Why Choose The Longhorn Law Firm — Our Approach | TX & NM Personal Injury

★ Our approach

Why choose Longhorn Law.

Most personal injury firms are settlement mills — high volume, low attention. We work differently, and our clients see the difference in how their cases are handled and what they recover.

Free Case Review → 📞 (512) 881-4484

You've probably heard the saying: "Half of doctors graduated in the bottom of their class." The same is true of personal injury lawyers. There are excellent personal injury firms, and there are firms that turn cases into churn-and-burn settlements while telling clients it's the best they can do.

We're not for everyone. We don't take every case that calls us. We can't promise outcomes nobody can promise. But for the cases we accept, our clients get something most personal injury firms don't actually deliver: personal attention from an experienced attorney, from intake through resolution.

Here's how we work — and how that compares to the typical Texas or New Mexico personal injury firm.

Side-by-side comparison

Honest comparison of how settlement-mill firms typically operate vs. how we actually handle your case.

Caseload per attorney

Typical PI firm

Settlement mills carry 200–500+ active cases per attorney. Cases become files. Files become numbers. Numbers become quotas.

The Longhorn approach

We keep our caseload manageable and purposeful. One of our three attorneys personally handles every case we accept — start to finish.

Who you actually talk to

Typical PI firm

You meet a partner at intake. Then you're handed off to an associate, then a paralegal, then a "case manager" you've never met before. The attorney appears only at settlement or trial.

The Longhorn approach

Your attorney is your attorney. The lawyer you meet at intake is the lawyer who reviews your medical records, the lawyer who makes settlement demands, the lawyer who appears in court if needed. If one of the attorney's are out of the office handling other cases, you will always be able to speak to someone, not told you will get a call back later.

Trial readiness

Typical PI firm

90%+ of PI cases settle, so settlement-mill firms structure everything around quick settlement. When a case actually needs to be tried, they either dump it on a less experienced attorney or settle for less than the case is worth to avoid the work.

The Longhorn approach

We try cases when cases need to be tried. Insurance companies know which firms will actually walk into a courtroom — and they offer more to firms that will. Our willingness to try cases gets our clients more in settlement. We get you what you want to get out of it, not what the insurance tells you what you are going to get.

Language services

Typical PI firm

A receptionist who speaks "some Spanish" or an outsourced translation line. The legal nuance gets lost in translation. Hispanic clients often end up not understanding their own case.

The Longhorn approach

Genuine bilingual representation. Our staff conducts business in English and Spanish at a professional level. Documents are explained in your language. Settlement decisions are made in your language. This isn't marketing copy — it's how we actually work.

Geographic coverage

Typical PI firm

Local firms can't serve cases that cross state lines. National firms treat all cases the same regardless of where they happen.

The Longhorn approach

We're licensed in Texas and New Mexico, with offices in both states. This matters most in border cases (El Paso, Las Cruces, Carlsbad) where which state's law applies can change case value by hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Communication

Typical PI firm

You leave a voicemail. You wait three days. Maybe someone calls you back. Maybe not. You email — same thing.

The Longhorn approach

We return calls and emails within one business day, usually same day. If you call after hours, we have systems to make sure your message is heard. You're not chasing your attorney for status updates.

Fees

Typical PI firm

Confusing fee structures,high fees upwards of 50%, hidden case expense charges sometimes an automatic office fees of $1,500-$2,000, occasional surprise fees at settlement that nobody mentioned upfront.

The Longhorn approach

Standard contingency: 33.33% before suit is filed, 40% after. Case expenses (court fees, depositions, expert witnesses) are clearly tracked and paid only from recovery. If we don't win, you owe nothing. No surprises.

What we handle — and what we don't

We're a personal injury law firm firm. We SPECIALIZE in helping people who get hurt because of somebody else's wrongdoing. Being honest about what we do and don't handle protects clients from a common problem: getting represented by a "general practice" firm in a case they don't actually have experience with.

✓

Cases we handle

Car accidents and motor vehicle crashes
Commercial truck and 18-wheeler cases
Motorcycle and bicycle accidents
Pedestrian accidents
Rideshare cases (Uber/Lyft)
Catastrophic injuries (TBI, spinal cord, amputation, burns)
Wrongful death
Workplace injuries (Texas non-subscriber claims, oilfield, construction)
Slip and fall and premises liability
Dog bites and animal attacks
Insurance bad faith claims

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Cases we don't handle

Family law (divorce, custody, child support)
Bankruptcy or debt cases
Business litigation or contract disputes
Real estate transactions
Immigration
Tax matters

If your case isn't something we handle, we'll tell you that honestly — and often we can refer you to a colleague who specializes in that area.

The three attorneys who actually handle your case

Not a roster of 30 names you'll never meet. Three attorneys, each with distinct strengths and geographic focus.

Shawn Barnett

★ NM Managing Attorney

Managing attorney in New Mexico, licensed in NM and pending in Texas. Principal office in Albuquerque per Texas Bar requirements.

Jonathan Perez

★ TX Co-Counsel (San Antonio)

Texas co-counsel based in San Antonio. Handles substantial South and Central Texas caseload.

Jeff Barnett

★ TX Co-Counsel (Austin)

Austin co-counsel with decades of Texas business law, probate, trusts, and insurance law experience.

Ready to find out if you have a case? Let's talk.

Free consultation. We'll listen to what happened, give you an honest assessment, and tell you whether we think we can help. No pressure, no obligation.

Free Case Review → 📞 (512) 881-4484

Frequently asked questions

01 How is The Longhorn Law Firm different from larger personal injury firms?

The biggest practical difference is caseload. Settlement-mill firms typically carry 200-500+ active cases per attorney, which means your case becomes one of hundreds — handled mostly by paralegals and case managers, with an attorney appearing only briefly. We keep our caseload deliberately small so one of our three attorneys personally handles every case we accept, from intake through resolution.

02 Will I work directly with an attorney, or with a paralegal?

You work directly with an attorney. The lawyer you meet at intake is the same lawyer who reviews your medical records, drafts your settlement demand, conducts your deposition, and appears in court if your case is tried. You'll meet our staff too, but the legal work and decision-making is done by attorneys.

03 What kinds of cases does The Longhorn Law Firm handle?

We focus exclusively on personal injury and wrongful death cases. Car accidents, truck cases, motorcycle crashes, pedestrian cases, catastrophic injuries, workplace injuries, premises liability, dog bites, and insurance bad faith. We do not handle family law, criminal defense, business litigation, estate planning, bankruptcy, immigration, or other practice areas — we believe being a specialist firm produces better results than being a general-practice firm.

04 What does "bilingual representation" actually mean at your firm?

It means we conduct business in Spanish at a professional level — not "we have a receptionist who speaks some Spanish" and not "we use a translation service." Our staff and attorneys can explain legal documents, conduct intake interviews, take depositions, and discuss settlement decisions in Spanish. For Hispanic clients, this means understanding your own case throughout the process, not relying on family members or external translators to interpret.

05 Where are you licensed to practice?

Both Texas and New Mexico. Our managing attorney Shawn Barnett is the New Mexico managing attorney and licensed in both states. Jonathan Perez (San Antonio) and Jeff Barnett (Austin) are our Texas co-counsel. This matters most for cases in border regions and for cases involving travelers from one state injured in the other.

06 How do contingency fees work at your firm?

We work on standard Texas personal injury contingency: 33.33% of the recovery if the case settles before a lawsuit is filed, 40% if litigation is required. Case expenses (court filing fees, depositions, expert witnesses, medical records) are tracked separately and reimbursed only from recovery — not charged to you out of pocket. If we don't obtain a recovery, you owe nothing for our work or expenses.

07 Will you actually take my case to trial if needed?

Yes — and the willingness to try cases is one of the most important things separating real personal injury firms from settlement mills. About 90%+ of cases settle, but the cases that need to be tried get tried. Insurance companies track which firms actually litigate, and they offer more in settlement to firms that will. A firm that never tries cases gets exploited at settlement.

08 How do I know if I have a case?

The fastest way is to call us for a free consultation. We'll listen to what happened, ask the questions we need to evaluate whether you have a viable case, and tell you honestly. Sometimes the answer is "yes, we want to represent you." Sometimes it's "yes, you have a case but it's not the kind we handle — here's who to call." Sometimes it's "honestly, I don't think you have a recoverable case." We'd rather tell you the truth than waste your time.