The Process of a Truck Accident Lawsuit

Many truck accidents leave victims with lifelong and severe injuries. These accidents can lead to significant medical expenses, lost income and psychological traumas.

Your lawyer will file a Summons and Complaint against all responsible parties. This process can last several years. Because New York uses comparative fault rules, your lawyer will ensure that any shared responsibility is correctly evaluated and distributed to defendants.

Investigations

If someone is injured in a truck crash there is much more at stake than in an auto accident. The consequences of a truck crash can be life-changing and the resulting damage is more complex due to the weight and size of a commercial truck. These incidents also require more complicated investigations.

Due to this, insurance companies and trucking firms often conduct investigation immediately following a crash to protect their interests. The issue is that the injured are left to manage their injuries, and aren't in a position to gather evidence. This puts them at a disadvantage when compared to the insurance provider and trucking company.

A seasoned truck accident attorney will seek evidence from a variety of sources that include police reports, witness statements, and vehicle inspections. A lawyer who is knowledgeable cannot rely solely on only police reports, as they are often not sufficient for civil litigation. Police officers might not be trained to conduct an inquiry properly and may not gather all the evidence needed for an action.

Other types of information include logbook records, maintenance and service records for the truck and other equipment, data from the event data recorder (also known as a black box), and more. A competent attorney will ask the driver of the truck as well as the trucking company for these and other forms of evidence, and then analyze them to determine the reason for the accident.

Expert Witnesses

A truck accident law accident expert witness can assist your attorney in proving various elements of the case. A medical expert for instance, can provide evidence to your lawyer that the accident led to your injuries. Experts will also testify on how your injuries affect your quality of life in the future. Expert witnesses can also help your lawyer determine the value of your injuries, which includes lost income and loss of future earning capacity.

A medical professional can examine physical evidence and explain the impact of your injury on your future. For instance medical experts can explain how your accident will affect you in terms of physical and mental well-being. A metallurgist, for instance, is another kind of expert who can determine the causes behind why a component failed. There are experts who can determine whether the weather played a role in the crash.

The main function of your expert is to examine the evidence and offer an objective opinion. Certain expert witnesses could be a liability to your case in the event that their opinions are biased or they are associated with the defendants. Your lawyer can conduct a background check on the expert witness to identify any risks.

Your attorney will conduct an interview with you, along with any other eyewitnesses who witnessed the accident prior to it taking place. It is important to keep in mind that the defendants' insurance companies will attempt to force you to admit guilt or to make statements they can twist and distort to diminish your case.

Litigation

Truck drivers are also required to obey traffic laws and use reasonable care when driving. If they do not comply and their negligence causes a crash, then they could be held responsible for the damage that the victims are left with.

Our attorney will collect evidence from eyewitnesses and obtain written or oral testimony to prove that the defendant was negligent. Our team will also look at other evidence, including skidmarks and points of impact, and conduct crash testing.

Sometimes the reason for a truck accident is complicated and involves multiple parties. If the truck crash was caused by defective equipment or maintenance that was not done properly, we could sue the manufacturer or the trucks. We might also sue the mechanic or truck accident Law repair shop accountable for the repairs.

We will attempt to resolve your case without going to the courtroom. However, if the trucking firm or its insurer is unwilling to accept an equitable settlement or offer, we'll prepare to go to trial. During the trial in court, a jury or judge will decide on the merits of the dispute such as who was responsible for the accident and the amount of compensation you are entitled to be awarded. Your legal damages will be calculated by the sum of your losses, which includes physical, financial, and emotional suffering.

Statute of Limitations

While the legal process following a crash with a truck can be a bit complicated, knowing the way these cases are handled will help you understand what's ahead and give you a better sense of how long your case will take.

Establishing liability is one of the most crucial steps. If the truck driver was drunk or distracted, for example the chances are that they'll be held accountable for your losses. There could be other parties equally responsible. If the accident was caused by faulty repairs and/or a mechanic, then the company that manufactured the truck accident litigation or its components could be held responsible under the legal theory respondeat superior.

You may also be entitled to damages for punitive harm if the accountable person acted in a manner of recklessness that was more serious. To be able to prove this, we must to establish that the liable party was reckless of your safety or that of others.

It's crucial to work with an attorney who is knowledgeable with the complexities of truck accident law accident cases. Insurance companies and lawyers for the at-fault party are often sheepskins in wolves and will attempt to convince you to give statements that they can later use against you. You can steer clear of these pitfalls by having an attorney manage your communications.