Practice Areas

Mar 27, 2012 - Personal Injury by Cross & Smith

When you are injured because of the fault of someone else, establishing liability can be complicated. Our Tuscaloosa injury attorneys understand that the law is complex, and we can help defend your rights in the wake of a serious or fatal accident. Dubiel v. Montana Department of Transportation is a case that examines the plaintiff’s burden of proof in injury cases based on negligence. This case is important because it shows the importance of expert testimony in Tuscaloosa injury cases. Jerome Dubiel was traveling on a highway in Montana during a time of extremely high winds. These winds persisted for two hours causing trees to be blown down and scatter on the road. There were several employees from the Montana Department of Transportation (“MDT”) within the area assessing road conditions, working on the power lines, as well as removing trees from the roads. Jerome was temporarily stopped by an employee of the MDT who was clearing debris from the highway, when a tree fell onto Jerome’s car causing him to suffer a fatal injury. Subsequently, the MDT closed the highway due to weather and road conditions. However, the MDT contends that they did not know of Jerome’s accident when they decided to close the highway.

Mar 6, 2012 - Bessemer by Cross & Smith

Our Bessemer accident attorneys have seen far too many crashes caused by truckers who were either distracted, fatigued or reckless. Causes of accidents involving large trucks over 10,000 pounds are as varied as the people behind the wheel. A study conducted by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in 2/car-accidents/alabama-traffic-accidents-likely-to-increase-with-economic-recovery/ looked at the top causes of large truck crashes, and this is what they found: Of a sample of 120,000 large truck crashes analyzed, at least one person was killed in every single case. In nearly 80 percent of these cases, the large truck was pulling one semi-trailer. In 5 percent of the cases, the trucks were hauling materials deemed hazardous. Also in about 75 percent of these crashes, the truck struck another vehicle. When investigators look at the causes of the crash, they sometimes have to analyze what was happening hours, days or even months prior to a crash. That’s because crashes can involve elements such as driver fatigue, driver training and experience or the design and manufacturing of the vehicle itself.