San Antonio Public Entity & Government Claims Attorneys: Holding the Government Accountable

When Government Negligence Causes Harm, You Face a Different Set of Rules

The roads we drive, the parks where our children play, and the public buildings we enter every day are maintained by government entities—cities, counties, the state of Texas, and their various agencies. We rightfully expect these public spaces to be safe. However, when negligence by a government employee or a dangerous condition on public property causes a serious injury, the path to justice is not the same as suing a private individual or company. Government entities in Texas are protected by the legal doctrine of sovereign immunity, a centuries-old principle that historically barred lawsuits against the state entirely. Today, while the Texas Tort Claims Act (TTCA) provides a limited waiver of this immunity, pursuing a claim requires navigating a labyrinth of strict procedural rules, dramatically shortened deadlines, and specific legal hurdles designed to protect the public treasury.

At Barton & Associates, Attorneys at Law, our Public Entity & Government Claims practice is dedicated exclusively to this highly specialized and demanding area of law. We understand that victims of government negligence face a system stacked in favor of the defense from the very start. A misstep in procedure can forever bar your claim, regardless of its merit. Whether you were injured in a car accident with a city bus, tripped on a broken sidewalk maintained by San Antonio, suffered harm due to neglect in a county jail, or were injured by a state employee’s negligence, you need an attorney who doesn’t just practice personal injury law but who has mastered the intricate and unforgiving rules that govern claims against the government.

Our mission is to level this profoundly uneven playing field. We combine the aggressive advocacy and investigative prowess of our personal injury division with a meticulous, detail-oriented approach to governmental liability law. From the moment you contact us, we operate with urgency, recognizing that critical evidence must be preserved and that the clock is ticking on deadlines measured in months, not years. We know how to properly investigate a claim against a city or county, how to draft the legally precise formal notice required by the TTCA, and how to anticipate and overcome the defenses that government lawyers routinely employ. We fight to secure compensation for our clients while demanding accountability from the public entities that are funded by taxpayer dollars and entrusted with public safety.

Sovereign Immunity and the Texas Tort Claims Act: The Foundation of Your Case

To understand a government claim, you must first understand the legal landscape:

• Sovereign Immunity: In Texas, the government cannot be sued without its consent. This is not a measure of fault, but a jurisdictional barrier.
• The Texas Tort Claims Act (TTCA): This is the law that gives its “consent” to be sued, but only under very specific, limited conditions. The TTCA is a statute of exceptions, outlining precisely when immunity is “waived.” Our entire case hinges on fitting your claim within one of these exceptions.

The TTCA primarily waives immunity in three scenarios relevant to personal injury:

1. Use of Motor-Driven Equipment: Injuries caused by the negligent operation or use of a publicly owned vehicle (e.g., city garbage truck, police car, fire truck, school bus).
2. Condition or Use of Tangible Personal Property: Injuries caused by a condition or use of property (e.g., a defective jail cell door, faulty medical equipment in a public hospital, a broken chair in a government office).
3. Premises Defects: Injuries caused by a dangerous condition on real property (e.g., a pothole on a city street, a missing guardrail on a county bridge, a slippery floor in a public library, unsafe playground equipment in a city park).

Critical Differences: Why Government Claims Are Not Standard Lawsuits

Pursuing a claim against a city, county, or the State of Texas is a procedural minefield. Key distinctions include:

• Drastically Shortened Notice Deadline: Before you can even file a lawsuit, the TTCA requires you to provide formal, written notice of your claim to the correct government entity. For most cities and counties, you have only six months from the date of the incident to provide this detailed notice. Missing this deadline is fatal to your claim.
• Caps on Damages: Even if you win, your recovery is limited by law. As of the latest updates, damages against a municipality (city) are capped, with specific limits. These caps do not apply to exemplary damages in certain cases involving criminal acts.
• No Strict Liability & Limited Duties: The government’s duty to keep premises safe is often lower than that of a private landowner. For “premises defects,” you must often prove the government had actual knowledge of the danger and that the condition posed an unreasonably high risk of harm.
• Discretionary Immunity: The TTCA does not waive immunity for claims based on a government employee’s discretionary decisions (planning or policy decisions), as opposed to operational-level negligence.

Our Core Practice Areas Within Public Entity Claims

1. Dangerous Roads & Highway Defects

Poorly maintained public roadways are a leading cause of catastrophic accidents. We handle claims involving:

• Unmarked or Dangerous Road Hazards: Unreasonably large potholes, eroded shoulders, missing guardrails, and improperly placed construction barriers.
• Defective Traffic Controls: Malfunctioning traffic signals, missing stop signs, and poorly designed intersections that create confusion and cause collisions.
• Inadequate Road Design: Roads known to be dangerously designed (excessive curves, poor drainage causing ice or standing water).

Our Approach: We immediately engage accident reconstructionists and civil engineers to document the condition, prove the government’s prior knowledge (through maintenance records or prior incident reports), and demonstrate how the defect directly caused the accident.

2. Injuries on Public Property (Premises Liability)

Government entities are landlords for a vast amount of property. We pursue claims for injuries sustained due to:

• Unsafe Sidewalks & Walkways: Cracked, uneven, or crumbling sidewalks in disrepair.
• Dangerous Public Parks & Playgrounds: Defective playground equipment, exposed sprinkler heads, unsafe athletic fields, or inadequate security leading to assaults.
• Hazardous Conditions in Public Buildings: Slippery floors in libraries or courthouses, falling debris, poor lighting in stairwells, or broken fixtures.

3. Law Enforcement & Police Vehicle Incidents

While excessive force cases fall under civil rights, we handle claims related to the negligent operation of police vehicles (e.g., high-speed pursuit crashes, failure to yield) and other non-intentional torts by law enforcement within the scope of the TTCA.

4. Jail & Detention Center Negligence

Counties are responsible for the safety and medical care of inmates. We handle claims involving:

• Failure to Provide Medical Care: Deliberate indifference to serious medical needs, resulting in injury or death.
• Failure to Protect: Inmate-on-inmate assaults that the jail staff knew or should have known were likely to occur.
• Unsafe Facility Conditions: Such as mold, asbestos, or fire hazards.

5. Accidents Involving Government Vehicles

We handle collisions caused by the negligence of operators of:

• City and County Fleet Vehicles: Sanitation trucks, water department vehicles, maintenance trucks.
• Public Transit: VIA Metropolitan Transit buses.
• School Buses.
• Police and Fire Department vehicles (when not engaged in emergency response with lights and sirens, or when the response itself is negligent).

The Government Claim Process: A Step-by-Step Guide

Navigating a TTCA claim requires strict adherence to a formal process where timing is everything.

1. Immediate Investigation & Evidence Preservation (Day 1): We act with urgency to photograph the scene, identify witnesses, secure surveillance footage from nearby city or business cameras, and file open records requests for relevant government maintenance logs, repair records, and prior incident reports.
2. Drafting & Serving the Formal Notice of Claim (Within 6 Months): We prepare and serve a detailed notice that complies with all TTCA requirements, including:
   1. A description of the damage or injury.
   2. The time, place, and detailed circumstances of the incident.
   3. The names of all involved government employees.
   4. A specific monetary amount of damages demanded.
   5. This notice must be sent via certified mail, return receipt requested, to the entity’s governing body (e.g., the City Secretary of San Antonio, the Bexar County Judge).
3. The Government’s Investigation Period (6 Months): The entity has six months from the date it receives notice to investigate and either deny or settle the claim. They may request a recorded statement or examination, which we carefully prepare you for. You cannot file a lawsuit during this 6-month period.
4. Filing the Lawsuit (The 2-Year Statute of Limitations): If the claim is denied or not settled within the six-month period, you then have the standard two-year personal injury statute of limitations from the date of the incident to file suit, but no time is extended beyond that.

The Barton & Associates Difference in Government Claims

1. Urgent, Procedurally Perfect Start: We treat every potential government claim as an emergency to ensure no deadline is missed and no procedural requirement is overlooked. Our system is built for the TTCA’s accelerated timeline.
2. Mastery of the TTCA and Case Law: We stay current on the evolving interpretations of the TTCA by Texas courts, allowing us to craft arguments that fit within the waivers of immunity and defeat common government defenses like “discretionary immunity.”
3. Aggressive Use of Public Information Requests: We are skilled at using the Texas Public Information Act to force the disclosure of critical documents that prove the government’s knowledge of a dangerous condition—a key element in premises defect cases.
4. Trial-Ready Against Public Defenders: Government lawyers often expect claimants to give up. We prepare every case with the assumption it will go to trial, giving us the leverage to negotiate fair settlements and the skill to win in court when necessary.

If You’ve Been Injured by Government Negligence, Time Is Your Greatest Enemy

The most meritorious claim in the world will be dismissed if the six-month notice rule is violated. The complexity of these cases means you cannot afford to wait or to rely on an attorney who does not specialize in this niche area.

Protect Your Rights Immediately

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured due to a dangerous public road, unsafe public property, or the negligence of a government employee in the San Antonio area, contact the Public Entity & Government Claims Attorneys at Barton & Associates today. We offer a free, confidential, and urgent case evaluation. We will immediately assess the critical deadlines, explain the unique process, and begin the meticulous work required to build your claim. Call us 24/7 at 210-500-0000 for a free consultation or use our online Free Consultation form.

Main Category: Personal Injury
Barton & Associates, Attorneys at Law
115 Camaron St, San Antonio, TX 78205
Office: 210-500-0000