Rule of the Road No. 7 – How to poke holes in a dishonest truck driver’s story during the deposition

Pre-trip inspection requirements are probably the most violated mandatory safety rule by the trucking industry today. Unfortunately, most lawyers who handle truck accident cases have no idea what those inspection requirements are. Most lawyers think a pre-trip inspection is one inspection by the driver before he gets behind the wheel.

Wrong.

As required by 49 CFR § 392.9, a truck driver must inspect his truck and cargo:

Rule of the Road No. 6 – Truck Accident Attorneys Show How to Identify Driver Fatigue

A recent survey states that 20 percent of truck drivers nationwide admitted to falling asleep at the wheel in a given month. This stat comes at no surprise to our truck accident attorneys, who frequently handle horrible truck crash cases, caused when fatigued truckers continue driving over the legal limits. This is usually due to intense pressure by management, as well as financial incentives to drive past federally regulated hours of service.

Rule of the Road No. 5 – How Black Box Data Can Prove Liability in Truck Crash Cases

Steve Gursten recently spoke at the AAJ Truck Litigation Seminar

“Black boxes” have completely revolutionized the way trucking companies can monitor the activities of their truck drivers. They’ve also revolutionized the way truck accident lawyers litigate serious crash cases, as black boxes may likely help prove your case and discredit the defense.

Rule of the Road No. 4 – Know that Complete Driver Qualification File is a MUST After a Truck Accident

A motor carrier is required to keep seven documents in each of its drivers’ qualification files. But it’s almost inevitable that a negligent truck company will fail to produce a complete file after a serious truck accident in Michigan.

In this event, a truck accident attorney’s trial preparation must highlight the carrier’s failure to comply with 49 CFR § 391.51.  This critical Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Regulation states that a motor carrier is required to maintain a complete driver qualification file for each driver it employs.

Tip from my recent trucking lawyer seminar: Teaching truck accident attorneys what info a trucking company should have gathered on drivers before hiring - but didn’t or just ignored

The unfit truck driver who never should have been placed behind the wheel of an 80,000 pound tractor-trailer is often the key to your truck accident case. Remember that under 49 CFR § 391.23, an interstate commercial motor carrier has the responsibility to conduct investigations into the background of each commercial truck driver it employs.

Helping truck accident lawyers better understand preservation of supporting documents to strengthen your case

A truck accident lawyer who conducts thorough legal discovery will most often, lay the groundwork for a successful truck case in Michigan. Many commercial truck crash cases begin with investigation of the driver. You must look deeper than the circumstances surrounding the crash itself.

Helping truck accident attorneys better understand hours of service regulations

Driver fatigue is the hot topic right now for truck accident attorneys and the trucking industry, and for a very good reason. Truckers are often pushed to drive beyond physical - and legal - limits.  Most often, they’re forced to do this by trucking companies aiming to cut corners and save money. For the truckers, breaking these hours of service regs can mean the difference between putting food on the table, or being next in the unemployment line.

Any lawyer who assumes a commercial truck accident case is simply a “car wreck” case with bigger policy limits is bound to commit legal malpractice. In trucking cases, the federal government imposes hundreds of regulations that essentially, create theories of strict liability against the truck driver and the trucking company.

Without knowledge of these regulations, a lawyer cannot possibly recover top value for his clients after a serious truck accident case.

Truck Accident Lawyer Says Drivers Who Text Are 20 Times More Likely to Crash

According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, drivers take their eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds out of every six seconds while texting. FMCSA research shows drivers who text are more than 20 times more likely to get in an accident than non-distracted drivers.

Our truck accident lawyers are happy to announce that drivers of commercial trucks and buses will be prohibited from texting under federal guidelines that U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood issued Tuesday.

I was recently interviewed by Chicago Fox 2 News reporter Larry Yellen.  Larry was looking for an attorney who is a national expert on serious truck accidents caused by truckers who are drunk or high. Below is the investigative television story and article. A sincere thank you to Larry, for shedding more light on this national crisis.

View Video

Drug Abuse Among Truck Drivers

Monday, 09 Nov 2009
By Larry Yellen, FOX Chicago News

Chicago - Truck drivers might be using drugs to stay alert, or to relieve stress during long, lonely trips. And because of drug abuse, there are more strict drug-testing programs throughout the industry.