Being involved in a bar fight or being attacked out in town can be a traumatic experience. In many cases, you could face injuries that require treatment at a hospital and cause serious physical pain as well as mental and emotional trauma. Reporting this assault to the police is a good start, but you may also be able to take your assailant to court on your own to seek damages instead of settling for the criminal penalties.
The Arlington, Texas lawyers for victims of fight injuries and assault at The Queenan Law Firm may be able to take your assailant to court and work to get you compensation for the harm you faced. This can include damages for pain and suffering, medical bills, lost wages, and other damages that the criminal justice system may not cover for you. For compensation on your assault injury case, call our law offices today at (817) 476-1797.
Damages for Assault and Battery in Texas
If you were the victim of assault or battery in Texas, the law authorizes you to claim compensation for the damages the assault caused you. In most cases, the injuries may not be too severe, but this does not stop you from claiming damages. However, in more severe cases, the damages can be substantial, and you may need to consider filing a civil lawsuit to seek compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and other harms.
In any assault case, you can sue for the physical pain and mental and emotional distress of the attack. If your injuries were minor, you still suffered unnecessary injury because of the other person’s decision to attack you, and that assailant should be made to pay you for the harm they caused. Some events cause more mental anguish or emotional distress than they do physical symptoms, and you can claim damages for these harms as well. Talk to an attorney about calculating what the damages might be in your case.
If your injuries caused you to need medical care, you may also seek damages to cover the cost of your medical care. This can cover simple first aid from an EMT as well as more substantial treatment at a hospital. If you suffered serious, life-altering injuries from an attack, these damages may be necessary to cover the cost of expensive medical care or ongoing care.
If the injuries were severe enough to cause you to miss work, you can also seek damages for the wages you lost. The person who injured you and caused you to miss work should be responsible for covering any wages you lost because of the injuries they caused. If the injuries you faced were especially severe, you may miss wages in the future as well. These lost wages or reduced earning capacity should also be paid by your assailant.
In addition to these damages, you may also claim damages for any other effects of the injury. This can include property damage for items broken during the assault or other damages related to the fight.
Seeking Compensation for Assault and Fighting Injuries in Texas
When you file criminal charges against someone who attacked you, the courts may work to pay you some damages for your injuries. This is known as “restitution” and is typically a required part of any criminal case that deals with financial harm to the victim. An insurance policy may also claim to cover your injuries in some cases. Regardless of whether restitution or insurance is available, you may be entitled to additional damages for your injuries if you take the defendant to court and file a civil lawsuit against them for the assault and battery.
Civil lawsuits often overlap with criminal charges, allowing you to sue for the same conduct that the defendant was charged with a crime for. However, these lawsuits are separate from the criminal charges and focus on compensating you for the harms you suffered rather than locking the defendant up or fining them for their crime.
To prove your case in a civil lawsuit for assault or battery, you must prove that the defendant committed each element of the assault or battery. Battery consists of intentionally touching another person in a harmful or offensive way. This covers any punches, strikes, shoves, kicks, or other injuries as well as offensive touching that does not cause injury, like unwanted touching or sexual contact. Assault consists of an attempt to touch someone in an offensive or harmful way. This can include failed strikes as well as something like cocking back a fist or “faking” a punch in someone’s direction.
To prove the assault or battery happened, you may need to testify to the events leading up to the incident. Security footage or testimony from other witnesses can also help build your case. As part of proving your case, you will need to prove the damages that you suffered as well. Keeping a good record of medical expenses, the pain you suffered, and other effects of the injury is vital to building your case and pursuing your claim in court.
Call Our Arlington, TX Assault Victim Lawyers for a Free Legal Consultation
If you or a loved one was injured in a fight, assaulted by another person, or subjected to any other unwanted or inappropriate touching, contact the Arlington assault victim lawyers at The Queenan Law Firm today. Our personal injury and assault injury lawyers may be able to take your case to court and fight to get you the compensation you need for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and emotional distress. To set up a free legal consultation on your case, call The Queenan Law Firm today at (817) 476-1797.