The Process of a Truck Accident Lawsuit
Many truck accidents cause victims to suffer serious and lifelong injuries. These can result in significant medical expenses, lost wages and psychological trauma.
Your attorney will prepare a Summons and Complaint against all liable parties. This process can take several years. Your lawyer can help you determine whether the shared responsibility has been properly assessed and allocated.
Investigations
When someone is injured in a collision with a truck, there is a lot more at stake than in a car crash. The consequences of a truck accident can be life-altering and the impact is more complex due to the size and weight of commercial trucks. These accidents also involve more intricate investigations.
To protect their interests trucking companies or insurance companies will usually conduct investigations right after the accident. The victims are left to deal only with their injuries, and they are unable to collect evidence. orem truck accident lawyer puts them at a disadvantage in comparison to the trucking company or insurance companies.
A seasoned attorney for truck accidents can find evidence from various sources, including police reports, witness statements, and inspections of vehicles. A knowledgeable lawyer will not depend solely on police reports however, as these documents are usually not sufficient for civil litigation. Police officers might not be trained to conduct an inquiry correctly and may not collect all the evidence required for a lawsuit.
Other kinds of data could include logbook records, maintenance and service records from the truck. The data from the event data recording device (also known by the name black box) is also available. A competent attorney will request these and other forms of evidence from the truck driver and the trucking company and carefully examine the evidence to determine what led to the accident.
Expert Witnesses
A truck accident expert witness can assist your attorney in proving different aspects of the case. Medical experts could, for instance, provide proof to your lawyer that the accident led to your injuries. Your expert will also testify on the impact your injuries could have on your life's quality of living in the future. Expert witnesses can also assist your lawyer assess the value of your injuries, which includes lost income and loss of earning capacity in the future.
Your doctor can look over physical evidence and discuss the consequences of your injury on your future. Medical experts, for example, can explain how the accident could impact your physical and mental health. Another kind of expert is a metallurgist who can identify the reason a part of a vehicle failed. There are also experts who assess the ways in which weather might have caused the crash.
The role of an expert witness is to offer an honest and objective opinion after examining the evidence. Certain expert witnesses could be a liability for your case when their opinions are biased or they are associated with the defendants. Your attorney can use a background check to find these risks and ensure you have the best experts in your case.
Your lawyer will question you, as well as any other eyewitnesses that witnessed the accident before it happened. It is important to keep in mind that the insurance companies of the defendants will try to convince you to admit that they are at fault or make statements that they can twist and deceive to diminish your case.
Litigation
Truck drivers must also adhere to traffic laws and use reasonable care when driving. If they fail in this duty and their negligence causes a crash, they could be held accountable for damages caused by the accident to the victims of the collision.
To prove the defendant's negligence, our lawyer will collect a array of evidence from witnesses who witnessed the crash and provide either oral or written testimony regarding the circumstances of the collision. Our team will also examine other evidence, such as skidmarks as well as points of impact. We will also conduct crash testing.
Sometimes the reason for a truck accident is complicated with multiple parties. If the accident was caused by defective equipment or maintenance that was not done properly, we could sue the producers or the trucks. We might also sue the repair shop or mechanic responsible for the repairs.
We will attempt to resolve your dispute out of court, but if the trucking company or its insurance company is unwilling to make a fair settlement offer and we prepare for trial. During trial, a jury or judge will decide on the dispute such as who was responsible and how much compensation you should receive. Your legal damages will be calculated in accordance with the totality of your losses, including physical, financial, and emotional pain.
Statute of Limitations
While navigating the legal process following a truck accident may be a bit complicated, knowing how these cases typically proceed will help you anticipate the future and give you a better idea of the length of time your case may take.
Establishing liability is one of the most crucial steps. It is probable that a driver who was drunk, distracted, or otherwise impaired will be held accountable for the harm you suffered. However, there might be other parties who are also liable. For instance, if the accident resulted from poor repairs for instance, a mechanic who performed the work or a business that manufactured the truck or its parts might be held responsible in the legal concept of respondeat superior.
It's also possible the responsible party has was guilty of a more serious reckless act, which could result in punitive damages. To establish this, we have to prove that the liable party acted in reckless disregard for your safety or that of others.
It is essential to work with an attorney who is experienced with the complexities involved in truck accident cases. Insurance companies and attorneys representing the parties at fault are often the wolves in sheep's clothing who will try to collect statements from you that they could use against you in the future. By having an attorney handle all communications, you'll avoid these pitfalls.