Car Accident Lawsuits: Pitfalls for the Unwary

Winning a car accident lawsuit can be a deceptively complex undertaking. Even if you win, your damages award might be reduced if the court rules that the accident was partially your fault.

Comparative Fault

In any state, the defendant can reduce his liability or escape it entirely by proving that the victim was at least partially at fault. In a few states, the victim will be denied any sort of compensation if he was only slightly at fault. In most states, however, the victim’s damages will be merely reduced as long as the victim’s degree of fault was less than that of the defendant. 

Suing the Government: The Sovereign Immunity Problem

The doctrine of sovereign immunity places significant restrictions on the ability to file a lawsuit against a government entity for a car accident (due to bad road conditions or a malfunctioning traffic light, for example). In some cases it may turn out to be impossible to file a lawsuit at all. An experienced car accident lawyer will know the ins and outs of the sovereign immunity law of your jurisdiction, and will be adept at finding loopholes.

Potential Defenses to a Car Accident Claim

A number of potential defenses are available to personal injury defendants:

l  A commercial trucking company may try to deny liability by claiming that the driver was an independent contractor rather than an employee. Indeed, in 2015 FedEx agreed to pay $228 million to thousands of its drivers who it inappropriately classified as independent contractors.

l  The defendant might claim that the accident was partially your fault. If this defense succeeds, your claim could be reduced or even entirely extinguished, depending on your degree of fault and which state’s personal injury law applies.

l  The defendant will almost certainly deny liability if the statute of limitations deadline expires before you file a personal injury lawsuit. The statute of limitations period usually begins running on the date of the accident, and the deadline varies by state – in Missouri, for example, you have five years to file a lawsuit, while in Kansas you only have two years.

                                 

How You Gather Evidence

 No matter how meritorious your claim, you cannot win unless you can prove your claim with admissible evidence. Evidence is typically gathered in the following manner:

Pre-Trial: The discovery process is the means by which you obtain evidence from the defendant (and sometimes third parties) prior to trial, so that you can properly prepare your case. You will need to know precisely which evidence to look for, how to handle interrogatories and depositions, which questions to ask the defendant (and which questions not to ask), and how to compel discovery when the other party is uncooperative. You will also have to know how to respond to discovery requests that the defendant serves on you.

During Trial: At trial you will need to examine your own witnesses, cross-examine the defendant’s witnesses and submit your evidence to court using a formalized process. You should be looking to exploit any contradiction you find between a hostile witness’ testimony during depositions and interrogatories (part of the discovery process) and his in-court testimony.