Texas rewrote the rules for commercial truck lawsuits in 2021, and most Houston drivers do not find out until they are already fighting an 18-wheeler claim. Hank Stout, Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law and co-founder of Sutliff & Stout, sits down with Abby to break down Texas HB 19's two-phase trial, the evidence it keeps from the jury, and the two-year filing deadline that can quietly end a case before it starts.
Questions answered:
- What is Texas HB 19, and why was it passed in 2021?
- What is the bifurcated, two-phase trial HB 19 created?
- What evidence does a jury hear first, and what gets held back?
- How did HB 19 change the use of federal safety violations as evidence?
- How did HB 19 change negligent hiring and supervision claims against carriers?
- Can a victim still recover punitive damages from a trucking company after HB 19?
- What is a corporate representative deposition, and why does it matter?
- How does Texas's 51% comparative fault rule decide what a victim recovers?
- How long do you have to file a truck accident lawsuit in Texas?
- When does the two-year filing clock actually start running?
- What happens if a victim misses the Texas filing deadline?
Topics covered include Texas House Bill 19, the bifurcated two-phase trial, compensatory versus punitive damages, federal motor carrier safety violations, negligent hiring and supervision claims, corporate representative depositions, Texas's 51% comparative fault rule, joint and several liability, the two-year statute of limitations, the discovery rule, wrongful death filing deadlines, government notice requirements, and Houston/Harris County truck litigation.
"It makes it where if you're suing a trucking company, then there's a two-part or two-phase trial. It's called bifurcated."
— Hank Stout, 0:52
"The longer you wait, the more evidence disappears. Phone records go away, video goes away, dash cam video goes away, audio goes away, records go away. They all get deleted."
— Hank Stout, 20:07
"[Corporate representative depositions] can be very impactful because oftentimes those people are not prepared. They can't justify the behavior of their organization, and juries don't appreciate the manner in which they are behaving in the business world."
— Hank Stout, 15:39
"If you're held greater than fifty percent or fifty-one percent at fault, then you're responsible for the whole judgment."
— Hank Stout, 16:51
"If you do not file within the two years, the insurance company or the trucking company has no legal responsibility to pay you, and they won't."
— Hank Stout, 22:23
Hank Stout and Graham Sutliff, co-founders of Sutliff & Stout, are both Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, a credential held by a small fraction of Texas attorneys. The firm works on contingency: no fee unless we win.
Protect your deadline before the trucking company's lawyers get ahead of your case.
Free consultation: sutliffstout.com
Phone: (713) 987-7111
Office: Houston, TX
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This podcast is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Watching does not create an attorney-client relationship with Sutliff & Stout. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Hank Stout and Graham Sutliff are licensed in Texas and Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.
