Practice Areas

Sep 7, 2012 - Truck Accidents by Cross & Smith

Sleepy truckers and big rigs weighing 80,000 pounds are a deadly combination. “Sleep apnea is a major contributor to daytime drowsiness,” the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration states. “A condition that could prove deadly for commercial truck drivers and everyone sharing the road with them.” The Sleep Disorders Center of Alabama reports more than 100,000 accidents a year are caused by a fatigued driver. More than half of such accidents involve a driver under the age of 25. Aside from young drivers, those at highest risk include shift workers, commercial drivers and business travelers. Being awake for 18 hours has the same impact on a driver’s skills as being legally drunk with a blood-alcohol level of .08

Sep 5, 2012 - Personal Injury by Cross & Smith

Many of us drive for work. In fact, transportation accidents are the leading cause of fatal job accidents in this country, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Transportation accidents were responsible for 1,795 of the nation’s 4,551 workplace deaths in 2010, accounting for one-third of all deaths on the job. In such cases, an injury lawyer in Tuscaloosa should have significant experience in handling work place injury cases, as well as personal injury claims and car accidents. And, if you drive for work, you should know how important it is to carefully review your insurance policies and to understand the coverage available in the event of an accident. In Nationwide Mutual Ins. Co. v. Thomas, The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Eastern Division certified two questions of first impression to the Alabama Supreme Court: 1) Whether Nationwide could enforce a coverage exclusion clause in a car insurance policy for transporting people or delivering newspapers as part of the insured’s job. 2) Whether the exclusion applied after the last paper was delivered but while employee was still driving as part of the job.

Aug 31, 2012 - Bus Accidents by Cross & Smith

Schools are back in session across Alabama this week — and that means a return of big yellow school buses to a road near you. Tuscaloosa school bus accidents are often the result of impatient motorists. A large number of accidents are also pedestrian accidents that occur near a bus stop or in residential areas where students are walking to meet the bus. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that there were more than 363,000 fatal school-transportation accidents in the last decade. Alabama’s School Bus Stop Law was updated in 2006. The law requires a vehicle overtaking a bus from either direction to stop when the bus is stopped to pick up or drop off children. Drivers on a divided highway need not stop when traveling in the opposite direction. A first offense is punishable by a $400 fine. A second violation can result in a driver’s license suspension and 100 hours of community service.

Aug 29, 2012 - Truck Accidents by Cross & Smith

Alabama’s law against texting while driving took effect this month. However, many motorists are unaware that for several years, interstate commercial drivers have already been banned from texting while driving under federal law. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Transportation passed a rule forbidding commercial truck and bus drivers from text messaging behind the wheel. “Our regulations will help prevent unsafe activity within the cab, and we want to make it crystal clear that texting is one of those unsafe activities these regulations prohibit,” Administrator Anne Ferro said at the time. Researchers at Virginia Tech found truck drivers who text message put themselves at 23 times greater risk for an accident or near-accident. This year, USDOT outlawed all hand-held phone use by drivers with a measure that took effect Jan. 3. Drivers face a fine of up to $2,750 and may face suspension of their commercial driver’s license for subsequent offenses. Commercial trucking and busing companies face a maximum penalty of $11,000. Some 4 million drivers nationwide are subject to the federal ban.

Aug 24, 2012 - Workers' Compensation/Work Injury by Cross & Smith

Our Tuscaloosa workers’ compensation lawyers are often ask by people injured on the job about the avenues for collecting compensation for medical bills, lost wages and other damages. Sometimes, a victim wishes to sue an employer or former employer, which is generally not possible. Others believe workers’ compensation is the only avenue of recovery available, which is also incorrect. Workers’ compensation insurance is carried by your employer and is designed to compensate those who become injured on the job, regardless of fault. In what’s known as the “compensation bargain,” your coverage under workers’ compensation laws means you forfeit your right to sue for the tort of negligence. However, that does not mean that workers’ compensation is an injured employee’s only avenue of compensation. A third-party liability claim may be filed against a party other than the victim’s employer in cases where negligence led to an accident.

Aug 23, 2012 - Truck Accidents by Cross & Smith

Fleet Owner recently reported only 2 percent of trucking accidents are caused by drunk drivers. And it’s true. Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows only 2 percent of truckers involved in fatal accidents have a blood-alcohol level above the legal limit of .08, compared to 23 percent for passenger cars, 22 percent for light trucks and 28 percent for motorcycles. However, our Tuscaloosa trucking accident attorneys understand statistics in this case can be misleading for several reasons. First and foremost, you don’t have to have a BAC level of .08 to be considered drunk behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle. Many states have laws that consider a truck driver drunk with a BAC level as low as .02 or .04. In Alabama, the law is .04, half the legal limit of .08 for other motorists.

Aug 17, 2012 - Truck Accidents by Cross & Smith

One of the most complex aspects of a serious or fatal Alabama tractor-trailer accident is identifying the responsible parties and determining who to pursue for damages. A truck driver, trucking company, truck leasing corporation, truck maintenance contractor and even the owner of a truck’s freight or the manufacturer of a rig may share blame for a serious or fatal accident. Thus, properly identifying at-fault parties is critical when filing your lawsuit. In D.P. Holmes Trucking LLC v. Butler, the Mississippi Supreme Court examined whether a circuit court erred in allowing the plaintiff to amend his personal injury lawsuit to include Holmes Trucking. While Mississippi state law is not directly relevant in Alabama, such court decisions could still be looked at when establishing legal precedent in a negligent injury claim involving a trucking accident. This case involved a 2006 personal injury claim filed by Lester Butler against David Holmes and John Does 1-5. Butler was later granted permission to amend the complaint to include Holmes Trucking. However, the lawsuit language substituted Holmes Trucking for Holmes. Butler later filed a second amendment to properly identify Holmes Trucking, without permission of either the court or Holmes Trucking. The trucking company promptly moved for a motion to dismiss or summary judgement. After the court ruled against the company, finding the amendment simply corrected a “misnomer” in the original lawsuit’s language, the trucking company filed notice of interlocutory appeal, requesting the state’s Supreme Court grant a dismissal with prejudice.

Aug 15, 2012 - Bus Accidents by Cross & Smith

The Alabama Department of Public Safety will be conducting passenger-carrier safety inspections this week as part of the National Passenger Carrier Strike Force Initiative. The Huntsville Times reported the national initiative sponsored by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration runs though Aug. 27. Whether you are choosing a motor coach for summer vacation, or teaching your child school bus safety, Alabama bus accident attorneys understand fall is a dangerous time for accidents involving passenger carrier vehicles. Several high-profile bus accidents recently, including two fatal accidents this month in Illinois, have the safety of discount passenger carriers making news once again. The rise of discount carriers has increased the risk of busing accidents. Many of these operators save on overhead by offering curbside pickup, rather than providing terminals for passengers. However, the National Transportation Safety Board reports these curbside companies have an accident rate 7 times higher than traditional terminal carriers.

Aug 13, 2012 - Truck Accidents by Cross & Smith

Road Safe America and other traffic safety advocates are pushing The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to adopt hours-of-service regulations for truckers similar to those in place for airline pilots. “Truck drivers don’t have co-pilots, don’t have auto-pilot and must stay especially alert whenever driving since they share the public thoroughfares with the motoring public,” said RSA President Steve Owings. The Owings family lost their son in a trucking accident. New limits for pilots have been set at 8 or 9 daily hours of flying. In comparison, the feds reduced the number of trucking hours some drivers can log each day from 11 hours to 10. The revised rules were trumpeted as increased enforcement after a relaxation of old rules passed under the Administration of George W. Bush.

Aug 9, 2012 - Car Accidents by Cross & Smith

Our Tuscaloosa personal injury attorneys understand the dangers that motorists face in the wake of a breakdown, or when they run out of gas. The side of the road, with traffic flying by, poses serious risks. And the fact of the matter is that these secondary accidents are quite common. There are things you do in the event of a breakdown to help avoid such secondary collisions. It can happen to any of us — an accident, a breakdown or running out of gas. Whatever the reason may be, it’s dangerous to pull over. You want to make sure that you pull your vehicle as far off of the road as possible. Flip on your car’s hazard lights, particularly if your vehicle is causing an obstruction to passing motorists. There are shoulders on the side of the road. They’re there to help motorists in a bind. Only use these areas in an emergency. Your best bet is to drive to a safe place before stopping, if you can.