Texas Governmental Liability for Auto Accidents

I was seriously injured in a car accident with a government vehicle; can I still bring a claim against the at-fault driver?

If a person is seriously injured in an auto accident with a vehicle owned or operated by a local, state, or federal government agency, there are difficulties that must be considered if they wish to bring a suit against the at-fault driver.

All governmental units have what is called “sovereign immunity” from suit.  This rather archaic principle is a vestige of the times when the people were ruled by a sovereign, that is a king, queen, emperor, or other monarch.  Because the sovereign was the theoretical source of the law itself, any suit at law could not be brought against the monarch, giving them near total immunity from suit.

Although we are supposed to have a government “of, by and for the People,” the government today still likes to exercise this immunity at will, and has the legal authority to do so.  However, popular sentiment top the contrary has resulted in something, in Texas, called the Tort Claims Act, which waives this immunity for certain suits brought against governmental units.  A similar law affects the federal government, though we will not elaborate upon it here.

However, you must be careful.  Because you can bring a suit against a governmental unit only as authorized by the Tort Claims Act, you are accordingly limited in your ability to sue them.  Most suits against the State are limited to a maximum of $250,000 in damages, though some are further limited to $100,000.  You are also further limited, for example, if your suit is against a driver who was not a paid employee but an unpaid volunteer such as a volunteer sheriff’s deputy or volunteer fireman.  In these cases, you are barred from suit by the original governmental immunity and the lack of any waiver.  If your suit is barred by immunity, you may still be able to bring a claim against your own UM/UIM carrier, as discussed in a previous post, but the intricacies of such a suit require the assistance of an experienced Texas personal injury lawyer.  If you have had an accident with e governmental vehicle, please contact us today.