If you or a loved one has been injured in an accidental shooting in the Plano area, you may be eligible to pursue financial compensation for your damages. Nothing can be more devastating than suffering from an accidental shooting that can impact your and your family’s life forever.
At Zinda Law Group, our dedicated team of personal injury attorneys has extensive experience helping victims of accidental shootings recover the maximum compensation possible in their cases. Read below to learn more about how an experienced Plano accidental shooting lawyer can help.
Proving Liability in Accidental Shooting Cases
In any personal injury case, establishing legal liability is crucial for determining who is financially responsible for the victim’s damages. There are a few common ways liability can be established in accidental shooting cases:
- Negligent Use or Handling of a Firearm: If the shooting occurred due to negligent behavior like improperly cleaning a gun or disregarding basic safety rules, the at-fault party can likely be held liable. Special rules may also apply to minors negligently gaining access to firearms. These can be complex issues that we can help you untangle.
- Product Liability: If a defective gun or ammunition malfunctions and causes injury, the manufacturer and possibly other parties in the supply chain may share liability for your claim.
- Premises Liability: Property owners may be liable if unsafe conditions on their property contributed to an accidental shooting there. For example, inadequate security can prevent unauthorized access to firearms.
- Vicarious Liability: Employers, parents, guardians, and other supervisors may share liability for shootings caused by someone under their supervision and control.
- Other forms of liability may also arise depending on the specific details of your accidental shooting incident. An experienced Plano accidental shooting attorney can fully investigate your case and identify all potentially liable parties. Aggressive pursuit of all liable sources is key to recovering the full compensation amount you deserve.
Compensation Available in Accidental Shooting Cases
The injuries caused by accidental shootings can be financially devastating. Some of the common damages shooting victims may recover compensation for include:
- Medical Bills: Bills from hospitalization, surgeries, rehabilitation, prescription medications, and ongoing care can quickly add up after a shooting injury. These past and future medical costs may all be part of a lawsuit.
- Lost Income: If injuries from the shooting prevent you from working for some time or permanently, you can pursue these lost wages and reduced earning capacity going forward.
- Pain and Suffering: Getting shot can obviously be an extremely traumatic and painful experience, especially if permanent injuries or disabilities result. Non-economic damages like pain, suffering, and emotional distress aim to provide additional compensation for these intangible losses.
- Wrongful Death Damages: If the accidental shooting resulted in a wrongful death, certain family members of the victim may be able to file a lawsuit seeking compensation related to funeral costs, loss of companionship, and other death-related damages.
- Punitive Damages: In cases of especially reckless behavior leading to accidental shootings, courts may also award punitive damages to punish the defendant.
A Plano accidental shooting lawyer from Zinda Law Group will thoroughly investigate your case to identify every possible category of damages you may seek for full financial recovery. An aggressive legal fight is necessary to overcome common defense tactics of trying to downplay injuries or place blame back on the victim.
Pursuing Legal Action Soon After The Incident
After suffering the physical trauma of an accidental shooting injury, confronting legal complexities may be the last thing victims and families want to deal with initially. However, securing experienced Plano accidental shooting legal representation as close to the incident date as possible remains crucial for several important reasons:
- Preserving Evidence – Critical evidence like gunshot residue patterns, blood splatters, defective firearm parts, and surveillance footage can dissipate or disappear quickly. Swift evidence collection preserves more proof.
- Interviewing Witnesses – Over time, witnesses’ memories become less clear and witnesses themselves may relocate. Early witness interviews capture fresher recollections.
- Avoiding Delays – Texas Statute of Limitations laws only allow a certain time period after an incident to pursue injury claims or the right expires. Filing sooner also generally moves the case forward quicker to resolution.
Why Hire a Plano Accidental Shooting Attorney?
If you were accidentally injured or a family member died in a negligent shooting in the Plano area, immediately contacting an experienced accidental shooting attorney is highly recommended for several key reasons:
- Maximize Compensation: Accidental shooting cases can become complex, especially if multiple parties share liability. An attorney thoroughly explores all avenues for compensation.
- Avoid Costly Mistakes: Handling a shooting case incorrectly from the start can undermine the claim or result in key evidence being ruled inadmissible. Veterans of these cases prevent missteps.
- Level the Legal Playing Field: Shooters and their insurance companies quickly bring their own legal defenses to bear. You need strong legal advocates of your own fighting for your best interests.
- Negotiate Optimal Settlements: Even if a satisfactory settlement offer emerges, only seasoned negotiators can broker maximized settlement amounts and terms.
- Try Cases Effectively: Should settlement talks fail, qualified litigators have the courtroom skills and resources to take the case to trial for a potentially higher recovery.
- While the full recovery process can take years for complex accidental shooting cases, having a dedicated Plano accidental shooting lawyer as early as possible can make all the difference in the final outcome for the injured victim and their family.
Why Choose Zinda Law Group
If you or someone you love suffered accidental gunshot injuries in Plano, your Texas accidental shooting lawyer at Zinda Law Group stands ready to help you pursue the maximum financial recovery possible. Zinda Law Group believes every injury victim deserves responsive, respectful, and aggressive legal representation. We uphold these principles by:
- Providing prompt case review: We offer free case evaluations by phone or in person and begin investigating liability right away.
- Offering completely free consultation: Unlike many firms, we charge no upfront legal fees whatsoever unless we win your case.
- Promising passion and commitment: Each client gets a dedicated attorney you can count on fighting for the compensation you deserve
- Delivering high success track record: Our proven negotiation and litigation skills have resulted in over $200,000,000 for injury victims
- Backing cases with ample resources: Our firm invests in the expert witnesses, evidence gathering, and trial preparation needed to build strong cases.
- Making retention easy with flexible fee options: We work on a contingency fee basis, only collecting if we win money for you.
Call (800) 863-5312 or contact us online for a free case evaluation on your accidental shooting case in Plano. One of our compassionate attorneys is standing by, ready to help you seek justice.
John (Jack) Zinda
Founder / CEO
Over 100 years of combined experience representing injured victims across the country.
Available 24 / 7|Free ConsultationNeil Solomon
Partner
Real results matter. We do not get paid unless we win your case.
Available 24 / 7|Free Consultation