Transportation Litigation

One part of our practice is defending trucking and transportation related companies in personal injury, wrongful death and property damage cases throughout Illinois and Tennessee.  We receive trucking defense assignments from insurance companies; third-party administrators and motor carriers.  We have frequently been contacted to immediately respond to a serious motor vehicle accident. In addition to securing the driver, it is our responsibility to get on scene and coordinate with our client, accident reconstruction experts, field adjusters and investigators and, if necessary, criminal attorneys.

We will obtain as much relevant information as possible, preserve evidence at the scene and with the vehicles, identify witnesses, determine if any intersection or red light video exists, and communicate with the investigating police, emergency medical personnel and tow truck operators.  The defense of a serious accident begins immediately and the strength of that defense may hinge on the quality of the initial investigation.

In addition to cases pleading: driver negligence in operation of a commercial motor vehicle; negligent and willful and wanton hiring, retention and entrustment; compliance or not with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations on maintenance, inspection, repair, CDL and driver qualifications and operation issues; negligent maintenance and repair; component or part failure; improper loading or unloading and loading dock cases; we have experience handling the tender issues that frequently arise in the agreements, contracts and leases to which our transportation clients are parties and claims for defense and indemnity and failure to procure insurance.

We defend tractor trailer accidents; we also defend many wrongful death and personal injury auto accident cases. With these, we also defend uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist claims and are familiar with three person arbitrations and arbitration through AAA.