A collision with a large truck or commercial vehicle can be devastating for a Southern California resident. In a moment, a person’s future may be permanently altered and their financial, emotional, and physical resources may be pushed to their limits. Accidents with trucks and commercial vehicles often involve litigation, and when litigation is involved, victims need to understand their rights.
Filing an accident-based lawsuit
Litigation based on vehicle accidents like truck and commercial vehicle collisions is often based on negligence. Negligence is a legal theory that suggests when one party breaches their duty of care to another party and is the cause of the other party’s injuries, they can be held liable for the other’s damages. A victim of a truck or commercial vehicle accident may suffer injuries and losses when a truck driver loses control of their rig, a delivery driver lets distractions cloud their driving abilities, or a commercial driver breaks existing traffic laws. These examples of negligence are not the only ones that may form the bases of personal injury claims arising from truck or commercial vehicle accidents.
Assessing defendants in a truck or commercial vehicle accident lawsuit
While the victim in a personal injury lawsuit is generally termed the plaintiff, the party or parties that they sue are called the defendant or defendants. In a truck or commercial vehicle accident lawsuit, there can be many different possible defendants to include. Some of those parties may include:
- The driver of the involved truck or commercial vehicle;
- The owner of the involved truck or commercial vehicle;
- The entity that employs or contracted with the driver of the truck or commercial vehicle; and
- The insurer of the truck, driver, or other involved parties.
It can be impossible for a victim to know how and whom to sue after an accident. Getting legal help is imperative, and this post offers no legal advice. Victims of truck and commercial vehicle accidents are encouraged to contact attorney Aman N. Shah for case-specific legal support.
