Sometimes, the truck driver might not be the only one responsible. There are two important legal terms to discuss: negligence and liability.
Negligence means someone acted in a way that a reasonable person would not have in the situation. For example, if a truck driver goes well beyond the speed at which he can maintain control of his truck, that can be seen as negligence. A reasonable person is expected to stay within a speed limit.
Liability means someone’s negligence directly contributed to or caused an accident. If a jackknife occurs because the truck driver was going too fast, he can be held liable for that accident.
In some situations, this can become more complicated. For example, perhaps the driver was going too fast due to instructions from his employer, and his brakes were improperly maintained, which made the jackknife accident more likely.
Since the causes of a Los Angeles jackknife accident are not always simple and clear, it is important to have an experienced personal injury attorney look at the situation and figure out how things went wrong. If you or a loved one has suffered due to a jackknife accident, call NOVIK LAW GROUP at (818) 305-6041 to discuss your options. Truck accident aren’t like car accidents, and our skilled L.A. car crash lawyers know how to tackle these cases successfully.