The Process of a Truck Accident Lawsuit
Many truck accidents leave victims with severe and lifelong injuries. These accidents can lead to substantial medical expenses, loss of income and psychological traumas.
Your attorney will issue a Summons and Complaint to all parties that are responsible. The process can take a few years. Your lawyer can help you determine whether the shared responsibility has been properly assessed and assigned.
Investigations
A truck crash can be more serious than an auto crash. A truck accident could result in life-changing effects. The consequences are more complex due to its size and weight. These accidents also require more intricate investigations.
Due to this, trucking companies and insurance providers typically conduct their own investigation immediately following the incident to protect their interests. The victims are left to deal only with their injuries, and are not able to gather evidence. This puts them at a disadvantage in comparison to the trucking company or insurance provider.
A seasoned attorney for truck accidents will seek evidence from various sources which include police reports witness statements, and inspections of vehicles. A lawyer with experience cannot rely solely on the reports of police officers alone because they are usually not sufficient for civil litigation. Police officers might not be equipped to conduct an investigation properly and may not gather all the evidence required for the court case.
Other kinds of data could include logbook records, maintenance and service records from the truck. Data from the device for recording events (also known as a black box) is also available. A competent attorney will request both the driver of the truck and trucking company for these and other types of evidence and then carefully analyze them to determine the reason for the accident.
Expert Witnesses
A professional witness can help your lawyer prove the various elements of your truck accident case. For example an expert in medicine can give your lawyer proof that the crash resulted in your injuries. scottsdale truck accident lawyer may also testify about the impact your injuries will have on your quality of life in the future. Expert witnesses can also assist your lawyer calculate the value of your damages, including lost income and loss of future earning capacity.
Your doctor can look over physical evidence and discuss the consequences of your injury on your future. For instance medical experts can demonstrate how your accident can affect you in terms of mental and physical well-being. A metallurgist, for instance, is another kind of expert who can analyze the reasons behind why a vehicle component failed. There are also experts who assess the ways in which weather might have contributed to the crash.
A key role of your expert witness is to review the evidence and give an objective and impartial opinion. However, certain expert witnesses can become a liability risk in your case if they're biased or have connections to the defendant's businesses. Your attorney can use an identity check to identify these risks and ensure that you have the top experts in your case.
In addition to expert witnesses, your attorney will also interview you as well as other eyewitnesses, such as people who saw the crash occurring before it occurred. It is crucial to remember that the insurance companies of defendants will try to convince you to admit fault or make statements they can twist and deceive to deny your claim.
Litigation
Truck drivers must also adhere to traffic laws and drive with reasonable care. If they do not fulfill this obligation and their negligence results in an accident, they could be held liable for the damage to the victims of that crash.
Our attorney will collect evidence from eyewitnesses and seek oral or written testimony to prove the defendant was negligent. Our team will also examine an array of other evidence, including skid marks and areas of collision, and conduct crash tests.
Sometimes, the cause of an accident involving a truck is complex and involves multiple parties. For instance, if a 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 could also sue the repair shop or mechanic responsible for the repairs.
We will attempt to resolve your case outside of the courtroom. However, if the trucking firm or its insurer is unwilling to accept a fair settlement or offer, we'll prepare to go to trial. During the trial in court, a jury or judge will rule on disputed issues like who was responsible for the accident and the amount of compensation you should receive. The amount of your legal damages will be based on your documented losses, which include physical, financial and emotional suffering.
Statute of limitations
Understanding how these cases normally are handled can help you prepare for what is to come and give you an idea of how long it may take to resolve your case.
One of the most crucial actions is to establish the responsibility. It is possible that a trucker who was drunk or distracted or impaired will be held accountable for the harm you suffered. There may be other parties also accountable. If the crash was caused by faulty repairs such as a mechanic or company that manufactured the truck or its components could be held responsible according to the legal theory of respondeat superior.
You may also be entitled to damages for punitive if the guilty party committed an act of recklessness that was more acrimonious. To establish this, we have to prove that the responsible party acted recklessly of your safety or that of others.
It's important to work with an attorney who is familiar with the complexities of truck accidents. Insurance companies and lawyers representing the parties at fault are often the wolves in sheep's clothing who will try to get statements from you that they could use against you in the future. You can steer clear of these pitfalls by having an attorney handle your communications.