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Here’s everything you need to know about Texas lawsuits involving children—on either side
Texas laws protect kids in lawsuits, whether they were injured by an adult’s negligence or the child injured someone else. Here’s how the laws handle Texas injuries and children.
Ten percent of all children in the United States live in Texas. The state with the highest population of children is California, followed by Texas, Florida, New York and Illinois. While current census numbers estimate that there are nearly 7.5 million children in Texas, projections suggest that there could be more than 8.5 million by 2060.
With so many children running, jumping, playing, and swimming—as they should be!—you’re bound to see a few accidents here and there. The vast majority of injuries involving children are bumps, bruises, scraped knees, and similar... they can be fixed with a Band-Aid and some ice cream.
But there are occasional accidents that leave children more seriously injured, and their parent or guardian could be forced to consider the possibility of a lawsuit if there is a negligent party.
There’s also the possibility that a child could cause an injury to another person.
Here’s what you should know about Texas personal injury lawsuits involving children.
Most common injuries to children in Texas
- Motor vehicle accidents: Car crashes are a leading cause of injury and death among children in Texas, including as passengers, pedestrians, or while riding bicycles.
- Drownings: Texas often has high rates of drowning, especially among young children, with incidents occurring in swimming pools, bathtubs, and natural bodies of water.
- Falls: Falls are a common cause of injury for children, including falls from playground equipment, stairs, windows, and other heights.
- Burns: Children are at risk for burn injuries from hot liquids, fires, and contact with hot objects.
- Poisonings: Accidental ingestion of household chemicals, medications, and other toxic substances can lead to serious injury in children.
- Dog bites: Incidents of dog bites are prevalent among children, often leading to serious injuries requiring medical treatment.
- Sports-related injuries: Injuries from sports and recreational activities, including concussions, fractures, and sprains, are common among school-aged children.
- Heat-related illnesses: Given Texas' hot climate, children are at risk for heatstroke and dehydration, particularly during outdoor activities in the summer months.
- Bicycle accidents: Injuries from bicycle accidents are common and can range from minor scrapes and bruises to more serious injuries like head traumas.
- Injuries from firearms: Accidental shootings or injuries related to firearms are significant concerns, including incidents where children gain access to unsecured guns.
These injuries highlight the importance of preventive measures, such as using car seats and seat belts, supervising children near water, ensuring safe play environments, storing chemicals and medications out of reach, and teaching children about safety.
Legal rights for children involved in Texas personal injury lawsuits
At the core of a personal injury lawsuit, the plaintiff (injured person) must prove that the defendant was negligent. They need to establish each of the elements of negligence: duty, breach, causation, injury and damages.
One element that’s slightly different for children is duty. Everyone has a duty to another person, and that can change moment by moment or situation by situation. For instance, every driver has a duty to other road users; they have a duty to take reasonable care to drive in a way that would not cause harm or injury to another person.
Bicyclists have a similar duty; they need to ride according to applicable road rules, at a reasonable speed, and paying attention to others, including pedestrians. A bicyclist has a duty to avoid reasonably foreseeable injury to pedestrians on the roads or sidewalks.
Similarly, a shop owner or property owner has a duty to any person who is legally permitted to be on the premises. They must take reasonable care to avoid harm or provide warning of a hazardous condition.
But when it comes to children, sometimes negligent supervision becomes an issue if a child is injured. Any person who is in charge of supervising a child is responsible for their care and safety—this could be a parent, other family member (like a grandparent) or caregiver, daycare provider, teacher, babysitter, or any other person who is supposed to be supervising the child at a given time.
For example, suppose a grandparent is babysitting for a toddler. The grandparent sits down on the porch lounge chair just to take a “quick snooze” for a minute. As they close their eyes, the toddler wanders out of their own backyard and into the neighbor’s pool. No one realizes the child is gone and they drown in the pool. The neighbor might be negligent for not having an appropriate fence to protect from this very type of tragedy, but the grandparent could be liable, too. If they were supposed to be watching the baby and they were napping on the job, without making sure the child was properly contained in a safe place, the grandparent was negligent in keeping the child safe.
Dangerous activities
When children engage in activities that are typically adult-oriented, such as operating motor vehicles or handling firearms, they may be held to a higher standard of care, closer to that of an adult. The rationale is that engaging in inherently dangerous activities requires a level of responsibility and understanding comparable to an adult.
Texas personal injury lawsuits and children
In Texas, the laws regarding personal injury lawsuits for children (minors) have some specific considerations compared to those for adults. Here are the key points:
- Statute of limitations: Adults have two years from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit in most instances. A child injured in Texas can typically file a lawsuit up until they turn 20 because their “clock” begins to run on their 18th birthday, regardless of how old they were when the injury happened.
- Legal representation: A parent or legal guardian must act as the "next friend" of the child in legal proceedings to represent the child's interests in court because a minor may not file a lawsuit.
- Settlements and awards: Any settlement or court award from a personal injury lawsuit for a minor must be approved by the court to ensure it is in the child's best interest. The court might require that the funds be managed in a trust or a court-regulated account until the child reaches adulthood.
- Medical expenses: Claims for medical expenses incurred due to a child’s injury are usually considered the parent or guardian's responsibility. Therefore, parents can file a claim for these expenses before the child turns 18.
Texas lawsuits when a child injures another person
The child isn’t always the injured party. Children over a certain age could be negligent, and the law offers some protection to liable children.
Children are generally not held to the same standard of care as adults. The law recognizes that children do not possess the same level of judgment and experience as adults.
Texas reasonableness standard
The standard of care for children is based on what is reasonable to expect from a child of similar age, experience, and intelligence under similar circumstances. This standard is more flexible than the adult standard of care and considers the child’s capacity to understand and avoid risks.
Children under age 7
Generally presumed to be incapable of negligence. This means that in most cases, children under seven years old cannot be held legally responsible for their actions that cause harm.
Children ages 7-14
There is a rebuttable presumption that they are incapable of negligence, but this can be contested and overturned based on evidence showing that the child had the capacity to understand and avoid the risk.
Children over age 14
Often judged by a similar standard to adults, but taking into account their age, experience, and intelligence.
Is the parent responsible?
Parents might be held liable for their child's actions under certain circumstances, especially if the parent's negligence in supervision contributed to the child’s behavior that caused the injury. The unique negligence standards for children affect how personal injury claims are evaluated and litigated. Courts will closely examine the circumstances of the incident, considering the child’s age and maturity, to determine negligence and liability.
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