Families often tell us they are not sure what a lawyer would actually do for them, or whether it is too soon to ask. This page answers that question plainly. We are LAWBOSS – Harris, Nelsen & Uvalle, PLLC, a Texas personal injury firm whose main office is in North Dallas, and this is how a wrongful death attorney in our Dallas office works with a family, from the first conversation to the end of the case.
In short
We listen, confirm who in your family has a claim under Texas law, secure the evidence before it is lost, find every person, company and insurance policy that may be responsible, deal with the insurers for you, and file suit in court when a fair resolution needs it. The consultation is free, and your family makes every important decision.
If a question on this page is about your own family, you can talk it through with us. There is no cost and no pressure.
The first conversation
The first call is a conversation, not an interview. We ask what happened, who the person was and who they leave behind. We will not ask you to bring documents or to have the details straight. If you do not know something, that is normal, and finding it out is part of our work.
By the end of that conversation you should know three things: whether Texas law is likely to give your family a claim, who in the family would bring it, and roughly what would happen next. If we do not think there is a claim, we will say so. If there is, you decide whether to go ahead, and when. Nothing starts without your agreement.
Who in the family can bring the claim
The Texas Wrongful Death Act decides this, not the lawyer and not the insurer. Section 71.004 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code gives the claim to the surviving spouse, children and parents of the person who died, and the claim is for their benefit. Any one of them may bring the suit for all of them. Brothers and sisters, grandparents and stepchildren are not on that list.
If none of the spouse, children or parents has filed within three calendar months of the death, the executor or administrator of the estate must bring the suit, unless all of them ask that it not be filed (71.004(c)). Separately, the claim the person who died had for their own injury does not end at death. It passes to the heirs, legal representatives and estate as a survival claim (71.021). Many families have both claims, and we explain how they fit together on our page about the Texas Wrongful Death Act.
If a question here is about your own family, you can talk it through with us. There is no cost and no pressure.
Securing the evidence before it is lost
Evidence fades quickly after a fatal accident. Vehicles are repaired or sold for scrap, video is recorded over, and witnesses move or forget. Early in the case we work to preserve what matters: the crash report, photographs, video from nearby businesses and traffic cameras, vehicle data, phone records where the law allows, and the names of people who saw what happened.
For a crash, the investigating officer must file a written report (the Texas Peace Officer’s Crash Report, form CR-3) with TxDOT within 10 days (Transportation Code 550.062). People involved and their authorized representatives can get a full copy from TxDOT’s crash report system for a small fee (550.065). For a commercial truck, the carrier’s driving logs and records are kept for a limited time, which is one reason we send a preservation letter early. Our page on fatal truck accidents in Dallas explains those rules.
Finding everyone who is responsible
Under section 71.002(b), a person or company is liable for a death caused by their “wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, unskillfulness, or default”, or by that of their agent or employee. That last part matters. When a driver was working, the employer may be responsible too. When a truck was poorly maintained, the carrier may be. When a property owner ignored a dangerous condition, the owner may be.
Texas also lets a defendant ask the court to name a “responsible third party” to share the blame (33.004). Insurers use this often. Part of our job is to make sure the responsibility lands where the facts put it, and not on the person who died or on someone who cannot be held to account.
If a question here is about your own family, you can talk it through with us. There is no cost and no pressure.
Dealing with the insurers
Once we represent your family, adjusters talk to us, not to you. Several of the firm’s attorneys used to work for insurance companies, as adjusters, managers or trial lawyers, so we know how a death claim is reviewed from the other side of the desk: which records the adjuster will ask for, how blame is argued and where a family’s losses are quietly left out.
We look for every policy that may apply: the at-fault driver’s liability policy, an employer’s or trucking company’s commercial policy, and your own family’s uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which must be part of every Texas auto policy unless it was rejected in writing (Insurance Code 1952.101). Texas sets minimum liability coverage of $30,000 for one person’s death or injury (Transportation Code 601.072). That is a legal minimum, not a measure of any claim, and it is often not the only coverage available.
Deaths at work
When a worker dies on the job, the family’s options depend on whether the employer carries workers’ compensation insurance. Some Texas employers do not. An employer without it (a “non-subscriber”) loses some of its usual defenses: under Labor Code 406.033(a) it cannot argue that the worker was negligent, that the worker assumed the risk, or that a co-worker’s negligence caused the death.
A company other than the employer can also be responsible, for example a general contractor, an equipment maker or a driver from another business. We look at every company on the site and every vehicle involved.
If a question here is about your own family, you can talk it through with us. There is no cost and no pressure.
Motorcycle and pedestrian deaths
Riders and people on foot are often blamed first. In Texas a family can recover if the person who died was 50 percent or less responsible, and any recovery is reduced by that share (33.001 and 33.012). Not wearing a helmet does not by itself bar a claim, although an insurer may try to argue it under that shared-fault rule, which is why the facts of the crash matter so much. Our page on fatal car accidents in Dallas covers pedestrians and cyclists in more detail.
Unsafe property
Some deaths happen because of a dangerous condition on property: a broken stair, a fall from an unguarded height, poor security, or a hazard the owner knew of and did not fix. Whether the owner is responsible depends on what it knew and what it did, and evidence such as maintenance records and earlier complaints can disappear. If this is your family’s situation, tell us early.
If a question here is about your own family, you can talk it through with us. There is no cost and no pressure.
Filing suit, and what court means
Many claims are resolved without a trial, but no one can promise that, and we will never pressure your family to accept less than the facts support in order to avoid court. If a fair resolution is not offered, we can file suit. A Dallas County case is usually filed in the civil district courts at the George L. Allen, Sr. Courts Building, 600 Commerce Street. Some cases can be heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, which sits in Dallas.
The general deadline is two years from the date of death (CPRC 16.003(b)). Claims against a city, county or other government body can need written notice within six months (101.101). Our page on the Texas wrongful death statute of limitations explains the deadlines in full.
How the fee works
The consultation is free. No Fees or Costs Unless We Win. The firm advances case costs, and your family owes no attorney’s fee and no case costs unless money is recovered. If we take the case, the fee is a share of what is recovered, set out in a written agreement that you read before you sign, and there is no attorney’s fee if there is no recovery.
If a question here is about your own family, you can talk it through with us. There is no cost and no pressure.
The attorney responsible for this page
Michael Uvalle founded the firm after working for several of the largest insurance companies in Texas. The State Bar of Texas shows him licensed since 2010, with his primary practice location at our Dallas office, 5001 Spring Valley Rd Ste 240W. He leads the Dallas office with attorneys Rolando Reyna, Jr. and Joseph Massey. You can read more about them on our page about our wrongful death law firm in Dallas.
Responsible attorney for this page: Michael Uvalle, LAWBOSS – Harris, Nelsen & Uvalle, PLLC, primary practice location Dallas, Texas. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Questions families ask
Do we need a wrongful death attorney, or can the family handle it?
A family can talk to an insurer directly, and some do. An attorney helps most when the facts are disputed, when more than one company may be responsible, or when the insurer argues that the person who died was partly at fault. The first conversation with us is free, so you can ask before deciding.
Can only one family member hire you?
Any one of the spouse, children or parents may bring the wrongful death suit for the benefit of all of them (71.004(b)). In practice we talk with the family together where we can, so that everyone knows what is happening.
How soon should we call?
There is no rush to decide anything, but evidence can be lost quickly, and some deadlines are short, such as six months for notice to a government body. Calling early costs nothing and keeps your options open.
Will you tell us what our case is likely to bring?
No honest lawyer can promise an outcome, and we do not quote figures. We will explain how Texas law treats claims like yours and what the evidence shows as it comes in.
Talk with us when you are ready. There is no cost to talk.