How Do I File a Truck Accident Lawsuit?

If you are interested in filing a truck accident lawsuit, it's helpful to know what the process looks like. Here are the steps it takes to file a truck accident lawsuit:

Hire a Truck Accident Lawyer

If you have experienced a truck accident and are interested in filing a lawsuit against the truck driver, trucking company, or any other party, your best chance at success involves an experienced truck accident lawyer. Truck accident lawsuits can be incredibly complex, and working with a truck accident attorney ensures you'll have guidance and support every step of the way.

File the Lawsuit

The next step is for your truck accident attorney to draft a formal complaint that will be delivered to the defendant or defendants. This complaint will state the allegations being made against the defendant, a description of the event that occurred, and the compensation that's being requested. It will also include the legal theories that are being used to support the plaintiff's claims.

After the complaint is delivered to the defendant, they have 20 days in which to reply.

Discovery

The discovery phase of the lawsuit process involves gathering evidence that can help support your truck accident lawsuit. During this time, the attorneys on both sides will investigate the case and dive deep into gathering all necessary evidence and documentation. Evidence that may be a part of this process includes:

• Photographs of the accident scene
• Photographs of your injuries
• Medical bills
• Evidence of lost wages
• The police report
• Witness testimony
• The truck's maintenance records
• Logs recording hours of service
• Data from the truck's electronic data recorder
• The driver's personnel file
• The driver's drug and alcohol test results
• And more

In the discovery phase, both the defendant's and plaintiff's teams can send each other interrogatories, which are essentially questions about the case that must be answered. Both sides must also share their discovery with each other.

At this point, the judge does have the right to issue what is known as a summary judgment. This is essentially a judgment made solely by looking at the evidence, without a trial — this may occur if the judge feels the evidence is very clearly in favor of one party.

Settlement or Trial

At any point during an accident lawsuit, a settlement agreement may be (and very likely will be) reached. It's actually fairly rare for a personal injury case to necessitate a trial; the vast majority of these cases are settled out of court.

A settlement occurs when both sides come to an agreement about compensation. Typically, the plaintiff will lay out in their initial complaint that they're seeking a particular amount in damages after the truck accident. The defendant, whether that's the truck driver, the trucking company, or another party, will usually then respond with a counteroffer. This process continues until both sides agree on a number. Working with an experienced truck accident lawyer during this process gives you the best chance of securing full and fair compensation.

Although most truck accident lawsuits do end in a settlement, going to court is of course a possibility. For this reason, it's important to work with a truck accident lawyer that has hands-on court experience, and not solely experience negotiating settlements.

Who Can Be Held Responsible For a Truck Accident?

One of the key elements of all truck accident lawsuits is determining who is at fault. In some cases, multiple parties may share varying degrees of fault for the same accident. Some of the parties who could possibly be at fault in your personal injury lawsuit regarding your truck accident include:

Truck Drivers

Of course, it's possible for the truck driver themselves to be responsible for your truck accident. A negligent truck driver may cause an accident by driving recklessly, driving while fatigued, driving under the influence, or doing any number of irresponsible acts.

The Trucking Company

Trucking companies can most certainly hold fault when truck collisions occur. There are a great number of federal regulations regarding how these companies must operate; breaking one of these regulations is both illegal and incredibly dangerous. They must ensure their fleet is in safe working condition, that their drivers meet a certain standard and more. A truck accident can occur when the trucking company breaks a rule such as forcing drivers to stay on the road longer than required.

The Truck Manufacturer

The company that makes the truck itself may be held responsible if a truck accident is caused by a design flaw or manufacturing error that could or should have been prevented.

The Loading Company

The trucking industry has specific regulations for how each truck and each item must be loaded. Different materials are required to be secured differently, and all trucks have a specific weight limit. If a truck is improperly loaded by the loading company, or if the truck surpasses a given weight limit, the company could be held responsible if an accident occurs.

Another Driver

Sometimes, truck collisions occur because of another driver on the road. For instance, another driver could be driving recklessly, leading to a collision with a truck, which then leads to a collision with your car. In this case, the other driver would likely be responsible for the accident.