Two married couples were traveling north on U.S. Highway 421 near Wilkesboro after a day of Christmas shopping. A tractor trailer, traveling south at a high rate of speed, overturned, crossed into the opposite lane, and crashed into their vehicle. All four individuals were killed. This stretch of road consists of approximately 5 miles of…
A rural mail carrier was struck from the rear by a tractor-trailer at a high rate of speed. The plaintiff was rendered a paraplegic by the wreck and also lost sight in her right eye. Her husband pursued a claim for loss of consortium. The driver of the tractor truck had a substantial criminal record….
A brother and sister, ages 27 and 24, were killed in a collision with a tractor trailer in a work zone east of Greensboro, North Carolina. The defendant truck driver contended that the wreck was caused by a third vehicle which cut him off. Computerized accident reconstruction showed that this explanation was unlikely. Plaintiffs’ counsel…
A 51-year-old man was killed by a tractor-trailer. As the decedent was merging onto Highway 421 from an entrance ramp, the tractor-trailer moved from the left lane to the right lane, causing the collision. The decedent was survived by his wife and two children. The case settled for $4.1 million after mediation.
A young woman was driving to work when a commercial motor vehicle suddenly pulled out in front of her. The woman had no time to avoid collision and was killed as a result of the crash. She was survived by her husband and minor child. The parties engaged in substantial pre-suit discovery including the retention…
A woman driving down NC 62 outside of Greensboro was killed when her Mitsubishi was struck by a commercial truck that ran a stop sign. Even though she was wearing her seatbelt, the force of the collision was so great that she was ejected from the vehicle, resulting in extensive blunt force trauma that almost…
A 44-year-old man was killed in an automobile wreck. The case settled for $1.2 million, which was the limit of insurance coverage available. However, there was a large workers’ compensation lien against the proceeds. Counsel filed a motion to strike the lien in order to more fully compensate the beneficiaries of the estate. At the…
A 24-year-old plaintiff was riding in a passenger van traveling to Charlotte with several other military recruits on their way to enlist in the armed forces. They were traveling behind an 18-wheel tractor-trailer on a two-lane road when the van driver attempted a passing maneuver. In the middle of the pass, the van driver contended…
The deceased was flying with her husband of several weeks in his private plane from Hickory North Carolina to Indianapolis. The plane was not equipped for cross-country instrument flight, and the proposed route of the flight took the plane through severe meteorological conditions. During pre-flight planning, the husband was made aware that there would be…
A 69-year-old man was injured in a collision and later died from those injuries, leaving behind a widow and four adult children. At the time, he was working for the NC DOT, supervising inmates working along the side of the four-lane U.S. Highway. He was parked off the side of the road in a yellow…
