Texas Dog Bite Injury Lawyers

Roughly, but that description undersells your options. An owner is strictly liable if they knew or should have known the dog had dangerous propensities — a prior bite, aggressive lunging, or a history of complaints.

Even with no such history, you may still have a claim in ordinary negligence: an owner who lets a dog roam in violation of a leash ordinance, or who fails to secure a gate, can be liable for what follows.

Usually the owner's homeowners or renters insurance, which commonly includes liability coverage for injuries caused by a pet. Some policies exclude particular breeds or exclude animals with a bite history, which is one of the first things we check.

Yes, in two ways that matter. The limitations period does not begin to run against a child until their 18th birthday, so the deadline is different from an adult's.

And a settlement on behalf of a minor generally requires court approval, with the funds protected until the child comes of age. Both are routine, but neither is optional.

This is the most common reason people never make a claim, and it is usually based on a misunderstanding. The claim is made against their insurance policy, which is exactly what the policy exists for.

In practice the owner's out-of-pocket exposure is often nothing at all.

Possibly. Texas negligence principles are not limited to bites. An owner who fails to control a dog that then causes injury — by knocking someone down stairs, or by running into the road and causing a crash — may still be liable.

Reporting creates an official record of the incident and of the dog, which is often the single most useful piece of evidence in the case. It also triggers the rabies observation process, which is a health matter independent of your claim.

It is worth doing promptly even if you have not decided whether to pursue anything.

Nothing up front. We work on a contingency fee, which means our fee is a percentage of what we recover for you and there is no fee at all if we do not recover anything.

The case review is free, and you are not obligated to hire us after it.

In most cases, two years from the date of the injury. Miss that window and the court will almost always dismiss the case regardless of its merits.

The exceptions matter in both directions: the clock is paused for a child until their 18th birthday, while a claim against a city, county, or state agency requires written notice far sooner — six months under state law, and as little as 45 or 90 days under some city charters. Because the deadline depends on who is at fault, it is worth confirming early.

You can still recover. Texas uses proportionate responsibility: as long as you are 50% or less at fault, you collect damages reduced by your share of the blame. At 51% you recover nothing.

That threshold is exactly why adjusters work so hard to pin blame on the injured person early. Fault is argued, not decided at the scene.