Dog bites

Published on: March 12, 2019

Dallas, Forney and Rockwall County Dog Bite Attorneys

Guest and Gray, P.C. is committed to helping dog attack victims recover top dollar for their injuries. Dogs are often thought of as “man’s best friend”, but that is not always the case. This is especially true in Texas where we lead the nation in Dog Bite Fatalities. Dog’s can attack without warning and for no apparent reason. Guest and Gray, P.C. has represented numerous dog bite victims in the Dallas, Forney, and Rockwall county areas and recovered top dollar for their injuries.

Establishing “Negligence” in a Dog Bite Case

In order to recover damages after a dog attack, the injured victim must show that the owner, aware of the dog’s aggressive tendencies, failed to use reasonable care to prevent the dog from harming someone. For instance, if the owner of a known aggressive dog regularly lets the dog out in the street or neighborhood, and that dog attacks someone, the homeowner will likely be liable under a negligence theory of recovery in Texas.

Published on: December 19, 2018

Guest and Gray: Dedicated to Serving Kaufman County

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Guest and Gray Law Firm is committed to serving Kaufman county and its residents who have been injured as a result of someone else’s negligence.

We get it. Lawyers, in general, get a bad rap. We are portrayed on TV as money hungry people who will do anything to get ahead. We readily admit that there are those in this industry that are that way, especially in personal injury. But, let me ask you this: are there people like that in your industry? I bet there are. There is probably a lot of them, and I would not for one second automatically think that is what you were simply because you work in the same industry as those people. At Guest and Gray, we work hard for our clients.

At Guest and Gray, our goal is to serve the people of our local community and protect them from being taken advantage of by insurance companies, hospitals and medical providers. That is our number one priority. After you have been injured in an accident, a lot of things happen: you are hurt. You need treatment, so you go to the hospital and then probably follow up treatments, etc.. That is expensive. Emergency hospital care can cost upwards of $100,000 depending on the types of treatments performed. On top of that, your car is messed up and either needs to be fixed or replaced. Your own health insurance company will pay for a lot of the medical bills, but they will want a cut out of any personal injury settlement you get. So, they will be hounding you about settling. The at-fault insurer will give you LOTS of run around about how much they are actually going to cover and what amounts they will not. You may be missing time from work.

Published on: December 17, 2018

Dog Bites Are The Worst: An Overview of Texas Law on Dog Attacks

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Ever been bitten by a dog? It is not very much fun. The personal injury lawyers at Guest and Gray Law Firm are keenly aware of this fact. Over the years, Guest and Gray Law Firm has helped victims of dog bites recover top dollar against negligent dog owners.

For the most part, dogs are man’s best friend. Not like those useless cats that just lay around the house and look at you in disgust. Dogs are sweet and caring and love you unconditionally. However, dogs have it in their system the capacity to become dangerous. Certain breeds more-so than others. Pit Bulls, Bull Dogs, and Rottweilers are some of the main dog breeds that people associate with a dangerous capacity to injure people.

However, in Texas, you really cannot just use a dog’s breed as a means of proving your dog bite case. It must be dog specific. This is a good and bad thing. Texas does not have a statute that covers civil liability for dog bites. Rather, in Marshall v. Ranne, 511 SW 2d 255 (Tex. S.C. 1974) the Texas Supreme Court adopted the view of dog bite law contained in the Restatement of Torts section 509. That means Texas is a “negligence” or “one bite rule” when it comes to dog bites. In order to recover damages for a dog bite, the injured person must show that:

Published on: December 13, 2018

Subrogation Issues In Kaufman and Rockwall County Personal Injury Cases

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Subrogation. The word itself is strange and seems scary to the uninformed. However, it is a very common legal tool for health insurance companies to recoup monies that they have paid out when their insured has been injured due to the negligence of a third party, i.e. a car or trucking accident, dog bite, etc..

The experienced personal injury attorneys at Guest and Gray navigate the complicated field of subrogation on a daily basis in pursuing personal injury cases for our injured clients. We have represented injured parties in Forney, Rockwall, Dallas, Terrell, and all over East Texas in hundreds of personal injury cases.

In most cases, if you are involved in an accident, you go to the hospital and you provide your health insurance information and you think that is that. However, unbeknownst to you, that gives rise to a subrogation claim by your health insurance company and they are pretty quick to pick up on the charges due to the type of treatment and billing codes that are entered by the hospital or other treatment facility.

Published on: December 12, 2018

Kaufman County Personal Injury Lawyers

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Guest and Gray is Kaufman County’s premier personal injury law firm. Our team of experienced personal injury lawyers and knowledgeable staff work hard on a daily basis to fight for the rights of Kaufman county’s injured accident victims.

As Kaufman county continues to grow at a record pace, Guest and Gray has been here since the beginning. We have recovered millions of dollars over the years for local Kaufman county residents after they have been injured in automobile, motorcycle, trucking accidents, dog bites, and many other types of injury cases. We work closely with providers, health insurance companies and the at-fault insurance carriers to maximize our client’s recovery in each case.

Our attorneys take each Kaufman County personal injury case on contingency. That means that we take on the risk and you pay nothing unless we win your case. Our personal injury lawyers are ready to take your case all the way to trial, if necessary.

Published on: May 29, 2018

Need Legal Help in Rockwall? Call Guest and Gray Today!

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Guest and Gray Law Firm is the firm to turn to when you have a legal problem. Our practice is quickly growing and we are the trusted Rockwall criminal and civil litigation firm. We are proud to own the title of being the largest and most highly rated local Rockwall law firm.

Sure, you can call a Dallas firm for help, but why? Guest and Gray, P.C. offers the same excellent service but we have convenient office locations for our Rockwall clients. Live in Rockwall or north of Rockwall? Our Rockwall office is located off of TL Townsend just passed the Rockwall county courthouse. Live south of Rockwall towards Heath? It may be better for you to meet us in our Forney location in downtown Forney just off the old townsquare near the city offices. Wherever you may be in Rockwall county, Guest and Gray, P.C. is the local choice.

We are skilled in all different practice areas that you may need, whether it be criminal defense, family law, civil litigation or personal injury, we have a lawyer (or two) just for you. Our attorneys are aggressive and fight hard for each client. No case is too big. We have the resources to take your case the distance. Period.

Published on: May 22, 2018

Guest and Gray Law Firm: Leveling the Playing Field For Injured Victims

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Guest and Gray is a full service law firm, specializing in manner different areas of law. One of our core practice areas is personal injury and wrongful death. If you or a loved one is involved in an auto, truck or motorcycle accident, you are going to have to deal with the at-fault party’s insurance carrier. If you do not hire an attorney, you will be going into a situation where the other party is a multi-billion dollar insurance company who specializes in negotiating these types of claims.

So let me ask you this question: In any other type of situation, would you enter into negotiations with a multi-billion dollar company without hiring someone to represent you?

My hope is that the answer would be a no. Don’t be the fool that the insurance company thinks you are.

Published on: April 4, 2018

Liability for Abnormally Dangerous Domesticated Animals

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

In Texas, a person can find themselves liable for the actions of an animal considered to be “abnormally dangerous”. An animal will be considered “abnormally dangerous” if its dangerous propensities that are abnormal to its class. That means that if the animals breed is typically known for being calm and sweet, yet the animal in question had bitten or nipped at a person in the past, it could be considered to have “dangerous propensities abnormal its class”. A domesticated animal is any animal (i.e. dog, cat, pig, horse, etc.) that is by custom devoted to the service of mankind at the time and place it is kept.

To prove a cause of action for injury by a dangerous domesticated animal, the plaintiff must show that:

1. The defendant owned or possessed the animal;

Published on: March 23, 2018

Law That Bites: The Texas “One Bite Rule”

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

According to Centers for Disease Control, there are approximately 4.5 million dog bites in America each year. Texas leads the nation in dog related fatalities, according to the most recent study of fatalities from 2005 to 2017, there have been 52 fatalities linked to vicious dog attacks, ranging in ages from 85-years old all the way down to just a two month old baby. In 2016, Texas ranked second overall in dog related fatalities.

The funny thing is that Texas, despite leading the nation in dog attacks and dog related death, does not have a statute that covers civil liability for dog bites.

Say what?