The Process of a Truck Accident Lawsuit
Accidents involving trucks can cause serious and permanent injuries. These can lead to significant medical costs as well as psychological damages.
Your lawyer will issue an Summons & Complaint to the parties who are liable. This process could take many years. Since New York uses comparative fault rules, your lawyer will ensure that any shared liability is properly evaluated and distributed to defendants.
Investigations
If someone is injured in a crash involving a truck there is much more at stake than an auto collision. The consequences of a truck accident can be life-altering and the impact can be more complicated due to the size and weight of commercial trucks. These accidents also require more intricate investigations.
To protect their interests the trucking companies and insurance providers will often investigate immediately following an accident. The victims are left to deal only with their injuries and are not able to gather evidence. This puts them in a position of disadvantage compared to the insurance company and trucking companies.
A truck accident lawyer who is experienced will look for evidence from a variety of sources, including police reports, witness testimony, and inspections of vehicles. A skilled lawyer should not depend solely on police reports, however, because these documents are typically not adequate for civil litigation purposes. Police officers aren't always properly trained to conduct an investigation properly and may not gather all the evidence required to support the court case.
Other types of information might include logbook and maintenance records and service records from the truck. Data from the event data recording device (also called a black box) is also available. A skilled attorney will ask the driver of the truck as well as the trucking company for these and other types of evidence and then carefully analyze them to determine the cause of the accident.
Expert Witnesses
A professional witness can help your lawyer establish the various aspects of your truck accident case. A medical expert could, for instance, provide evidence to your lawyer that the accident led to your injuries. Your expert can also testify as to how your injuries affect your life in the future. Expert witnesses can assist your lawyer assess the damages like lost income and your future earning capacity.
Experts can examine the physical evidence and explain how your injury will impact your future. A medical expert is a good example. They can explain how your accident might affect your mental and physical health. A metallurgist is a different kind of expert who can determine the reasons why a car component failed. Experts can determine if weather played a role in the crash.
A key role of your expert is to examine the evidence and give an impartial opinion. Certain expert witnesses could be a liability to your case when their opinions are biased or they have ties with the defendants. Your lawyer can conduct an investigation into the background of the expert witness to determine any potential risks.
Your lawyer will interview you, along with witnesses who were present at the accident before it happened. It is important to note that the insurance companies of defendants will try to convince you to admit that they are at fault or to make claims they can twist or distort to diminish your case.
Litigation
Truck drivers are also required to follow traffic laws and take reasonable care when driving. If they do not comply and their negligence leads to an accident, they could be held accountable for the injuries that victims are liable for.
Our lawyer will gather evidence from eyewitnesses and obtain either oral or written evidence to prove the defendant was negligent. Our team will also study various other evidence, including skid marks and points of impact, and will conduct crash tests.
Sometimes, the reason for an accident involving a truck is complex and involves multiple parties. For instance, if the truck crash was caused by defective equipment or poor maintenance, we could be able to sue the makers of that equipment or the trucks themselves. We might also sue the repair shop or mechanic responsible for performing the repairs.
We will try to resolve your dispute outside of the courtroom. If, however, the trucking firm or its insurer is unwilling to accept a fair settlement and we are unable to reach a fair settlement, we will go to trial. During the trial, a judge or jury will decide on issues that are disputed, such as who was responsible for the accident and what amount of compensation you are entitled to be awarded. The legal damages you receive will be calculated by the sum of your losses. This includes physical, financial, and emotional pain.
Statute of Limitations
Understanding how these cases usually are handled can help you prepare for what is to come and give you an idea of how long it will take to resolve your case.
westland truck accident law firm of the most important steps is to establish the liability. It is likely that a trucker who was drowsy, distracted, or otherwise impaired will be held responsible for the damage you suffered. There may be other parties as well. For instance, if a crash was caused by poor repairs, for instance, a mechanic who completed the work or a business that made the truck or its components might be held responsible under the legal theory of respondeat superior.
You may also be entitled to damages for punitive harm if the accountable person committed an act of recklessness that was more serious. To be able to prove this, we must to prove that the liable party acted in reckless disregard for your safety or the safety of others.
It's crucial to work with an attorney who is familiar with the complexities of truck accident cases. Insurance companies and lawyers for the at-fault parties are often the wolves in sheepskins who attempt to convince you to make statements that they later use against you. You can steer clear of these pitfalls by having an attorney manage your communications.