$450,000 Settlement for Tractor Trailer Accident

Truck Accident On Icy Highway Settles After Mediation

This case resulted from a truck accident in Columbia, MO. The Plaintiff was an Alabama truck driver who sustained lower back and hip injuries in the crash. There were no witnesses to the crash so the case was proven solely on expert testimony.

Plaintiff was returning home to Alabama after a cross-country trip. He was operating his semi-truck on Interstate 70 in Columbia, MO when the tractor trailer in front of him lost control due to icy conditions on the roadway. The defendant’s tractor trailer jack knifed and blocked the lanes of travel. Plaintiff could not avoid the collision.

The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri. During discovery, the defendant truck driver testified Plaintiff rear-ended his tractor trailer and caused him to jack knife. This testimony contradicted a statement defendant gave police after the crash in which defendant said he lost control of his tractor trailer because of ice.

Plaintiff had no memory of the accident. The police officer who worked the accident passed away soon after the crash, which made corroborating the facts exponentially more difficult.

The case settled for $450,000 after mediation.