Catastrophically Injured in the Oil & Gas Industry in South Texas? We Know the Extreme Risks.
The oil and gas fields of South Texas power the nation but operate in an environment of extreme, unforgiving hazard. When safety protocols are compromised in the name of speed or profit, the results are explosions, fires, equipment failures, and toxic exposures that cause life-altering burns, traumatic amputations, spinal injuries, and death. For the workers and families affected, the aftermath is a landscape of physical trauma, financial uncertainty, and complex legal battles against some of the world’s largest and most powerful corporations.
At Barton & Associates, our South Texas oil field and energy accident lawyers are not intimidated by corporate giants. We have built a reputation for taking on the most complex, high-stakes cases in the energy sector. We understand the brutal physics of a drilling rig, the volatile chemistry of a processing plant, and the intricate web of contractors and subcontractors on every site. Our mission is to conduct a fearless investigation to uncover the root cause of your accident and hold every negligent party—from the well operator to the equipment manufacturer—fully accountable for the devastation they have caused.
The Unique and Extreme Dangers of the South Texas Oil & Gas Industry
The Eagle Ford Shale and Permian Basin operations present specific, high-consequence hazards. Our attorneys have deep experience with the catastrophic injuries that result from:
- Well Blowouts & Explosions: The sudden, uncontrolled release of oil or gas under extreme pressure, often leading to fireballs and massive structural damage.
- Fracking & Pressure-Related Incidents: Injuries from high-pressure fluid injection systems, hose failures, and equipment malfunctions during hydraulic fracturing operations.
- Fires & Flash Burns: Ignition of flammable gases, vapors, or liquids, causing severe and disfiguring burn injuries across the body.
- Toxic Chemical & Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) Exposure: Invisible, deadly exposures that can cause respiratory failure, neurological damage, and long-term illness.
- Equipment Failures & Crane Accidents: Collapses of derricks, failures of drilling machinery, and malfunctions of heavy lifting equipment like cranes and winches.
- Transportation & “Man Camp” Vehicle Accidents: Fatigue-related crashes involving industry trucks, as well as accidents while transporting workers to and from remote sites.
The Critical Legal Distinction: “Statutory Employer” Doctrine & Third-Party Liability
Like all Texas workplace injuries, oil field accidents are governed by the workers’ compensation system. However, the industry’s structure creates unique legal opportunities. Most major operators and large contractors carry workers’ comp insurance. If your direct employer is a “subscriber,” you are generally barred from suing them.
The key to a successful recovery lies in pursuing third-party liability claims. On a typical oil or gas site, numerous other companies may share responsibility for your safety. We investigate to hold these entities liable:
- Well Operators & Leaseholders: The company that owns the mineral rights and oversees the entire operation has a non-delegable duty to ensure overall site safety.
- General Contractors & Other Subcontractors: If an employee of a different company (e.g., the casing crew, the fracking service company, or the transportation contractor) causes your accident through negligence, their company can be sued.
- Equipment Manufacturers & Designers: Defective blowout preventers (BOPs), valves, pumps, hoses, and safety systems are frequent culprits. We pursue aggressive product liability claims against these manufacturers.
- Property & Facility Owners: Owners of processing plants, refineries, or pipeline facilities can be liable for unsafe premises.
Pursuing these third-party claims allows us to seek full tort damages—compensation for pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of consortium, and punitive damages—that are not available through a standard workers’ compensation claim.
The Immediate Steps to Protect Your Rights After an Energy Industry Accident
- Report the Injury: Notify your supervisor in writing immediately. Ensure an incident report is filed that accurately describes the event.
- Seek Emergency Medical Care: Do not downplay symptoms. Get a thorough evaluation and describe to doctors exactly how the injury occurred (e.g., “exposed to chemical vapors” or “caught in equipment”).
- Document & Preserve Evidence: If possible and safe, take photos of the accident scene, the equipment involved, and your injuries. If a piece of failed equipment caused your injury, note its make, model, and serial number. Do not let it be “sent off for inspection” by the company without your attorney’s knowledge.
- Identify Witnesses: Get the names and contact information of co-workers from any company who saw what happened.
- Do NOT Give Recorded Statements: You may be contacted by multiple insurance adjusters. Do not provide a recorded statement to anyone—including your employer’s workers’ comp carrier or a third-party insurer—without consulting an attorney. They will use it to limit your claim.
- Contact a Specialized Oil Field Accident Attorney Immediately: Call Barton & Associates. The corporate defendants will immediately launch their own investigation to protect themselves. We must act with equal speed to secure evidence, including safety manuals, maintenance logs, crew reports, and equipment data before it is altered or destroyed.
How Barton & Associates Builds a Maximum Recovery Energy Industry Case
We deploy an investigation modeled on the industry’s own root-cause analyses, but with one goal: justice for you.
- Immediate Evidence Preservation & Site Investigation: We send legal “spoliation letters” to every potentially liable company, demanding they preserve all physical evidence, electronic data, maintenance records, safety meeting minutes, and personnel files. We work with industry experts to inspect the site and equipment.
- Mastery of Industry Standards & Regulations: Our case strategy is built on proving violations of:
- Federal Regulations (OSHA, BSEE – Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement)
- Industry Standards (API – American Petroleum Institute standards, ASME codes)
- Company’s Own Safety Protocols
- Collaboration with Elite Technical Experts: We retain a network of the nation’s leading experts: petroleum engineers, drilling operation specialists, chemical process safety experts, mechanical engineers, and forensic toxicologists. They help us deconstruct the accident and prove liability.
- Identifying All Liable Parties in the Contract Chain: We analyze master service agreements (MSAs), contracts, and indemnity clauses to pinpoint which entities had control over the worksite and the specific operation that failed.
- Comprehensive, Lifetime Damages Calculation: We work with economists and life-care planners to build a claim that reflects the true cost of a catastrophic energy industry injury:
- Past and Future Medical Expenses (burn centers, reconstructive surgery, lifelong rehabilitation, psychological care)
- Lost Wages & Loss of Future Earning Capacity (for a worker who can never return to the field)
- Physical Pain and Suffering & Mental Anguish (PTSD from traumatic events is common)
- Punitive Damages, which are frequently justified in cases involving willful disregard for known, extreme safety risks.
Why You Need a Firm with Resources to Battle Corporate Giants
The energy companies and their insurers deploy teams of high-powered defense lawyers and corporate investigators. They have immense resources designed to outlast and overwhelm injured workers. To succeed, you need a law firm that can match their resources and their determination.
- Financial Resources to Fund the Fight: These cases require six- and seven-figure investments in experts, depositions, and investigation. We have the capital to see your case through to trial, if necessary.
- Technical Knowledge & Credibility: Our attorneys speak the language of the industry. We can depose a drilling engineer or a company safety director and understand the answers. This credibility is essential in both negotiation and the courtroom.
- A Proven Record Against Major Corporations: Our history of securing multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts in energy cases sends a clear message: we are prepared to win at trial.
The Barton & Associates Difference
- Dual-Track Strategy: We help you navigate the workers’ compensation system for immediate benefits while aggressively pursuing the separate, full-value third-party claim.
- Unwavering Commitment to Workers: We represent roughnecks, roustabouts, welders, drivers, and engineers. We believe in the skill and courage of the energy workforce and fight to protect them when corporations cut corners.
- Compassionate, Aggressive Advocacy: We understand the profound impact these injuries have on families. We fight not just for a settlement, but for security and dignity. Se habla español.
Don’t Let a Corporation’s Negligence End Your Future
The workers’ compensation benefits offered after a catastrophic oil field accident are a fraction of what you will need for a lifetime of medical care and adapted living. They do not compensate for your pain, your suffering, or the loss of the high-paying career you trained for.
Our firm is dedicated to breaking through the legal barriers to seek full and fair compensation from every company whose negligence contributed to your injury.
Contact Our South Texas Oil Field & Energy Accident Law Firm Today
If you or a loved one has suffered a severe burn, amputation, traumatic brain injury, or other life-altering harm in an oil field, refinery, pipeline, or energy industry accident, the legal and investigative battle begins now. Evidence is controlled by the defendants and can be lost or manipulated.
You need a legal team that knows the industry and fears no opponent. Let the experienced South Texas energy accident attorneys at Barton & Associates fight for you.
Call Barton & Associates, Attorneys at Law, now at 210-500-0000 for a free, confidential, no-obligation consultation. We will listen to your story, explain your legal rights in clear terms, and begin building the powerful case you need to secure your future.
Main Category: Personal Injury
Practice Area Category: Workplace & On-Site Injuries
Barton & Associates, Attorneys at Law
115 Camaron St, San Antonio, TX 78205
Office: 210-500-0000
