The Process of a Truck Accident Lawsuit
Truck accidents can cause severe and permanent injuries. These can lead to significant medical expenses as well as psychological damages.
Your attorney will issue an Summons and Complaint to all the parties responsible. This process can take several years. Your lawyer can assist you determine whether any shared responsibility been properly assessed and assigned.
Investigations
When someone is injured in a crash involving a truck there is more at stake than in a car crash. A truck crash can have life-changing consequences. The impact is also more complex due to its weight and size. These incidents also require more complicated investigations.
To protect their interests, trucking companies or insurance providers will often conduct their investigations immediately after a crash. The issue is that the injured are left to take care of their injuries, and aren't able to collect evidence. This puts them at a disadvantage in comparison to the trucking company or insurance provider.
A skilled attorney for truck accidents is able to find evidence from various sources such as police reports, witness statements and vehicle inspections. A lawyer who is well-informed does not rely on police reports alone since they are typically insufficient for civil litigation. Police officers might not be trained to conduct an inquiry correctly and may not collect all the evidence required to support a lawsuit.
Other types of records include logbook data, maintenance and service records for the truck as well as data from the event data recorder (also called a black box) and more. A skilled attorney will ask both the driver of the truck and trucking company for these and other forms of evidence, and then examine them to determine the causes of the accident.
Expert Witnesses
A expert witness for a truck accident could aid your lawyer in proving different elements of the case. For instance, a medical expert can give your lawyer proof that the crash resulted in your injuries. Your expert can also testify about how your injuries will impact your life in the future. Expert witnesses can also assist your lawyer calculate the value of your injuries, which includes lost income and loss of earning capacity in the future.
Experts can review physical evidence and discuss the consequences of your injury on your future. A medical professional is a good example. They can explain how your accident might affect your mental and physical health. Another type of expert is a metallurgist who can analyze why a vehicle part failed. Experts can determine if weather was a factor in the crash.
Your expert's job is to offer an honest and impartial opinion after having analyzed the evidence. However, some experts can be an issue in your case if they are biased or have connections to the defendant's companies. Your lawyer can conduct an investigation of the background of the expert witness to find out any risks.
Your attorney will conduct an interview with you, along with witnesses who were present at the incident before it occurred. It is crucial to remember that the insurance companies of defendants will attempt to force you to admit that they are at fault or make statements that they can twist and distort to weaken your claim.
Litigation
Truck drivers are also required to obey traffic laws and take reasonable care when driving. If they do not comply with this duty and their negligence results in a crash, they may be held liable for the injuries incurred by the victims of that collision.
Our lawyer will collect evidence from eyewitnesses as well as written or oral testimony to prove the defendant was negligent. Our team will also study an array of other evidence, such as skid marks or points of impact, and will conduct crash tests.
Sometimes, the cause of an accident involving a truck is complex and involves multiple parties. If the truck accident was caused by defective equipment, or improper maintenance, then we could sue the manufacturer or the trucks. We might also sue the mechanic who performed the repairs or the repair shop.
We will endeavor to resolve your dispute out of court, but in the event that the trucking company, or its insurance company refuses to make an appropriate settlement offer and we prepare for trial. In the trial, a jury or judge will rule on disputes like who was the culprit and how much compensation you are entitled to. The total of your legal damages will be determined based on your documented losses that include financial, physical, and emotional pain.
Statute of limitations
While the legal process following a truck accident may be complex, understanding the way these cases are handled can help you prepare for what is ahead and give you a better sense of how long your case could take.
One of the most important actions is to establish the responsibility. It is probable that a driver who was drunk, distracted, or otherwise impaired will be held accountable for the damages you suffered. There could be other parties that are also accountable. For instance, if the accident was caused by poor repairs such as an individual mechanic who did the work or a company that made the truck or its parts could be held accountable in the legal concept of respondeat superior.
It is also possible that the accountable party committed a more severe risky act, which might entitle you to punitive damages. To determine this, we must prove that they acted in a reckless and impulsive manner, with no regard for your safety and the safety of others.
abilene truck wreck lawyer is essential to work with an attorney who understands the complexities involved in truck accidents. Insurance companies and attorneys for the at-fault parties are often sheepskins in wolves and will try to force you to make statements that they later use against you. If you hire an attorney to handle all communications, you'll stay clear of these traps.