Texas has more fatal 18-wheeler crashes than any other state. The freight that moves through the Port of Houston, the border bridges, and the Triangle’s warehouses rolls across the same highways your family drives every day — and when a commercial truck causes a wreck, the company’s insurers and rapid-response teams start protecting the company within hours. Your side needs to move just as fast.
The Estes Law Firm is a Texas plaintiff’s firm with two lawyers Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization — Joshua Estes and Gary M. Freeman. Commercial trucking wrecks are the center of our trial practice: 18-wheelers, box trucks, oilfield and construction haulers, and delivery fleets. We prepare every case as if it will be tried to a jury, because that is what makes trucking insurers pay full value.
Tell us what happened. We’ll call you back fast.
Call (281) 238-5400Submitting this form does not create an attorney-client relationship. · Privacy policy
What Makes a Texas Truck Case Different
A trucking wreck is a regulated-industry case, not a fender-bender with a bigger vehicle. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration rules govern who may drive, how long they may drive, how the rig is inspected and maintained, and how cargo is secured. Hours are logged electronically; tractors record engine data and GPS; many carry cameras. The company knows within hours what its exposure looks like — and much of that evidence only has to be kept for a limited time. The single most important thing an injured family can do is get lawyers involved before it is gone.
Liability rarely stops with the driver. The motor carrier, the trailer owner, the shipper or loader, the maintenance contractor, and the freight broker can all share responsibility, each with separate insurance. Finding every defendant and every policy is where the real value in these cases is won or lost.
The Corridors We Work
Our principal office is in Richmond, in Fort Bend County, with a satellite office in Missouri City, and our trucking practice follows the freight:
- I-10 between Houston and San Antonio — the small counties along this stretch (Austin, Colorado, Fayette, Gonzales, Caldwell, Guadalupe) see constant long-haul traffic and some of the corridor's worst wrecks
- The Houston metro ring — I-45, I-69/US-59, Beltway 8, and the port truck routes through Fort Bend, Brazoria, and Waller counties
- US-59 / I-69 southwest — through Wharton County toward Victoria
- SH-130 and SH-71 — the toll bypass and Bastrop-area routes trucks use to avoid Austin congestion
In Texas, suit can generally be filed in the county where the crash happened — which means a wreck in a small corridor county is tried in that county's courthouse, before that county's jurors. We try cases where the wreck happened.
How dangerous are these roads? Our analysis of TxDOT’s 2024 commercial truck crash data for the corridor counties shows that, per crash, commercial vehicle wrecks in this region are several times more likely to be fatal than in Harris County.
Texas Law You Should Know
Two-year deadline. Most Texas injury and wrongful-death claims must be filed within two years of the crash. Evidence disappears far sooner.
Modified comparative fault. You can recover if you were not more than half at fault, reduced by your share — so expect the carrier to work hard at blaming you.
HB 19 bifurcation. Since 2021, commercial-vehicle defendants can split many trials into two phases, keeping the company's own safety record out of the first phase. Firms that don't regularly try trucking cases get caught flat by this; we build both phases from the start.
What Board Certification Means for Your Case
The Texas Board of Legal Specialization certifies lawyers in Personal Injury Trial Law only after years of actual trial experience, peer evaluation, and a specialty examination. Insurers track which firms try cases and which settle cheap. When the demand letter comes from a board-certified trial lawyer who works trucking cases, the negotiation starts in a different place.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I do first after a truck wreck?
Get medical care, keep everything (photos, the police report number, witness names), and do not give any recorded statement to the trucking company's insurer. Then talk to a lawyer — preservation letters need to go out immediately.
The crash happened in a small county far from a big city. Does that hurt my case?
No. Suit can generally be brought where the crash happened, and we regularly handle cases in the rural counties along the I-10 corridor. Distance from Houston is not distance from justice.
What if my loved one was killed?
Texas law allows specific family members to bring wrongful-death and survival claims. These cases carry their own rules and deadlines; contact us and we will explain exactly who can bring the claim and what it covers.
What does it cost?
Nothing up front. No fee or expenses unless we win. The consultation is free, in English or Spanish.
If an 18-wheeler or commercial truck hurt you or someone you love anywhere in Texas, call (281) 238-5400 now. Hablamos español.
Advertisement. Responsible attorney: William F. Estes. Principal office: Richmond, Texas. No fee or expenses unless we win. Free consultation. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.