Contacting an Orange County Attorney for Help After a Truck Accident

The common causes of a trucking accident typically involve driver fatigue, truck malfunction, and driving errors. California requires anyone who files a truck accident lawsuit to follow necessary steps to prove their claim. These are the same steps an injured person would need to file in a car accident. The basic steps include answering the following questions:

Did the truck driver have a duty to you or your passenger? Duty means they had the legal responsibility of acting in the same or similar way another truck driver would in that situation. They weren’t supposed to cause harm.

Did the truck driver breach their duty to you?

If the truck driver caused the accident, then they violated their legal obligation to you.

Did the accident lead to injuries?

The court will have to know if you were injured by the truck accident to prove this element. The court doesn’t assume you were injured in the accident. Your injuries could have occurred before the crash.

Did the truck accident lead to damages?

Damages are what the California court calls money. If you prove you had damages, you typically receive reimbursement. To prove this element, you need to show things like medical bills, lost wages and lost earning capacity. If you are suing for the death of a loved one, you’d need to provide funeral expenses.

Comparative Fault in Orange County

Comparative fault is a legal defense many companies and individuals use to decrease the amount of a court award. The defense requires a jury to look at the actions of the plaintiff, or person who is suing, prior or during the accident. They’re looking for plaintiff’s negligence. Negligence is fault. If the plaintiff is at fault, they still have the opportunity to receive money. Their award is reduced by a percentage. The total percentage depends on the amount of fault. For instance, if the plaintiff was 30 percent at fault and was awarded $100,000. Their award would decrease to $70,000.

Orange County Statute of Limitations

California has a statute of limitations regarding truck accidents. An injured individual is given two years from the date of the accident to file a claim. If the injured person is only suing for property damage, then it’s three years from the date of the accident.

Contacting an Orange County Attorney for Help

When you or a loved one has sustained an injury in a trucking accident, contact our dedicated attorney Christopher Guldjian immediately. You want to maximize your chances of receiving a rightful settlement.