Jeffrey Johnson has written novels and movies in addition to legal analyses of eminent domain and immigration law. His experience in writing engaging fiction makes him uniquely capable of making the most dry and academic legal topics interesting (or as interesting as possible).
Jeffrey Johnson, J.D.
Jeffrey Johnson has written novels and movies in addition to legal analyses of eminent domain and immigration law. His experience in writing engaging fiction makes him uniquely capable of making the most dry and academic legal topics interesting (or as interesting as possible).
Adam has resided at the intersection of legal and journalism for two decades. An award-winning journalist and legal strategist, he’s covered high-profile trials in Florida.
After law school, Adam and spent two years clerking for a U.S. District Court judge. He researched and wrote legal precedent in published opinions on behalf of the Court.
He has been an editor, columnist and journalist at the Miami Herald, The Dallas Morning News, The Oregonian, Golf Digest, FindLaw.com and other media outlets.
He lived in Colombia and Argentina teaching legal English to attorneys and law students. He is also a Spanish-language subject matter expert.
An avid waterman, he surfs and scuba dives frequently.
Reviewed
Adam Ramirez, J.D.
Adam has resided at the intersection of legal and journalism for two decades. An award-winning journalist and legal strategist, he’s covered high-profile trials in Florida.
After law school, Adam and spent two years clerking for a U.S. District Court judge. He researched and wrote legal precedent in published opinions on behalf of the Court.
He has been an editor, columnist and journalist at the Miami Herald, The Dallas Morning News, The Oregonian, Golf Digest, FindLaw.com and other media outlets.
He lived in Colombia and Argentina teaching legal English to attorneys and law students. He is also a Spanish-language subject matter expert.
An avid waterman, he surfs and scuba dives frequently.
Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Forbes Advisor. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations.
Phoenix is a thriving city, home to some of the highest temperatures of any metro in the country and some of the most successful sports franchises of the 21st century. It’s also a crossroads between Interstates 10, 8 and 17—some of the busiest trucking routes in the country.
With all these trucks there are occasional accidents. Luckily, there are some phenomenal Phoenix truck accident lawyers. We’ve put together a list of some of the very best. Being in an accident with a commercial truck can be terrifying and traumatic. With our advice and a great lawyer like those we’ve listed, though, you can get some help holding the responsible parties accountable.
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Best Truck Accident Attorneys in Phoenix, AZ
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Filing a Truck Accident Lawsuit in Arizona
If you’ve been in an accident involving a truck, you already have a lot on your mind. Injuries and property damage and the trauma of being involved in an accident are more than enough for most people to handle. Factoring in all the issues of filing a truck accident lawsuit and it can be overwhelming. A great Phoenix truck accident attorney can help a lot, and the information below can at least give you some guidance.
Arizona Statute of Limitations
The statute of limitations is a law that determines the amount of time allowed to file a lawsuit. Criminal statutes of limitations limit the time that the state has to file charges after a crime is committed. In civil cases like personal injury law, the statute of limitations determines how much time you have after discovering an injury or bad act to sue the responsible party.
For trucking accidents and other personal injury claims, the statute of limitations in Arizona is two years.
Arizona Laws for Truck Drivers
One of the most important laws concerning truck drivers in Arizona is actually a federal law that dictates how much time a driver can operate a truck without breaks.
All truck drivers operating by themselves—there are different rules for trucks with two drivers and a sleeping cab—must work on either a seven or eight day work week.
- The driver can’t log more than 60 hours in a seven day week or more than 70 hours in an eight day week.
- The driver must take at least 34 hours off before starting another week of work
- A driver cannot work for more than 11 hours in a 14 hour period.
- After that 14-hour period, the drive must take at least 10 hours off
These rules are designed to combat driver fatigue and keep truck drivers and everyone else on the road safe.
Arizona also has laws about the size and weight a truck can carry. Anything above these dimensions requires a special permit from the Arizona Department of Transportation:
- 65 feet long
- 8 feet 6 inches wide
- 14 feet high
- Weighing no more than 80,000 pounds
Even with an Oversize or Heavy Load permit, the following are the maximum dimensions:
- 120 feet long
- 14 feet wide
- 16 feet high
- Weighing no more than 250,000 pounds
Identifying Fault for a Truck Crash
If you’ve been in an accident with a truck in Arizona, you’ll want to know how police and insurance companies will determine who is at fault. Arizona follows a pure comparative negligence rule when it comes to fault.
This means that more than one party can be at fault and each party will be able to recover only the percent of damages they weren’t responsible for. In an extreme example, suppose you were 99% at fault for the accident and suffered $100,000 in damages (damages being the monetary value of your losses: typically the cost to repair or replace your vehicle and the cost of medical treatment for your injuries). The truck driver is only 1% responsible for the accident and has no damages. Under Arizona law, you could recover $1,000 from the truck driver.
In many states, recovery is barred to anyone more than 50% responsible for an accident—this is called modified comparative negligence.
In actual practice, the fault determination is often worked out between the insurance companies or their representatives and is factored into any claims settlements being offered.
A Truck Hit You: Who Is Responsible?
Even if the courts determine that the driver of the truck that hit you was 100% at fault, there still may be questions about who’s actually responsible. That’s because the actual cause of the accident could lie with:
- The driver themselves
- The trucking company that employs the driver
- The owner of the truck, if that’s not the driver or the trucking company
- The company that loaded the freight
- Whoever is responsible for repairs to the truck
- The manufacturer of the truck or parts used in repair.
The exact answer to who bears the responsibility for a truck accident depends on the facts and circumstances of each accident.
This is something that a great Arizona truck accident lawyer will have experience with, which is just one way they can help you with your case.
How Can an Attorney Help You?
Investigating the actual cause of the accident and who bears responsibility is the primary way an attorney can help after a truck accident. When you’re dealing with injuries and damage to your car, taking on the investigation and, later, negotiation with the responsible parties is lifting a huge burden off your shoulders.
A good truck accident lawyer and their legal team will gather and preserve evidence, advise you on what documents to save, find the responsible parties and file suit—if necessary—within the statute of limitations.
An attorney can also advise you on what’s a fair offer based on the facts of your case and their experience in handling trucking accidents, and they can make sure that settlement payments are received and disbursed on time.
How to Find the Best Truck Accident Lawyer in Phoenix, AZ
The list provided in this article is, of course, not exhaustive. There are many great attorneys in the Phoenix area, and many of them are ready and able to take on your case. There are, however, some important factors to keep in mind when you’re considering hiring a Phoenix truck accident lawyer:
- Experience with truck accidents: We’ve discussed how liability for a truck accident can be spread between drivers, owners, companies, and repair shops. We didn’t mention, however, that many trucks in Arizona are coming and going from different states. Between the complicated liability and the implication of other state laws as well as federal laws concerning interstate commerce, you can see how different a truck accident can be from a normal fender bender. It’s essential that your attorney have experience handling commercial trucking cases.
- Clear fee structure: Your lawyer will most likely use a contingent fee structure, though some truck accident attorneys also offer hourly rates for certain tasks. No matter how they charge, you should understand the lawyer’s rate and how they get paid.
- Comfort level: You should feel comfortable with the person you choose to hire. If you feel pressured or disrespected or otherwise badly-treated in the initial consultation, it is unlikely this feeling will improve. You should be comfortable with how this person carries themselves and treats others—after all, they’re going to represent you—and feel confident in their ability to help and their respect for your time, preferences, and suffering.
Methodology
To come up with the Best Truck Accident Lawyers in Phoenix in 2024, Forbes Advisor considered many factors. Forbes Advisor’s mathematical module considers and weighs the information collected to calculate a specific rating and reviews these results to find the best attorneys in a given practice area.
Within the model, we take into account factors that legal professionals and consumers value in an attorney’s qualifications. After assigning weighted scores to hundreds of data points, we narrowed the field down to our top choices based on:
- Legal experience
- Special licenses & certifications
- Ethics and bar disciplinary measures
- Legal thought leadership
- Education & employment background
- Scholarly lectures & writings
- Awards & honors
Forbes Advisor collects public data from a variety of sources, including state bar associations, court records and other published sources on the internet. This information should not be considered comprehensive, however. It might not include additional relevant information on an attorney’s legal skills and experience.
Each lawyer listed here has their own merits. Bear in mind that our list relates to these lawyers’ legal backgrounds, but does not evaluate their personalities or their knowledge of the law. One attorney may be more suitable than another for your specific legal situation.
One thing that can’t be quantified, though, is the rapport you establish with your attorney. Personality goes a long way when teaming up with an attorney, especially when going through a potentially difficult legal situation. These rankings should serve as a reference and potential starting point in your search for the right lawyer for you and your legal concerns.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How long do truck accident settlements take?
The amount of time a settlement takes varies tremendously. The specifics of each case determine how long it takes to settle—mostly how obvious fault is. In a complex case with lots of potential blame to go around, it can take months or longer to settle.
In an obvious case, a settlement can happen in a matter of days.
What is the cause of most truck accidents?
According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), most accidents occur because the driver makes a bad decision like following too closely or misjudging distances. This accounts for 38% of all accidents.
Twenty-eight% of trucking accidents are due to driver inattention or distraction.
Why are truck accidents so serious?
Trucking accidents tend to cause more damage and injury because of the size and weight of the trucks. The average passenger car weighs about 3,500 to 4,000 pounds, which Arizona requires that all trucks that don’t get special permission weigh less than 80,000 pounds.
That means that even a truck carrying half the maximum load would be about 10 times heavier than most other vehicles it might hit in an accident.
