and his mother were given notice of a hospital bill in excess of $800,000.  The money that our client’s mother wanted to use to retrofit her two story home to care for him and to buy a van to take him to doctor’s appointment was vanishing before her eyes. Not only that, government officials had told the mother that her son would be unable to receive the disability benefits that he had paid into while working as a security guard because the insurance company had tendered the $1,250,000 insurance policy. It didn’t seem to matter that our client and his mother had not received one cent at that time.

Recognizing that service to our clients does not end when the check is tendered, The Washington Firm, worked aggressively to have the hospital release its lien and accept less than 10 cents on the dollar for payment. After that we partnered with a local probate lawyer to craft a plan that would not exclude our client from receiving the benefits that he had paid into while he worked.  We met with case workers from government offices. Next, we worked with a local banker to develop a trust for our client’s needs.  In less than four months, our client went from receiving a letter stating that he would not be paid to having a trust worth more than $755,000 established to provide for his needs. As we took care to make sure the trust was properly constructed our client also received lifetime benefits in addition to the trust to assist with his care. His mother bought the special needs van and a brand new one story home to care for him.
    [post_title] => Going The Extra Mile
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$1,250,000

On an early December morning, our client’s mother received the worse possible call a parent can receive....

Read the full story>.

Practice Areas Overview

18-Wheeler/Trucking Accidents

Literally thousands of 18-wheelers travel our roads each day and while most of the truck drivers behind the wheel are safety-conscious professionals, many are not. In fact, countless Texans and...

Wrongful Death

Nothing can be more devastating to a family than the sudden death of a family member due to the negligence of another person or big corporation. When a loved one...

Car Accidents

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, over 6,000,000 auto accidents occur in the United States each year.  Approximately 3,000,000 people are injured in auto accidents each year. Worse...

Our entire practice is dedicated exclusively to fighting for people injured in auto accidents and families that have endured the wrongful death of a loved one. see entire list >

Results

Going The Extra Mile

On an early December morning, our client’s mother received the worse possible call a parent can receive. There had been a terrible collision and her son was rushed to a local hospital. Upon arriving at the hospital, the mother received...

"Less than two weeks after receiving our petition and discovery requests, the insurance company agreed to pay our client their full $1,250,000 policy."

Learn More >
Case Studies

Blog / News See All >

From Lawyer to Client

I started driving at age 15. Over 26 years of driving, I logged more than 400,000 miles. Whether traveling back forth between Fort Worth and the University of North Texas...Read more >

Walmart Settles Multi-Million Dollar Lawsuit with 30 Rock Star and Stand-Up Comedian Tracy Morgan

When a lawsuit settles everyone has the same the question – how much? As with most settlements, the terms of the Tracy Morgan/Walmart settlement are confidential. However, the most important...Read more >