Board-Certified Personal Injury Attorney
You wake up in a hospital bed in League City, and the doctor is using words you do not yet understand, such as traumatic brain injury, spinal fusion, and multiple surgeries. The 18-wheeler that hit you on I-45 is gone. You are not the same. Catastrophic injuries from commercial truck crashes typically include traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, internal bleeding, severe burns, and traumatic amputations. A serious-injury lawsuit in Texas can take many months or longer to resolve. A Galveston County truck accident attorney like Bill T. Wells, of counsel to The Payne Law Group, can help you understand the road ahead.
Why 18-Wheeler Crashes Cause Such Severe Injuries
The physics are unforgiving. Federal regulations cap the maximum gross weight of a tractor-trailer at 80,000 pounds on the Interstate System. The average passenger car weighs roughly 4,419 pounds. When those two collide at highway speeds on I-45 or SH 146, the smaller vehicle absorbs an enormous transfer of force.
Texas consistently sees more fatal truck crashes than any other state. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, Texas recorded 39,393 CMV-involved crashes in 2024, including 546 fatal crashes and 608 fatalities, with 1,601 suspected serious injuries. TxDOT county and city reports also show meaningful crash activity in Galveston County and in La Marque and Texas City
The Most Common Catastrophic Truck Accident Injuries
Crashes involving 18-wheelers tend to produce a recognizable pattern of severe trauma. Bill Wells has seen these injuries again and again over more than 30 years of trial work in Galveston County:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), from mild concussions to permanent cognitive impairment
- Spinal cord injuries, including partial and complete paralysis
- Multiple bone fractures, often requiring surgical reconstruction
- Internal organ damage and internal bleeding
- Severe burns from fuel fires, especially in tanker and industrial cargo crashes
- Crush injuries and traumatic amputations
- Soft tissue and ligament damage that can take years to fully assess
Many of these injuries are not fully apparent in the first days after a crash. A “minor” headache can develop into a diagnosed brain injury weeks later. That delay is one reason why a quick settlement offer from a trucking company’s insurer is almost always too low.
How a Catastrophic Injury Lawsuit Unfolds in Texas
A serious 18-wheeler case is not a routine car accident claim. It typically moves through several stages, and each one matters.
Investigation and Evidence Preservation
Within days of a crash, the trucking company often dispatches its own investigators. Black-box electronic logging device data, dashcam footage, hours-of-service logs, and maintenance records can be overwritten or destroyed if no one demands their preservation. An experienced attorney sends spoliation letters immediately to lock down this evidence.
Identifying Every Responsible Party
Truck accidents rarely involve only the driver. Liability may extend to the trucking company, the cargo loader, the maintenance contractor, or even the truck or parts manufacturer. Sorting out who is responsible, and to what degree, shapes the entire case.
Filing Within the Statute of Limitations
Under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.003, a person generally has two years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit, and two years from the date of death for a wrongful death claim. Missing this deadline almost always ends the case, regardless of how serious the injuries were.
Discovery and Depositions
During discovery, both sides exchange documents, take sworn testimony, and bring in expert witnesses, including accident reconstructionists, treating physicians, life-care planners, and economists who can quantify a lifetime of medical care and lost earning capacity. This step in the process provides each side with information to evaluate the strength of their case.
Settlement or Trial
Most cases settle without going to trial. Cases that go to trial in Galveston County tend to involve disputed liability or insurers refusing to pay what a case is worth. Bill Wells has appeared more than 500 times in Galveston County courts and knows when a case needs to be tried.
Texas Comparative Fault and the 51% Rule
Trucking insurers often try to shift some of the blame to the injured driver. Under Texas’s proportionate responsibility rule, an injured person can recover damages only if their share of responsibility for the crash is 50 percent or less. Recovery is then reduced by that percentage. If you are found 20 percent at fault, your damages are cut by 20 percent. However, if you are found 51 or more percent at fault, you receive nothing.
Early evidence preservation in truck accident cases is critical. Skid marks fade, witnesses move, and surveillance footage is typically overwritten within days or weeks, depending on the system.
What Damages Can You Recover?
Texas law allows accident victims to seek compensation for both economic and non-economic losses. In a catastrophic injury case, those typically include:
- Past and future medical expenses, including rehabilitation, surgeries, and assistive devices
- Lost wages and lost future earning capacity
- Physical pain and mental anguish
- Physical impairment and disfigurement
- Loss of consortium for spouses and family members
- In wrongful death cases, funeral expenses and loss of companionship
A board-certified trial lawyer can build a damages model that accounts for what the next 30 or 40 years of your life will actually cost, not just the bills already on your kitchen counter.
How Bill T. Wells Approaches These Cases
Bill Wells is one of a small number of attorneys in Galveston County who is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, a credential he has held since 1990. He handles every case personally rather than passing it to a junior associate. On motor vehicle injury claims, his attorney’s fee is handled on a contingency basis, meaning you pay nothing unless there is a recovery, whether by settlement or trial. Consultations are free, the office answers the phone 24 hours a day, and Spanish-speaking clients can speak with the team directly. Se Habla Español.
Talk to a Galveston County 18-Wheeler Accident Attorney Today
Catastrophic injuries deserve serious legal attention, and the time to act is now while evidence is fresh and deadlines are still in your favor. Contact Bill T. Wells’s office today to discuss what happened, what your case may be worth, and how Bill Wells and The Payne Law Group can help you move forward.