As anyone who has been involved in a truck accident knows, such accidents are often disastrous. If you are driving a car or motorcycle, riding a bicycle or on foot and you collide with a truck, you’re lucky if you live to tell the tale. The reason for this, of course, is that commercial semi-trucks usually outweigh other vehicles by several thousand pounds.
If you have the misfortune to be seriously injured in a truck accident, once you have received urgent medical attention, you need the services of an experienced personal injury attorney. In the Cincinnati area, Jones Kahan Law, LLC is just the law firm you’re looking for. Well-versed in applicable truck safety and negligence laws, we have a track record of winning millions of dollars in compensation for our clients. Not only that, we have a well-earned reputation for providing compassion as well as excellent legal representation. Also, you will not pay any attorney’s fees until we win your case.
Because most truck drivers are working for a trucking company or a government agency, there may be several responsible parties and several insurers involved in a lawsuit, making your trucking accident case more complicated than a typical traffic accident. Jones Kahan Law’s attorneys, with our in-depth knowledge of both personal injury and truck accident lawsuits, will be invaluable allies in your time of greatest need.
When you have had an accident involving serious injury with a semi-tractor trailer or a postal truck, Jones Kahan’s sharp attorneys will first listen carefully to your account of the accident. Next, we will examine police reports, interview witnesses, take photographs of the accident site, and, if necessary, consult with automotive or medical experts who are prepared to testify on your behalf. Through a thorough investigation, we will be able to pinpoint who is at fault for your injuries: the driver, the commercial trucking company, the truck manufacturer, or, in the case of a postal truck, the United States government under the Federal Tort Claims Act.
If this all sounds a bit convoluted, that’s because it is. Filing a lawsuit for personal injury after a truck accident is not a do-it-yourself project. You need powerful, agile attorneys to handle your case in order to obtain the damages you are entitled to.
Because of the nature of commercial trucking and the strong profit motive involved, truckers drive longer hours than the rest of us, leading to factors that increase the risk of accidents. Also, because many different individuals are involved with trucks before they hit the road, there are several points at which mistakes can be made, adding to the risk level. While some truck accidents, like other traffic accidents, occur for reasons other than human error (e.g.poor weather or an animal on the roadway), in spite of strict federal regulations designed to protect truckers and the public, reasons for truck accidents include:
Whether your truck accident or the truck accident of a loved one has resulted in long-term disability, permanent incapacity, or wrongful death, Jones Kahan will fight tenaciously to win you the compensation you deserve to pay for all your present and long-term expenses and to secure your family’s financial future.
Since Ohio is an at-fault state, we have to file a claim for economic damages on the at-fault party’s insurance company or, in the case of a postal truck, the federal government. In the state of Ohio, the rule of modified comparative negligence, in which more than one party can be held responsible for the truck accident, applies.
If, for instance, we are suing the trucking company for improperly loading the truck that hit you, it is possible that the court will determine that you were partially at fault for your injury because you were not wearing your safety belt when the truck hit your car. In such a case, the court will assign you a percentage of fault — let’s say 10 percent. What this means is that the damages you recover will be reduced by 10 percent, so that if you have won a settlement of $1 million dollars, you will actually receive $900,000. It’s important to note that “modified” comparative fault means that if you are found to be more than 50 percent at fault for the accident, you will not be awarded any damages at all.
If the at-fault party engaged in particularly egregious behavior, for example, if the trucking company knew the brakes were not working properly but sent the driver out anyway, we may be able to win you punitive damages, money over and above your compensatory damages.
Though there are caps on non-economic personal injury claims in Ohio, you can count on our talented legal to obtain the largest settlement possible. We know how overwhelmed you are at this time. Contact us promptly so that we can carry the logistical load while you rest and recover.
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