• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs): While not a state statute, these federal regulations govern nearly every aspect of the trucking industry. Violations of these rules—such as a driver exceeding their maximum driving time—can be used as powerful evidence of negligence in a lawsuit.
• New York Vehicle and Traffic Law: We use violations of New York’s traffic laws to help establish the truck driver’s negligence.
• Statute of Limitations (C.P.L.R. § 214): In most personal injury cases, you have three years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. However, acting quickly is essential due to the amount of evidence that can be lost in truck accident cases.

Due to the severity of these accidents, the damages awarded are often substantial and can include:

• No-Fault Coverage: We will help you secure your initial medical expenses and lost wages through your own no-fault insurance, as we do with all motor vehicle accidents.
• Bodily Injury Coverage: We will pursue a claim against the at-fault parties’ bodily injury insurance for more extensive damages, including:
  • All past and future medical expenses, including long-term care and rehabilitation.
  • Lost wages and loss of future earning capacity.
  • Pain and suffering, and emotional distress.
  • Wrongful death damages in fatal accidents.

Following a truck accident, your first priority is to seek immediate medical attention. After that, it is crucial to contact an experienced attorney who can act quickly to preserve vital evidence. Our strategic approach to these cases includes:

• Immediate Investigation and Evidence Preservation: We will launch an immediate investigation to preserve crucial evidence that trucking companies may try to hide or destroy. This includes the truck’s “black box” data, which records driving information like speed and braking, and the driver’s logbooks.
• Expert Scene Reconstruction: We work with accident reconstruction experts to analyze the scene, vehicle damage, and all available data to determine precisely how the accident occurred and who was at fault. This expert analysis provides powerful evidence to support your claim.
• Regulatory Compliance Review: We meticulously review all trucking logs, maintenance records, and driver history to determine if state or federal safety regulations (e.g., hours-of-service rules from the FMCSRs) were violated. Proving a regulatory violation can be key to establishing negligence.
• Identifying All At-Fault Parties: We will investigate all potential parties who may share liability—from the driver to the trucking company and cargo loader—to ensure we pursue every available source of compensation.