With one in four trucks dangerously out of service, why is the truck lobby fighting safety efforts?

Last year, 22 percent of all trucks failed a roadside inspection. These trucks were found so dangerous that they were immediately taken out of service. Keep in mind the inspection dates were announced four months in advance and widely publicized within the trucking industry.

Last year, nearly 5,000 people were killed in truck crashes throughout the country, and more than 80,000 people were seriously injured.

Traumatic brain injury lawyer Steve Gursten will be speaking at the Michigan Association for Justice TBI Seminar on August 31 in West Bloomfield, Mich. His topic is, “The Disabling Brain Injury Most Lawyers Miss.”

Steve is a member of the American Association for Justice Traumatic Brian Injury Group and lectures on TBI throughout the country. He was recently invited to become the first Michigan traumatic brain injury lawyer to serve on the legal committee for the Sarah Jane Brain Project.

Last year, in efforts to push for safer trucking safety standards and laws, I did some extensive research and found there are more than 1,000 unsafe trucking companies in Michigan with less than satisfactory safety ratings. This means there are countless trucks speeding around with defective brakes, bad tires, loads that dangerously exceed weight limitations, and unfit drivers with little or no safety training.

Nationally, one in every four trucks is dangerously out of service, but as a Michigan truck accident attorney, I believe the numbers are even higher here. It’s imperative that Michigan drivers, government and media become aware of my findings, in order to remove these ticking time bombs from the roads before more preventable truck accidents kill and injure innocent people.

Auto accident attorney reports four Michigan Supreme Court cases in abeyance pending McCormick v. Carrier

This week I wrote about McCormick v. Carrier (Rodney McCormick v. Larry Carrier and Allied Automotive Group, Indemnitor of General Motors Corp). the auto accident case that Michigan auto accident attorneys and judges are hoping will finally reverse Kreiner v. Fischer. On August 20, the Michigan Supreme Court granted the motion for reconsideration in McCormick as well as leave to appeal.

I would like to inform my fellow auto accident attorneys that there are four additional cases being held in abeyance:

Michigan auto accident lawyers and judges hoping McCormick v. Carrier will overturn Kreiner v. Fischer and restore the rights of personal injury victims

On August 20, 2009, the Michigan Supreme Court granted the motion for reconsideration in McCormick v. Carrier (Rodney McCormick v. Larry Carrier and Allied Automotive Group, Indemnitor of General Motors Corp.) as well as leave to appeal. This is the case that Michigan auto accident lawyers and judges have been hoping will finally reverse Kreiner v. Fischer.

Truck accident attorney Steve Gursten was recently interviewed for the CSA 2010 Initiative, which aims to develop effective methods for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration with industry and state partners to reduce commercial truck accidents, wrongful deaths and personal injuries.

Steve’s interview was posted on the organization’s Web site. The intent of the conversation was to get a lawyer’s perspective on CSA 2010 and its effect on litigation within the trucking industry. Steve was adamant in his hope that CSA 2010 would succeed in its attempt to reduce truck and bus crashes and help to make our highways safer for everyone.

During my trucking webcast for the Association of Plaintiff Interstate Trucking Lawyers of America yesterday, one truck accident lawyer asked if I could provide a link to the Philadelphia Head Injury Questionnaire.

This is a valuable tool the lawyers in my office use to help identify clients who may have suffered traumatic brain injury after automobile crashes. I’ve included the Philadelphia Head Injury Questionnaire here. As I said yesterday, it is crucially important that truck accident lawyers ask questions about traumatic brain injury, and identify symptoms of brain injury that are often missed early on by so many.

Truck accident lawyer warns truck crash victims of inadequate insurance company settlement offers

I settled a truck accident case last week. It started similar to many other personal injury cases — major truck accident, truck runs a red, injures person. What made it unusual was how it reached me. An agent for the insurance company had already contacted the accident victim, and offered $100,000 to settle the case. The family sensed something funny, and contacted me. I agreed — as our truck accident lawyers always do when this happens — not to take an attorney fee on anything that was previously offered, but to investigate. If there was nothing else I could add, there would be absolutely no costs or fee.

On August 18, truck accident attorney Steve Gursten will present a webcast for the Association of Plaintiff Interstate Trucking Lawyers of America. The topic is “Maximizing Damages in Trucking Cases:  Missed Opportunities in Protecting Clients,” and start time is 11:00 a.m. CST.

Here’s a brief description of Steve’s presentation:

Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Has Released Online Resource Center to Answer Questions Following a Motorcycle Crash

The motorcycle accident lawyers of Michigan Auto Law deeply care about motorcycle safety, especially since in the past decade, an average of 76,000 people across the country suffered serious personal injury from motorcycle crashes. And about 3,900 motorcyclists have died from accidents during that time, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

To make matters worse, the motorcycle accident law in Michigan has many exceptions, and is very different than those for car accidents and truck accidents. That’s why it’s important for motorcycle accident victims, their families and their lawyers to understand motorcycle insurance laws, critical deadlines and exactly what happens when someone has been injured or killed in a crash.