Texas FTCA Lawyers

Name: Janicek Law
Address: 1100 NE Interstate 410 Loop #600, San Antonio, Texas, 78209
Telephone: 210-366-4949

When you’re injured by a federal employee or hurt on federal government property, you can’t just file an ordinary lawsuit. You must file claims with the appropriate federal agency. The Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) is a legal means allowing injured parties to recover money damages for injuries sustained on federal property and for injuries caused by negligent acts by federal government employees acting within the scope of their employment. This can include VA negligence, mail truck crashes, falls inside a post office, or a range of other accident types. The Texas FTCA lawyers at Janicek Law bring over 30 years of experience, more than $85 million in recoveries, and Texas board certification in personal injury law.

If you were injured by the federal government anywhere in San Antonio or across South and Central Texas, call 210-366-4949 for a free consultation.

What Is Federal Tort Claims Act Coverage?

The Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) waives the federal government’s “sovereign immunity.” This is the default rule that the government can’t be sued without its permission for any injuries caused by federal employees acting within the scope of their employment. Essentially, the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) allows injured parties to seek compensation for injuries caused by employees or properties of the United States government.

Filing a claim under the FTCA or Federal Tort Claims Act differs from standard personal injury claims:

Aspect	Personal Injury Claim	FTCA Claim
Governing law	Texas state law	Tort law of the state where the injury happened (Texas, for injuries here)
Statute of limitations	Set by state law	Must file an administrative claim with the federal agency within two years of the injury, then bring the FTCA lawsuit within six months of being denied
Judge or Jury Decisions	Jury	Federal judge
Venue	State court	United States District Court
Punitive damages	Apply in some circumstances	Not available

Our Texas FTCA lawyers have the experience and resources that Federal Tort Claims Act cases require. Contact our attorneys to discuss your legal options.

Types of FTCA Cases Our Texas Attorneys Handle

If you’ve found this page, you’ve likely been injured by the U.S. government in one of four ways. Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) cases involving personal injuries all have their own paths, and our Federal Tort Claims attorneys handle all of them.

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VA & Military Medical Malpractice
Stayskal Act (Active-Duty Malpractice)
FQHC Claims
Federal Property & Vehicle Claims
Misconduct by Federal Law Enforcement Officers
Federal Prison/BOP
Aviation (FAA/ATC Negligence)
Indian Health Service Malpractice

Texas VA Malpractice Attorneys (Audie Murphy, BAMC, SAMMC, Wilford Hall, plus Temple, Waco, and Kerrville VA)

Veterans and families who are harmed by VA medical malpractice can pursue compensation under the Federal Tort Claims Act. South and Central Texas is home to several major VA hospitals, including:

Audie L. Murphy Memorial VA Hospital in San Antonio
Kerrville VA Hospital
Olin E. Teague Veterans’ Medical Center in Temple
Doris Miller VA Medical Center in Waco

Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) is the DoD’s largest inpatient medical facility and only Level 1 Trauma Center. Facilities like these are expected to uphold the highest standards of care, but when lapses occur, the consequences can be severe. Victims may pursue compensation for their injuries, pain and suffering, and other losses. However, filing a lawsuit against the VA or military medical center requires navigating complex procedures, which is why experienced representation from a Texas FTCA lawyer matters.

Common Types of VA Medical Malpractice

Our Texas FTCA lawyers regularly handle:

Section 1151 Claim Process

Filing a Section 1151 claim is similar to Federal Tort Claims Act cases but works differently. In FTCA cases, you can seek compensation for negligent acts at the VA causing injury, illness, death, or financial loss, such as a slip and fall. Section 1151 is limited to injury or wrongful death resulting from negligence by the VA’s medical professionals. Compensation is also different.

	FTCA Claim	Section 1151 Claim
Scope	Any negligent act causing harm	Injury or death from medical negligence
Payment	Lump-sum for pain, suffering, and economic loss	Monthly disability benefits based on employment impacts
Difficulty	More complex; heavier documentation and proof	Generally simpler administrative process
Filed With	Federal agency, then federal court	Department of Veterans Affairs

Recovery For Claims Under The FTCA & Section 1151

You can file both types and potentially receive benefits from both Section 1151 and FTCA cases. If you recover compensation under both, the amounts are “offset” so you aren’t paid twice for the same injury.

Our Texas FTCA attorneys can help determine whether you can pursue both. We’ll prepare the forms and work to prove that negligence occurred.

Active Duty Military Malpractice: The Stayskal Act

What Is the Feres Doctrine?

The Feres doctrine is a Supreme Court rule preventing active-duty service members from pursuing lawsuits against the federal government for injuries arising as “incident to service.” This rule stands even when the person is injured at a military hospital. While this bars lawsuits by those on active duty, it doesn’t necessarily prevent families, veterans, retirees, or civilians from filing a claim.

How Filing A Claim For Medical Malpractice on Active Duty is Different from Filing FTCA Claims

The SFC Richard Stayskal Military Medical Accountability Act, or Stayskal Act, allows active-duty service members (or representatives) to file administrative claims for military medical malpractice with the Department of Defense.

Key points include:

Unless the medical professional’s negligent act or negligence is obvious to a layperson, Stayskal Act claims must include a non-DoD medical expert affidavit stating that a negligent act or omission occurred.
The DoD pays substantiated cases under $100,000 directly; larger cases are reviewed and paid through the U.S. Treasury.

Locally, this can cover facilities such as:

BAMC and the San Antonio Military Medical Center (Fort Sam Houston),
Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center (JBSA-Lackland),
Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center (Fort Cavazos), and
the clinic at Laughlin AFB.

	FTCA Claim	Stayskal Act Claim
Who files	Veterans, dependents, retirees, & civilians	Active-duty members or representatives
Where it goes	Federal agency, then U.S. district court	The member’s military branch (DoD)
Court option	Can sue in federal court after denial	No lawsuit; no judicial review
Deadline	2 years for administrative claims	2 years from the date the claim accrues
Governing law	28 U.S.C. §§ 1346, 2671–2680	10 U.S.C. § 2733a

The first step is determining which type of case you have. Contact a Texas FTCA lawyer for legal help.

FTCA Claims at Federally Funded Clinics in Texas (Deemed Facilities)

Many ordinary-looking clinics are actually federally funded. Under the Federally Supported Health Centers Assistance Act, federally funded health facilities can be “deemed” employees of the Public Health Service. This means malpractice or personal injury cases involving these facilities must go through the Federal Tort Claims Act process.

This is crucial for birth injury and OB/GYN malpractice in Texas, because many federally funded centers deliver babies and provide prenatal care. Examples in our region include:

San Antonio:

CentroMed (El Centro del Barrio)
CommuniCare Health Centers

Dallas-Fort Worth:

Foremost Family Health Centers/Martin Luther King, Jr. Family Clinic in Balch Springs/Dallas
Los Barrios Unidos Community Clinic in Dallas

Houston/Harris County:

Legacy Community Health
Vecino Health Centers
HOPE Clinic/Asian American Health Coalition of the Greater Houston Area
El Centra de Corazón

Border Region/South Texas:

Centro San Vicente	El Paso County
Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe	El Paso
United Medical Centers (UMC Health)	Eagle Pass, Del Rio, Brackettville
Nuestra Clínica del Valle	Hidalgo & Starr counties
Su Clínica	Harlingen & Brownsville
Gateway Community Health Center	Webb, Zapata & Jim Hogg counties

The “deemed” status can change. Use the FTCA search tool or HRSA’s tool to confirm.

Injuries on Federal Property & Federal Employee Accidents in Texas

FTCA cases can also include people hurt by the government’s property, whether business, land, or a vehicle driven by government employees.

One important limit: Federal judges typically bar most intentional torts, like assault, false arrest, and defamation, with a narrow exception for certain federal law enforcement officers.

To be a valid claim, a private citizen or business would be liable under state law for the same action. If so, the government is liable to the same extent the private party would be.

Here are a few examples:

Injured by a federal agency, employee, or facility? Deadlines under the FTCA move fast.

Request a Free Consultation Call 210-366-4949

Post Office Slip and Fall Claims

The U.S. Postal Service must keep its facilities reasonably safe. Our FTCA lawyers represent clients after Post Office accidents. We’re experienced at proving USPS knew or should have known about the hazard and failed to fix it. These are handled similarly to slip and fall accidents, but address accidents on federal property under different laws and deadlines.

USPS & Federal Vehicle Accidents

Mail trucks and other federal vehicles cause the largest share of FTCA claims. If a postal or federal driver runs a red light, backs into your car, or strikes a pedestrian or cyclist, the crash is covered even though it involves a government vehicle. (The narrow “postal matter” exception applies only to the mail itself, not to physical injuries a carrier causes.) These FTCA cases combine the complexity of seeking damages from the government with the stakes of serious trucking accidents.

Injuries at VA and Military Facilities (Premises Liability)

Not every injury at a VA or military hospital is malpractice. A fall in a VA hallway, a defect in a waiting-room floor, or a hazard on the grounds is a premises claim, not a medical one, but for veterans, dependents, retirees, and civilians it still travels the FTCA path. We evaluate these alongside our other Texas premises liability claims to make sure the claim is filed the first time correctly.

Other Federal Tort Claims Our Texas Attorneys Handle

If you were harmed in one of the situations below, the same deadlines and SF-95 process apply. Our Texas FTCA lawyers help determine if you can take legal action.

Misconduct by federal law enforcement officers: Along the Del Rio, Eagle Pass, Laredo, and Rio Grande Valley corridor, heavy CBP and Border Patrol activity means FTCA cases involving assault, false arrest, and malicious prosecution arise. While typically barred as intentional torts, they can proceed against certain law enforcement officers acting within their official duties under 28 U.S.C. § 2680(h).
Federal prison and BOP claims: Inmates hurt by unsafe conditions, a failure to protect them from harm, or inadequate medical care may have an FTCA case against the Bureau of Prisons under 18 U.S.C. § 4042.
Aviation claims: When FAA air traffic control negligence contributes to a crash, families can pursue an FTCA claim against the government.

How to File an FTCA Claim: Filing An Injury Claim Against The Federal Government

Injured parties can’t sue the federal government until they’ve exhausted all other administrative remedies. After this, to bring an FTCA lawsuit, the claimant must present an initial administrative claim to the correct government agency, giving the agency a chance to respond.

Here is how the process generally works:

File Standard Form 95 (SF-95) with the correct federal agency within two years of when the claim accrues.
State a “sum certain.” The form must demand a specific dollar amount.
Attach supporting documentation: medical records, medical bills, witness statements, and evidence of negligence.
Wait up to six months for the agency to accept, deny, or make an offer. Silence for six months is considered a denial.
File suit in federal court within six months of a denial.

Attorney’s fees in FTCA cases are capped by law: 20% of the recovery for administrative settlements and 25% for FTCA lawsuits.

What Is Standard Form 95 (SF 95): The Initial Administrative Claim Form

Standard Form 95, “Claim for Damage, Injury, or Death,” is the official Federal Tort Claims form used to start. SF 95 shows who the case is against, the date and place of the incident, a description of what happened, and the compensation demands. Standard Form 95 errors are the most common reason Federal Tort Claims are denied. A San Antonio FTCA lawyer can help you complete SF 95 accurately.

What Is a "Sum Certain" on the SF-95?

A “sum certain” is the specific amount of money claimed for injuries. Without this, FTCA cases are invalid. Because you typically can’t later demand more absent new evidence, calculating the right total initially is crucial for full recovery.

FTCA Statute of Limitations

The statute of limitations requires filing a claim within two years from the date the victim is aware of the injury and cause. If a federal agency denies the initial administrative claim, the claimant has six months from the denial to file suit in federal court.

The statute of limitations trap: the two-year deadline typically isn’t tolled the way personal injury cases are under state law. For example, there’s no automatic tolling for minors or incapacitation the way Texas state law allows.

Looking Up Federal Cases: PACER and the FTCA Search Tool

The following tools are important when pursuing compensation under the Federal Tort Claims Act:

PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records): System used to view and file suits, including FTCA lawsuits. Locally, FTCA cases typically occur in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, with divisions in San Antonio, Austin, Waco, and Del Rio.
FTCA Search Tool: This tool shows whether a community health center is federally deemed. That status determines whether victims can pursue a standard medical malpractice lawsuit or case under the Federal Tort Claims Act.

San Antonio FTCA Lawyers Serving The Texas Hill Country Region and Beyond

Our San Antonio FTCA lawyers represent injured victims throughout Texas. The following shows where many local cases arise:

Region / Counties	Facilities
San Antonio / Bexar	Brooke Army Medical Center & SAMMC (Fort Sam Houston), Wilford Hall (JBSA-Lackland), Audie L. Murphy VA Hospital
Hill Country (Kerr, Kendall, Gillespie)	Kerrville VA Hospital
Austin / Central Texas (Travis, Hays, Comal, Guadalupe)	Austin VA clinic, Camp Mabry, federal courthouse
Killeen / Fort Cavazos (Bell, Coryell)	Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center
Temple & Waco (Bell, McLennan)	Olin E. Teague VA Medical Center, Doris Miller VA Medical Center
Del Rio / border (Val Verde, Maverick, Kinney)	Laughlin AFB, United Medical Centers
Coastal Bend (Nueces, Kleberg)	NAS Corpus Christi, NAS Kingsville, Corpus Christi VA clinic

Federal tort claims are defended aggressively. Our San Antonio FTCA attorneys bring over 3 decades of experience, over $85 million recovered for injured Texans, and Texas board certification in personal injury law to FTCA cases. We file claim form SF-95, secure evidence and expert testimony, meet the statute of limitations, and when the client’s case is denied, we’re prepared to present to a federal judge. Clients focus on recovery; we handle the judgment and/or compromise settlement.

FTCA Frequently Asked Questions

What is FTCA?

The Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) is a federal law that allows individuals to sue the United States government for certain injuries caused by the negligence or wrongful actions of federal employees acting within the scope of their employment. The FTCA creates a limited exception to the government’s usual protection from lawsuits under sovereign immunity.

Can you sue the post office?

Yes, if you were hurt at the post office or if a postal service employee performing their job duties contributed to an injury. While not FTCA lawsuits, Federal Tort Claims Act cases are brought under the USPS National Tort Center.

Can you sue the military for medical malpractice?

Active-duty members can’t file an FTCA lawsuit because of the Feres doctrine, but they can pursue an administrative medical malpractice claim with the DoD under the Stayskal Act.

Can you sue the VA for malpractice?

Yes, you can sue the VA, especially if you can prove that a negligent or wrongful act caused an injury or a loved one’s death. A Texas FTCA attorney can help take legal action against the Veterans Affairs.

Can I sue the federal government for negligence?

Yes, under the FTCA, or Federal Tort Claims Act, victims can recover money damages when they’re hurt by a U.S. government employee acting within the scope of their job or on federal government property. FTCA cases only apply as long as a private person would be liable under state law for the same conduct, act, or omission.

What is an FTCA-deemed facility?

An FTCA-deemed facility is a healthcare facility funded by the U.S. government. These facilities are protected from medical malpractice claims under the Federal Tort Claims Act. When a medical professional harms a patient through negligence, the victim must file a claim under the FTCA.

Contact a San Antonio Federal Tort Claims Attorney For a Free Consultation

If you or a loved one was injured by a federal agency, at a VA, military hospital, or federally funded clinic, by military vehicles, at a post office or other government property, or by a federal employee, contact a San Antonio FTCA lawyer. Seeking compensation from a government agency is a complicated and strict process, so don’t wait to retain legal counsel.

Call 210-366-4949 or use the contact form to schedule a free consultation today.

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   Natasha Garza 
 31 August 2026
 
 
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 18 August 2026
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We were referred to Janicek Law firm from a lawyer in Brownsville, who pointed out that they are experts in the field of medical malpractice and I am so grateful. We worked with Andrew and Gaby and they were dedicated and worked hard to get us the best possible outcome. They kept us informed and updated through every step of the process, always with a friendly and very professional disposition. Despite language and distance challenges, they accommodated all of our needs, and I would highly recommend Janicek Law Firm. They made a bad situation better by listening to our concerns, helping us through a sorrowful time for my family, and advising on how to defeat our opponent. For any families that have a beloved and elderly relative who suffered in the hands of callous and neglectful medical institutions, Janicek Law Firm were amazing in advocating for our relative and making these corporate entities accountable. Thank you, Andrew and Gaby, we really appreciated your help!
  
 
       
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 8 August 2026
 
 
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 30 July 2026
 
 
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 16 July 2026
 
 
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 14 July 2026
 
 
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 8 July 2026
 
 
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 29 June 2026
 
 
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 22 June 2026
 
 
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 10 June 2026
 
 
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   Google rating score: 4.8 of 5, based on 358 reviews

Janicek Law handled my case with such professionalism. I was always kept in the loop about what was going on with my case. Cassidy Muniz is amazing at what she does and I really felt like they actually cared about me and my case. Highly recommend Janicek Law Firm!

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