Our firm recently resolved a catastrophic semi-truck case resulting in the complete below-the-waist paralysis of our client. Fortunately, we were able to recover the insurance policy limits on both the tractor (cab) the trailer and the shipper.
The case involved an overloaded trailer hauling car parts. There was a construction delay on I-65 which caused the impatient semi-truck driver to exit the highway and proceed down state roads in an effort to bypass the delay. Our client was traveling down the state road on his way back from a hardware store where he had just picked up his lawnmower for a blade repair.
The Rollover Accident Left Our Client Permanently Injured
There was a wide open two-mile stretch of roadway followed by a clearly marked semi-blind sharp turn which required drivers to reduce their speed from 55 to 25 miles per hour. As our client approached this turn from the west, the truck driver was approaching from the east, The truck reduced its speed from 65-50 only 100 feet from the turn and as a result lost control of their overloaded trailer causing it to begin to jackknife and rotate on its side. The truck driver panicked, overcorrected and the trailer flipped impacting our client’s pick-up truck and rolling over it smashing him inside.
The Driver’s Inattention Caused the Accident
It was believed that the truck driver was either texting or looking at the internet just seconds before he reduced speed into the turn. In our investigation of the case we had to secure cellular data records, hire a roadway reconstructionist, a trucking safety expert on proper loads, a crash reconstructionist, a trucking operator expert, a bio mechanic expert to opine on the effect of our client not wearing a seatbelt and a life care planner to discuss the expensive long term medical needs of our client and an economist to discuss the financial impact of our client being unable to work as an irrigation laborer for a local irrigation company. The case was a hard fought victory but we were able to recover all the money.