Can You Sue After Accepting Workers' Comp Benefits in Texas?

Three Ways You Can Still Sue After a Texas Work Injury

Even if you are actively receiving workers’ comp benefits, the law provides distinct avenues to step outside the workers’ comp system and file a lawsuit. If your case meets any of the following criteria, you could be entitled to significantly more compensation.

1. Third-Party Liability Claims (The Most Common Exception)

The exclusive remedy rule only protects your direct employer and your coworkers. It does not protect other people or outside companies whose negligence caused your injuries which are often referred to as a third party. If a third party caused or contributed to your injuries, you can file a lawsuit against them while simultaneously collecting your workers’ comp benefits.

At Jim Adler & Associates, we frequently see third-party liability in cases involving:

• Subcontractors and Property Owners: On complex job sites (like construction zones, warehouses, refineries or oil rigs), multiple companies work side-by-side. If an employee from another company drops a tool on you, improperly repairs pipe or piece of equipment or if a property owner fails to fix a known hazard, they can be held fully liable.
• Car Wrecks and 18-Wheeler Accidents: If you are driving a company vehicle for work and get hit by a distracted driver or a negligent 18-wheeler operator, you can sue that at-fault driver and their insurance company. According to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), tens of thousands of commercial motor vehicle crashes occur on Texas roads every year. We aggressively pursue the drivers and trucking companies responsible for these wrecks.
• Defective Products and Machinery: If a piece of heavy equipment, a power tool, or a vehicle part fails due to improper maintenance, a manufacturing defect, you can sue the maintenance company or manufacturer.
  
  

2. Wrongful Death and Gross Negligence

Workplace fatalities are devastating, and traditional workers’ comp death benefits are often a slap in the face to a grieving family. Fortunately, Texas law provides a vital exception for families who have lost a loved one.

Under Texas Labor Code § 408.001(b), the exclusive remedy rule does not prohibit a surviving spouse or the heirs of the deceased from suing the employer for exemplary (punitive) damages if the worker’s death was caused by the employer’s gross negligence or an intentional act.

Gross negligence, as defined by the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, means the employer was subjectively aware of an extreme degree of risk to their workers but proceeded with conscious indifference to their safety. If a corporation knowingly ordered your loved one into a deadly situation to save time or money, Jim Adler & Associates has aggressively pursued companies and held them accountable.

3. The Texas Non-Subscriber Exception

Texas is unique. It is the only state in the country that does not legally force private employers to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Companies that choose not to purchase workers’ compensation insurance are known as “non-subscribers”.

If your employer is a non-subscriber, the exclusive remedy rule is no longer available to your employer. You have the absolute right to sue your employer directly for negligence. Even better for injured workers, Texas law explicitly strips non-subscribing employers of many common legal defenses. Under Texas Labor Code § 406.033, a non-subscriber may be barred from arguing that:

• You were partially at fault (contributory negligence).
• You knew the job was dangerous and accepted the risk (assumption of risk).
• A coworker caused your injury (the fellow-servant doctrine).