Case at a glance
- Recovery: $550,000 Settlement
- Injury: Aggravated spinal injuries; two-level fusion
- Practice: Truck Accidents
- Attorney: Vuk Vujasinovic
Two trucks on an Oklahoma highway
On the night of January 18, 2007, our client was driving an 18-wheeler in the right lane of Highway 69 outside Savannah, Oklahoma. Another truck was traveling in the lane to his left.
The other driver, operating as PHD Trucking, attempted to turn right across the traffic lanes into a truck stop. The trucks collided.
An old injury did not explain the whole picture
Our client had suffered a significant injury in 1999. That earlier incident kept him out of work for a year and a half and left him with herniations and annular tears in his cervical spine.
The new collision worsened his spinal damage. He required a two-level fusion, and the injury and operation left him unable to work as a truck driver again.
The dispute centered on what the new crash caused
Vuk represented the driver in a lawsuit filed in Harris County District Court against the other truck operator. The defense attributed his current spinal problems to the earlier injury.
That made the effect of the 2007 collision central to the case: the client had a serious medical history, but he also suffered worsened spinal damage after this crash and required additional surgery.
A $550,000 settlement before trial
The claim against the truck operator settled for $550,000 before trial.
A separate case against the business that hired PHD Trucking later produced a judgment. That award was smaller than the earlier settlement and did not result in additional compensation. The settlement remained the financial result of the case.
Can you win a Texas injury case with a pre-existing condition?
Yes. An old neck or back injury does not automatically defeat a personal-injury claim. For claims governed by Texas law, you can recover when someone else’s negligence causes a new injury or makes an existing condition worse. You still must prove that negligence caused the harm for which you seek compensation.
If the condition already caused symptoms, you can seek compensation for the worsening. The claim does not make the other party responsible for your earlier injury or for problems the crash did not cause. It seeks compensation for the additional harm. Texas courts distinguish that aggravation from the underlying condition. See Singh v. Payan.
If a dormant condition made you more vulnerable, that vulnerability does not excuse the harm. Texas recognizes the principle often called the “eggshell plaintiff” rule: a negligent person takes the injured person as they are. A previously silent condition may combine with a crash to produce serious pain or disability, even if someone without that condition would have suffered less. See Katy Springs & Manufacturing, Inc. v. Favalora.
Proving the difference requires an honest picture of life before and after the crash. Earlier medical records, later treatment records, work history, and evidence of changes in daily activities can help. Medical experts can explain whether the collision caused new damage or aggravated an old injury. When that medical connection falls outside ordinary knowledge, Texas generally requires expert evidence; symptoms appearing after a crash do not, by themselves, prove every claimed injury came from it. See the Texas Supreme Court’s decision in Guevara v. Ferrer.
In this driver’s case, his earlier spinal injury did not prevent a $550,000 settlement. He had been working before the new collision; afterward, worsened spinal damage required a two-level fusion and ended his truck-driving career. His case shows why a serious medical history deserves careful evaluation rather than an automatic rejection.
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