In the first three days after a Burlington injury, get medical care, report what happened accurately, photograph the scene if it's safe, collect witness names, and ask for footage and records to be preserved. Seventy-two hours isn't a legal deadline, but it's when hangers get picked up, racks get moved, spills get mopped, and parking-lot defects get patched.
Timeframe | What to focus on |
|---|---|
First hour | Safety, medical help, and telling a manager. |
First day | Photos, witness contacts, your own written account, and keeping your shoes and receipt. |
Days 2 and 3 | Follow-up care, a preservation request for video and records, and a call with a lawyer. |
Any time | Don't guess about things you didn't see, and don't sign a release you haven't read. |
Need advice now? | You don't need a final diagnosis or the store operator's legal name first. Tell us about your Burlington injury or call (214) 200-4878. |
Get care and avoid a second injury
Your health comes first, and nothing about the claim is worth walking back into a dangerous spot.
Do | Don't |
|---|---|
Step away from moving carts, rolling racks, unstable merchandise, or traffic | Go back to the spot to show how you fell. |
Call 911 if you need it | Recreate the fall for a video. |
Tell the clinician exactly how it happened | Leave out earlier injuries or medication. |
Mention every symptom, even mild ones | Wait for an adjuster to approve treatment. |
A companion can do the evidence work while you get care.
A companion can | Example (hypothetical) |
|---|---|
Keep the receipt | The receipt shows the store and a 1:47 p.m. checkout. |
Note the exact spot | "Second aisle in women's tops, next to the round clearance rack." |
Photograph the scene from a safe place | One wide shot of the aisle and one close shot of the hanger. |
Write down what changed | "An employee picked up the hanger before the photo was taken." |
Get witness names and numbers | A shopper who saw you fall, and one who saw the hanger earlier. |
Report what you actually know
Tell the manager the date, place, approximate time, what you saw, and how you were hurt, and ask for a copy of the report.
Say this | Not this |
|---|---|
"I saw the hanger after I fell." | "That hanger was there all morning." |
"I felt my foot catch on something by the rack." | "An employee left it there." |
"I don't know how long the water was there." | A guess about who spilled it. |
Read any form before you sign it, because the label someone uses out loud doesn't change what the paper says.
Document | What it can do |
|---|---|
Incident statement | Records your account of the event. |
Medical authorization | Gives access to your health records, sometimes far beyond this injury. |
Payment or reimbursement offer | May come with conditions. |
Release | Can end your claim for good. |
Keep the evidence that shows how it happened
Hold on to your shoes, clothing, original photos, any video you took, your purchase history, and your messages.
Item | Why it matters |
|---|---|
Shoes and clothing | They can show what caught or slipped, so keep them uncleaned. |
Original photo files | They carry the time and haven't been cropped or marked up. |
A dated written account | It records direction, the first loss of balance, and the impact while memory is fresh. |
Witness messages | Their own words, sent that day, carry more weight than a shared summary later. |
In a dropped-item or spill case, timing often decides the claim, because Texas courts ask how long the hazard existed before the fall. [S5, S6]
What the courts said | What it means for your evidence |
|---|---|
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Reece: an employee's proximity alone isn't enough. [S6] | You need proof of how long the hazard was there. |
H-E-B, LP v. Peterson (2026): general inspection criticism didn't show how long the puddle existed. [S5] | An earlier witness or video can matter more than a complaint about store cleaning. |
Neither case involved Burlington. | Both state Texas law that applies to Burlington claims. |
Ask witnesses to keep their original messages and describe only what they saw, without coaching them toward a conclusion.
Read next | What it covers |
|---|---|
Proving notice in a Texas Burlington injury claim | How knowledge and timing are proved. |
Ask for preservation before assuming the footage will be kept
We found no public Burlington video-retention period, so ask early instead of assuming the footage will still exist after treatment ends.
What to ask the store to keep | Example (hypothetical) |
|---|---|
Camera views of the spot | The aisle camera and the camera at the end of the row. |
Time around the fall | From 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., not just the moment of the fall. |
Incident materials | The report, photos staff took, and any witness statements. |
Cleanup and inspection records | Who walked the aisle that afternoon. |
Vendor and repair records | A contractor's work order for the entrance mat or fixture. |
Keep your own posts and messages too, and never delete a message or edit a photo. Under Brookshire Brothers v. Aldridge, missing video doesn't automatically prove the store was at fault, so it's better to keep evidence from disappearing than to fight about it later. [S11]
Read next | What it covers |
|---|---|
Footage, records, and physical items in more detail. |
Put together a file for your first consultation
Bring what you already have, and don't let missing records delay the call.
Bring | Example (hypothetical) |
|---|---|
Store address and date | The store's street address, Tuesday afternoon. |
Report and photos | A photo of the incident report number. |
Witnesses | Two names with phone numbers. |
Medical information | Urgent-care discharge papers. |
Letters and calls | An adjuster's voicemail asking for a recorded statement. |
Anything that may change soon | The store said it's replacing the entrance mats next week. |
Texas generally allows two years to file a personal-injury lawsuit, and a claim number or ongoing conversation with an adjuster doesn't extend it. [S12]
Deadline question | Short answer |
|---|---|
Does reporting the injury stop the clock? | No. [S12] |
Are there exceptions? | Yes, including for minors, so have the date checked. [S12] |
What about a broken fixture or a contractor's work? | Construction and design claims can have separate deadlines and filing rules. [S12, S22] |
Questions after a Burlington injury
Short answers to what people ask in the first few days.
Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
What if I didn't report the fall right away? | Tell your lawyer when and why. A late report can make proof harder, but it doesn't mean the claim is lost, and you should never claim an earlier report you didn't make. |
Should I take the item that tripped me? | No. Don't remove store property. Photograph it safely and ask a lawyer about a preservation request and an inspection. |
Who is Aaron Herbert? | He's Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, which you can check on his State Bar of Texas profile. [S1] |
Is the firm connected to Burlington? | No. The Law Firm of Aaron A. Herbert, P.C. is not affiliated with or endorsed by Burlington Stores, Inc. |
Tell us about your Burlington injury or call (214) 200-4878, and ask what evidence needs protecting right away.
More from the Burlington knowledge hub | What it covers |
|---|---|
All the Burlington guides in one place. | |
The full process, from evidence through trial. |
Sources
Each source below was checked on October 31, 2026.
Ref | Source |
|---|---|
S1 | State Bar of Texas, Aaron Alan Herbert profile. |
S5 | H-E-B, LP v. Peterson, No. 24-0310 (Tex. Apr. 10, 2026). |
S6 | Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Reece, 81 S.W.3d 812 (Tex. 2002). |
S11 | Brookshire Brothers, Ltd. v. Aldridge, 438 S.W.3d 9 (Tex. 2014). |
S12 | Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 16. |
S22 | Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 150. |
ABOUT THE ATTORNEY
Aaron A. Herbert
Founding Attorney
Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law
Aaron founded The Law Firm of Aaron A. Herbert in 2010 to focus on developing each client's case and seeking its maximum value. For over a decade, he has represented people seriously injured in major accidents and industrial catastrophes, pursuing trial verdicts and settlements while working to reduce the stress of litigation.
Education
- Texas A&M University · B.S., Criminal Justice, 1999
- University of Oklahoma College of Law · J.D., 2002; graduated in the top of his class
Trial experience & approach
Aaron earned numerous jury verdicts at boutique personal injury litigation firms. According to his biography, he spent a year as the top-earning litigation attorney at a firm that frequently appeared in verdict searches as having one of the highest numbers of trial wins in Texas. At another Dallas personal injury firm, he moved from managing pre-litigation attorney to managing litigation attorney over seven years as the firm grew into one of Dallas's largest personal injury firms.
His biography describes a reputation as one of America's most aggressive trial lawyers, with noteworthy recoveries from judges and juries and substantial pretrial settlements. Most of those settlements included confidentiality agreements requested by the defense. Aaron has said the recoveries were justified by the injuries and losses involved, which no amount of money could make someone choose to experience.
His approach combines passion, preparation, persistence and courtroom imagination. He believes a well-supported, engaged and motivated team working cooperatively helps deliver strong representation, with the goal of achieving the best possible result for every client.
Dallas roots, military service & publication
Born and raised in Dallas, Aaron enlisted in the United States Marine Corps after high school and later received an Honorable Discharge. He completed his university and law degrees after his military service and became a lifelong Sooners football fan in law school.
Publication: “Litigating Dog Bite Cases,” Texas Dog Law Seminar, Dallas, 2009.
Professional affiliations & recognition
Professional affiliations and recognition listed in Aaron’s biography:
- State Bar of Texas
- American Bar Association
- Association of Trial Lawyers of America (now American Association for Justice)
- Texas Trial Lawyers Association
- Dallas Trial Lawyers Association
- Dallas Bar Association
- Tarrant County Bar Association
- Million Dollar Advocates Forum
- The National Trial Lawyers – Top 100 Trial Lawyers
Trial experience & approach
Aaron earned numerous jury verdicts at boutique personal injury litigation firms. According to his biography, he spent a year as the top-earning litigation attorney at a firm that frequently appeared in verdict searches as having one of the highest numbers of trial wins in Texas. At another Dallas personal injury firm, he moved from managing pre-litigation attorney to managing litigation attorney over seven years as the firm grew into one of Dallas's largest personal injury firms.
His biography describes a reputation as one of America's most aggressive trial lawyers, with noteworthy recoveries from judges and juries and substantial pretrial settlements. Most of those settlements included confidentiality agreements requested by the defense. Aaron has said the recoveries were justified by the injuries and losses involved, which no amount of money could make someone choose to experience.
His approach combines passion, preparation, persistence and courtroom imagination. He believes a well-supported, engaged and motivated team working cooperatively helps deliver strong representation, with the goal of achieving the best possible result for every client.
Dallas roots, military service & publication
Born and raised in Dallas, Aaron enlisted in the United States Marine Corps after high school and later received an Honorable Discharge. He completed his university and law degrees after his military service and became a lifelong Sooners football fan in law school.
Publication: “Litigating Dog Bite Cases,” Texas Dog Law Seminar, Dallas, 2009.
Professional affiliations & recognition
Professional affiliations and recognition listed in Aaron’s biography:
- State Bar of Texas
- American Bar Association
- Association of Trial Lawyers of America (now American Association for Justice)
- Texas Trial Lawyers Association
- Dallas Trial Lawyers Association
- Dallas Bar Association
- Tarrant County Bar Association
- Million Dollar Advocates Forum
- The National Trial Lawyers – Top 100 Trial Lawyers