Big rig truck accident lawyers and commercial large truck accident attorneys in California

Big rig truck accident lawyers and commercial large truck accident attorneys in California and other states must consider the applicable federal and state law applicable to big rigs, semis, 18 wheelers, and all other "large commercial trucks" weighing in excess of 10,000 pounds. These laws govern everything from the number of hours that the truck drivers are permitted to drive between 8 hour rest periods, keeping logs with regard to their driving time and rest periods, and providing their logs to all employers or contracting trucking companies or contracting shippers, through permissible load weights and manner of securing the loads.

In serious injury truck accident cases, the big rig truck accident lawyers, and large commercial truck accident attorneys, must also be knowledgeable of the legal theories of action available against the trucking companies and shippers. All to often, unfortunately a big rig truck accident will result in serious or catastrophic injury. Big rigs and large commercial trucks weigh between 3 an 30 times the average weight of an ordinary passenger car. The car driver and his passengers, in addition to their devastating and life altering injuries may suffer substantial medical expenses, including the prospect of future medical expense measured in the hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars, and past and future earnings losses of equal magnitude. And yet, under federal law and most state laws, the truck driver is only required to carry $750,000 in liability insurance.Bikers of Lesser Tolerance Furthermore, as an artificial means of attempting to insulate themselves from liability, the trucking companies and shippers will commonly hire the drivers as "independent contractors" rather than "employees." Therefore it is very important for big rig truck accident lawyers and commercial truck accident attorneys to identify through investigation the evidence to stablish the liability of the trucking company or shipper under the available legal theories in order to name them as defendants in the litigation, and access their larger insurance policies and their assets to pay for the injury and damages suffered by the accident victims.

Examples of such legal theories include "negligent entrustment" and "negligent supervision." The big rig truck accident lawyers, and large commercial truck accident attorneys investigation in California and in other states is in part influenced by the federal and state law described in part above, including everything from obtaining the driver's personnel file and sometimes the driver's criminal record for DUI alcohol or drug abuse, in particular amphetamine drug use is common in the trucking industry, to determine whether the driver was negligently hired, through examining whether the drivers logs of time on and off duty were properly an d timely submitted to the trucking company or shipper, nd whether the logs evidenced compliance with the applicable federal and state laws, through the records of the weights of the load, and evidence with regard to the manner in which the load was secured. For a more complete discussion of the California big rig truck accident attorneys and large commercial truck accident lawyers investigation relevant to establishing the liability of trucking companies and shippers in serious injury truck accident litigation, you are invited to consider The California Big Rig Truck Accident Lawyers and Commercial Truck Accident ttorneys Approach to Establishing Shipper Liability in Serious Injury Truck Accident Litigation which we believe would also be generally applicable to big rig and large commercial truck accident cases in most other states, particularly with regard to the application of legal theories based on federal law as well as analogous state statutes similar to those enacted in California.

While auto accident cases, and even big rig truck accident cases may appear "simple" in terms of the liability of the truck driver - for example, where the big rig runs a red light, or where the truck "jackknifes," the trailer of the truck moving sideways, sometimes causing the truck to roll - in cases where the car driver and passengers suffer serious injury it must be recognized by the lawyers who take on the litigation that they will have the responsibility to become knowledgeable about the applicable state and federal law, and consider the legal theories available against the trucking company and/or shipper, where the driver's insurance coverage is inadequate to pay the accident victim's full measure of general and special damages. The special investigation techniques referred to above and on the cited page are required, in addition to the normal truck accident investigation. In serious injury litigation, the personal injury lawyer or big rig truck accident lawyers or large commercial truck accident attorneys must also be knowledgeable and experienced in the presentation of their seriously injured client's "general" and "special" damages to assure that full and fair compensation is obtained for his injuries, pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, his past and future medical expenses and past and future earnings losses. In the latter respect, this requires the attorney to contract with a number of medical experts, in addition to "life care planners" "vocational ehabilitation experts" and forensic economists. Serious injury truck accident ases, indeed, while they may "appear" to be "simple" cases of liability and damages, are cases that are most commonly highly complex.