Last updated: October 5, 2026 · Written by John C. Hubbard, Attorney
John C. Hubbard is licensed in Texas and admitted to the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas in Houston. The firm represents people hurt in wrecks and falls across Harris County and files their cases in the Harris County district courts or, when an out of state defendant removes the case, in federal court downtown. Texas: 832-410-8121. No fee unless money is recovered, and the review is free. Se habla español.
Where Houston injury cases are filed
Injury suits in Houston are filed in the Harris County civil district courts at the civil courthouse on Caroline Street downtown, or in the county civil courts at law for smaller claims. Cases are assigned randomly among the civil district courts. Out of state defendants, which includes most trucking carriers and national retailers, can remove the case to the Southern District of Texas, where John is admitted, and the firm handles it there. Wrecks in Fort Bend, Montgomery and Galveston counties are filed in those counties’ courts, and the firm handles those as well.
Texas fault rules
Texas follows modified comparative fault (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 33.001): you recover as long as you were not more than 50 percent responsible, and your award is reduced by your share. That is more forgiving than Alabama’s rule, but the adjuster still wants a recorded statement in the first week to build your percentage. Do not give one until the firm has reviewed the file.
The roads where Houston wrecks happen
The Gulf Freeway (I-45) between downtown and the Beltway, the Katy Freeway (I-10) west of the 610 Loop, the Southwest Freeway (U.S. 59 and I-69) through the Galleria area and Sugar Land, the Eastex Freeway, and the 610 Loop interchanges produce most of the firm’s Houston files. Beltway 8 and the Hardy Toll Road add the high speed commercial truck collisions. Westheimer, Bellaire Boulevard, FM 1960 and the Westpark corridor account for the surface street wrecks. Houston Police investigate inside the city, the Harris County Sheriff in unincorporated areas, and DPS on the state highways; the crash report number from the scene is the first thing the firm requests.
Deadlines, including the short one
Two years from the injury to file suit in Texas (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003), and two years from the date of death for a wrongful death claim. A claim against the City of Houston, METRO, Harris County or any other governmental unit requires written notice within six months under the Texas Tort Claims Act (§ 101.101), and the Houston city charter requires it within 90 days. Dash cam and intersection footage is gone within weeks, so the firm sends preservation letters immediately.
Uninsured drivers and your own coverage
Texas requires only $30,000 per person in liability coverage, and a large share of Houston drivers carry nothing. If the driver who hit you is one of them, your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage is the claim. Your insurer will contest fault and damages just as the other driver’s would, and Texas law requires you to establish the uninsured driver’s liability before the UM carrier has to pay. Send the firm your declarations page with the crash report.
Treatment, medical bills and what Texas lets the jury see
Houston clients treat at Memorial Hermann, Houston Methodist, Ben Taub, HCA Houston Healthcare, and the freestanding emergency rooms that line the freeways. Texas limits recovery of medical expenses to the amounts actually paid or incurred (§ 41.0105), so a $40,000 hospital bill that insurance settled for $9,000 is a $9,000 claim. Hospital liens under Chapter 55 of the Property Code, and health insurer and Medicare recovery rights, come out of the settlement, and the firm negotiates each of them after the amount is set.
Truck wrecks
Houston’s port and refinery traffic puts more commercial trucks on its freeways than almost any city in the country. Those cases turn on the carrier’s electronic logs, engine data and cameras, which federal rules let the carrier discard within months, so the first letter in every truck case is a preservation demand. See the firm’s truck wreck page for the federal rules.
Start your Houston injury case
Answer the questions below and John will review your summary, usually the same business day. It takes about three minutes. Or call 832-410-8121.
Frequently asked questions
Is John C. Hubbard licensed in Texas?
Yes, since 2018, and he is admitted to the Southern and Northern Districts of Texas.
Where is a Houston car wreck case filed?
In the Harris County civil district courts downtown, or in the Southern District of Texas if an out of state defendant removes it.
What if the wreck was partly my fault?
Under Texas comparative fault you still recover as long as you were not more than 50 percent responsible, reduced by your share.
What does it cost?
Nothing up front. The firm is paid a percentage of the recovery, and there is no attorney’s fee if there is no recovery.
This page is general information about Texas law, not legal advice, and contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship. John C. Hubbard is not certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Principal office: Birmingham, Alabama.