Oilfield Injury Lawyers in Odessa, TX

Why Choose Kemmy Law Firm?

You may recognize you need an oilfield injury lawyer right away. But who do you choose? Deciding the right firm for you is difficult, particularly when you are injured, dealing with medical providers, and worried about your family’s financial stability. We want to help make the choice easy for you.

Kemmy Law Firm has over 50 years of combined experience handling complex and contentious personal injury and wrongful death claims.

We understand the importance of:

• Conducting in-depth investigations;
• Conducting careful analyses of the evidence;
• Calculating damages while paying close attention to future medical needs, expenses, and lost wages;
• Hiring necessary medical, economic, vocational, accident reconstruction, and industry experts;
• Filing a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits;
• Aggressively negotiating fair settlements; and
• When necessary, taking oilfield accidents in Odessa and the Permian Basin to trial.

We have the resources, skills, and experience you need to go up against big oil companies and their insurers. We have never backed down from a fight, and we won’t start now. No matter how established the liable party, we are not afraid to demand that you be properly compensated for your injuries.

Another benefit of choosing Kemmy Law Firm is that we are a family-owned and -operated law firm. We treat every client like a relative, which means you are always treated with kindness, dignity, and respect. We are always here to listen to your concerns, answer your questions, and explain your options. You won’t be left in the dark or made to feel like your time is not important.

We intentionally limit our caseload to ensure each case gets plenty of time and attention from our team. You can be confident you are receiving quality legal representation from the very beginning to the very end of your case.

Texas Oilfield Accidents

In recent years, the U.S. has shifted away from relying on foreign oil sources and has focused on extracting resources from our own soil. This has created a booming oil industry in West Texas throughout the Permian Basin.

The Permian Basin is now the second-most-producing oilfield in the world, and some industry leaders suspect its production will surpass the Ghawar field in Saudi Arabia. The growing production on the Permian Basin means a greater number of Texas and New Mexico residents are working in the oilfields, on oil rigs, in oil and gas transportation, and at other related facilities.

As the industry grows and the large, well-known oil companies make large investments in the Permian Basin, safety and health issues abound. There are more wells, more workers, and more work to be done. Workers need proper training, supervision, and well-maintained equipment. Without these resources, accidents will continue to occur.

In 2015, there were 63 fatalities across 977 average rigs, captured by NIOSH Fatalities in Oil and Gas Extraction (FOG). In 2016, there were 29 fatalities across 510 average rigs. The most fatalities during those two years were in Texas, where 45 fatalities occurred across an average of 334 rigs.

Transportation accidents also are becoming a greater concern to workers and locals. Large commercial trucks are constantly traveling to and from oilfields and refineries, significantly increasing traffic. Along with more traffic is a greater rate of serious and deadly truck accidents involving oil and gas workers and others.

Vehicle accidents were the most common fatal event type in 2015-16, according to FOG. Vehicle accidents led to 26 fatalities (28%).

Odessa Oilfield Accidents We Handle

Our firm has handled catastrophic injury cases for decades. Our wealth of experience enables us to carefully investigate oilfield accidents, identify the at-fault and liable parties, and vigorously pursue compensation for workers.

We recommend you call an oilfield injury attorney as soon as possible after:

• Truck accidents
• Other transportation accidents
• Heavy equipment and machinery accidents
• Equipment failure
• Natural gas explosions
• Fires and burn injuries
• Well blowouts
• Chemical and hazardous material exposure, such as H2S
• Poisoning
• Fracking accidents
• Slips, trips, and falls
• Falls from heights
• Struck by objects accidents
• Confined space collapse and other accidents
• Crush injuries

These accidents occur for a variety of reasons. Some may be the result of a careless coworker. Others may be the result of companies providing old, poorly maintained equipment or failing to provide appropriate safety gear. We also handle incidents caused by defective oilfield equipment.

Whatever your specific circumstances, it is important you work with an oilfield injury lawyer. The law and process surrounding oilfield accidents differ from other forms of personal injury law. If you hire an attorney with little-no-experience with the oil and gas industry, you may not have the strongest claim possible.

Evaluate Your Oilfield Injuries

When you are involved in an oil and gas industry accident, you may sustain serious injuries, including:

• Multiple and complex bone fractures
• Soft tissue injuries
• Lacerations and scarring
• Fire-related, electric, or chemical burn injuries
• Crush injuries
• Traumatic or surgical amputations
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Back injuries, including herniated discs and fractured vertebrae
• Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
• Respiratory injuries
• Vision or hearing loss

By seeing a doctor as soon as you can, your injuries can be diagnosed, and you can be given the appropriate treatment plan.

Going to the doctor and obtaining appropriate medical care helps the wrongdoer better evaluate the extent of your injuries. Having your doctor evaluate your injuries is the first step in establishing the harm caused by the oilfield accident and determining the extent of harm and amount of your damages. .

OdessaOilfield Deaths

If your parent, spouse, or child lost their life because of an oilfield, offshore, pipeline, or oil refinery accident, call us right away. If your loved one was covered by workers’ compensation insurance, you might be entitled to compensation for their medical expenses, funeral, and burial.

Depending on who caused the fatal accident and whether you are entitled to pursue a workers’ compensation claim, you may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit and demand compensation. Texas wrongful death law offers this option if your loved one was not covered by workers’ comp or if someone from outside your relative’s employer caused the accident.

Our Oilfield Injury Lawyers Will Identify Who’s Responsible

After an oilfield accident, or an offshore, pipeline, transportation, or refinery incident, you have to figure out what happened and who is at fault. This is a critical component of pursuing compensation. If you file a claim against the wrong party, it will be dismissed, and you will have wasted time and effort.

We will thoroughly investigate the underlying cause of the accident and pinpoint whose careless or reckless conduct was to blame. The at-fault party may have been a coworker, supervisor, subcontractor, vendor, manufacturer, or other individual or business.

Our investigation will include preserving and collecting all of the evidence available. We will gather and review the incident report, photos, videos, and eyewitness accounts. We will investigate your employer’s safety record. We also will hire any necessary experts, including oil and gas experts, engineers, and accident reconstructionists to establish your case.

Once we know whose actions directly caused the accident and your injuries, we will identify who is liable for your injuries. The liable party may not be the same as who was directly at fault. For example, your employer may be responsible for a negligent coworker; a property owner may be responsible for inadequate security, or a manufacturer may be responsible for a defective tool.

Oilfield Injury Compensation

If you are injured while working in an oilfield or at another oil or gas facility in the Permian Basin, you may have the right to pursue a workers’ compensation or personal injury claim.

Through a personal injury lawsuit, you can demand compensation for your:

• Medical Costs
• Lost Wages
• Pain and Suffering
• Emotional Distress
• Scarring and Disfigurement
• Physical Limitation
• Reduced Earning Potential
• Reduced Quality of Life

To receive the full value of these injuries, you must be able to prove the extent of your damages. Proving your economic damages is typically straightforward. We will use medical bills, receipts, pay stubs, tax returns, and other documentation to prove what these injuries have cost you. We also may work with an economic and vocational expert to prove your reduced earning potential.

Proving your non-economic damages, like pain and suffering, can be challenging. To establish the severity of your injuries, we may recommend you take pictures of your injuries and write a journal entry daily through your recovery. Documenting your physical and emotional pain can be highly influential to a jury if your case needs to go to trial.

Kemmy Law Firm is well-suited to collect and present the evidence proving your damages and calculate the value of your claim. Our decades of experience litigating oilfield injuries mean we understand the full extent of your injuries and their long-term consequences. We take all of that into consideration when determining how much your case is worth.

Odessa Oilfield Accident Claims

When you have an oilfield accident claim, you must go through the process of:

• Receiving appropriate medical care;
• Contacting oilfield injury lawyers in Odessa, Texas;
• Determining if you are covered by workers’ compensation insurance;
• Beginning a workers’ comp claim, if appropriate;
• Investigating the accident to gather and analyze evidence;
• Hiring necessary expert witnesses;
• Determining the party or parties liable for your injuries;
• Calculating the value of your damages;
• Filing a personal injury lawsuit;
• Utilizing the discovery process to further your investigation;
• Preparing for trial;
• Aggressively negotiating an insurance settlement; and
• Resolving your claim or going to trial.

Most oilfield injury lawsuits are based on negligence. Workers and employers are required to act as reasonably prudent people would under the same or similar circumstances.

Failing to act as a reasonably prudent person and causing someone harm is negligence. Also, oil and gas workers or employers who fail to abide by health and safety regulations also are considered negligent.

If you are covered by workers’ compensation insurance, you do not have to prove negligent to receive benefits. Workers’ comp is a no-fault system. As long as your injuries arose during or from your work, then you can receive medical care and income benefits.

Whether you are fighting for more workers’ comp benefits or personal injury compensation, we are here to help. We have an unparalleled understanding of the oil and gas industry, Texas accident and injury laws, oilfield accident litigation.

We are dedicated injury attorneys and negotiators, and we are not afraid to fight big insurers and oil companies to win what you deserve.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Long Do I Have to File a Claim in Texas?

You have two years to file a personal injury claim in Texas. If the statute of limitations expires, you lose your opportunity to file a claim against the at-fault party. You have 30 days to notify your employer if you are filing a workers’ compensation claim.

What if My Employer is a Non-Subscriber?

Texas does not require businesses to provide workers’ compensation benefits. This leaves them vulnerable to personal injury claims if their negligence results in your on-the-job injury. Unlike a workers’ comp claim, personal injury claims allow you to recover compensation for the pain and suffering your injuries have caused, which could increase your overall settlement.

How Much Compensation Can I Receive in My Settlement?

The compensation you receive varies on a case-by-case basis. Oilfield accidents are especially devastating, and the injuries you experienced might require ongoing care, which results in medical bills and other expenses, not to mention non-economic damages like pain and suffering. Essentially, the more damages you incurred from your accident; the more compensation you might receive.

What Should I Do After an Oilfield Accident?

You should get medical treatment immediately after the accident. Then, report the accident to your supervisor and inform them of your injuries. Gather photos and videos if you can as this could strengthen your injury claim.

We Take Oilfield Injury Cases to Trial and Win

Many oilfield accidents and injury cases are settled before trial. However, many big companies and insurers refuse to compensate the injured worker or family for the true value of a worker’s claim. They may deny liability and deny your claim or try to push you to accept a lowball settlement offer.

In either circumstance, we will not tell you to accept an offer when your claim is worth more. Instead, we might recommend preparing for a trial where we will establish the other party’s liability and demand the maximum compensation possible.

With over five decades of combined experience, we are not afraid to go to court. We vigorously prepare for trial and build the strongest claims for compensation possible. We know how to investigate oilfield accidents, collect relevant evidence, present that evidence to a jury in a persuasive manner, and prove the full extent of your physical, psychological, and financial injuries.

We have an impressive track record of success. In the past two years, we have won more than $50 million in settlements and verdicts for our clients.