Q: I need a lawyer in San Antonio Texas because my roommate or should say a person who lives in the same house with me .
This person let my dogs out and one of them who I think he dumped miles away came back around 8 hours later with injuries and could barely walk and she (Scarlett) needs to go to the vet. My other dog was here at the house
A:
First, this is a Q&A forum in which individuals ask a legal question and Justia lawyers have the option of answering the questions. If you are looking for a lawyer for a specific legal matter, you should use the "Find a Lawyer" option and search for a lawyer in San Antonio or Bexar County. You can then review the lawyer's profile to choose a lawyer based on your own criteria such as how much the lawyer charges per hour, what past experience they have, what areas of law they practice in, and where their office is located.
Second, it seems likely from your description that any damages you sustained are likely to be less than $20,000. In Texas, our justice of the peace courts have jurisdiction over small claims up to $20,000. One of the principle advantages of small claims courts is that you do not need an attorney and an ordinary person can fill out the paperwork to state a claim. The court filing fees are lower than in county or district court, and the process is much quicker. So if your vet bill is under $20,000, that is most likely your best option.
You should carefully consider whether you want to hire an attorney for such a small case. I am not located in or near San Antonio, and would not accept such a small case. But, for comparison purposes, my firm charges $500 for an initial 90-minute consultation with a lawyer. We require a minimum initial retainer of $5,000 for a small civil case (where the plaintiff is seeking only monetary relief of $250,000 or less) which is relatively uncomplicated. An initial retainer is not an estimate of the total cost of a legal proceeding but is only intended to cover a month or so of legal work in case a client does not pay their invoice in a timely manner. Our attorneys charge $400-600 per hour for their time and our paralegals charge $150-250 per hour. These are competitive rates throughout most of the State of Texas.
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