Board Certified Dallas Truck Accident Lawyers
Truck accidents are won by the side that knows trucking, and most lawyers don’t. Every Dallas truck accident lawyer at our firm is board certified in Truck Accident Law, and between them Steve Laird and Seth McCloskey have tried close to 300 jury cases.
Truck Accidents in Dallas Demand a Different Kind of Lawyer
A crash with an 18-wheeler leaves you facing more than injuries. Within hours of a serious wreck, the trucking company’s rapid-response team can be at the scene, photographing evidence, interviewing witnesses, and shaping the story before you have even been discharged from the hospital. By the time most people call an attorney, the other side is already days ahead.
Closing that gap takes more than a general practice. Truck accidents sit under a body of federal safety regulations, commercial driver standards, and industry rules that runs to hundreds of pages, and the lawyers who win these cases are the ones who know that material cold. We built our law firm on it. When trucking companies and their insurers see our name on a case, they know they are dealing with attorneys who try truck accident cases to verdict rather than settling low just to close a file.
We represent truck accident victims throughout Dallas and Dallas County in every kind of commercial vehicle wreck, from 18-wheeler and tractor-trailer collisions to delivery truck crashes, rollovers, underride accidents, and multi-vehicle pileups on the highways that ring the city.
Why Truck Accidents in Texas Produce Such Complex Claims
The size and weight of a large truck mean the physics of the crash are different, the injuries are worse, and the money at stake is far greater than in car accident cases. That is exactly why these claims are fought so hard.
Liability in truck accidents rarely stops with the truck driver. The trucking company that hired him, the contractor that maintained the rig, the shipper that loaded the cargo, and even the manufacturer of the truck or its parts may each carry a share of the blame. Texas applies proportionate responsibility to all of them, and you can recover damages as long as your own share of fault is not more than 50 percent, with your recovery reduced by whatever percentage a jury assigns you. Sorting out those percentages takes real investigation, and it is where an experienced truck accident attorney earns their fee.
Federal law shapes these cases too. Carriers must comply with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration rules on driver hours, drug and alcohol testing, maintenance, and cargo securement, and violations of those rules are behind many of the common causes of truck accidents, including fatigued drivers, poorly maintained brakes, and shifting loads. Proving a violation often requires driver logs, electronic control module data, and inspection records that the carrier controls, which is why moving quickly matters.
Under Texas law you generally have two years from the date of the crash to file a lawsuit. When a loved one is killed in a truck accident, the wrongful death clock runs from the date of death instead. Either way, the critical evidence rarely survives that long, so the filing deadline should never set your pace.
Common Causes of Truck Accidents in Dallas
Most truck accidents trace back to choices, not chance, and the pattern repeats across the wrecks we investigate:
- Federal hours-of-service limits exist because tired truck drivers cause devastating truck accidents, yet logbook pressure from trucking companies still puts exhausted drivers on Dallas highways.
- Speed and following distance. A loaded rig needs far more room to stop than the traffic around it, and truck accidents on the LBJ and I-30 corridors often come down to a truck driver who left none.
- Poor maintenance. Worn brakes, bald tires, and skipped inspections turn routine hauls into catastrophic truck accidents, and maintenance shortcuts almost always leave a paper trail.
- Improper loading. Overloaded or badly secured cargo shifts, and when it does, jackknife and rollover truck accidents follow.
- Negligent hiring. Some trucking companies put drivers on the road without the screening federal rules require, and fatal truck accidents are too often the first time anyone checks.
Establishing which of these caused your wreck is where our truck accident attorneys can help, because each cause points to different evidence and often to a different defendant. The crash report itself, filed through the Texas Department of Transportation, is only the starting point.
How We Build a Dallas Truck Accident Case
We are trial lawyers first. Instead of carrying hundreds of files at once, we accept a small number of serious truck accidents and work each one as if it will be decided by a jury, because preparing that way is also what produces strong settlements.
Our investigations go past the police report. Depending on the crash, that can mean preserving the truck’s electronic data before it is overwritten, hiring accident reconstruction engineers, auditing the driver’s qualification file and hours-of-service records, and digging into the carrier’s safety history with federal regulators. Past investigations have exposed drivers hired without required background checks, falsified logbooks, false statements on medical certifications, and fraudulently obtained commercial licenses, and we secured verdicts or other monetary awards for our clients in each of those cases.
Then we push for everything the law allows: medical care past and future, lost income and earning capacity, pain and suffering, and the other losses a serious wreck leaves behind. We pursue maximum compensation in every case we take, and we prepare every case to prove it in front of a Dallas County jury if the insurer will not pay it.
Why Dallas Clients Choose Laird & McCloskey
Any law firm can say it handles truck accidents. Board certification is how you tell who has proven it. Each partner is board certified in Personal Injury Trial Law through the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and in Truck Accident Law through the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Steve Laird is additionally board certified in Civil Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, bringing the firm to six board certifications between two attorneys and making them 2 of only 12 board certified trucking lawyers in Texas.
That certification is only part of the picture. Seth McCloskey has taken more than 200 cases to a jury, and Steve has tried approximately 80 of his own, which adds up to more than 60 years of combined experience behind every truck accident claim the firm handles. Super Lawyers recognizes both attorneys. They are also members of the American Board of Trial Advocates, where membership comes only by invitation after a vetting process. And because making sense of a truck crash starts with understanding the truck, both completed the Legacy Trucking Course for Legal Professionals, a hands-on program designed to show them first-hand what driving a commercial vehicle is really like.
Serving Dallas and Dallas County
We represent truck accident victims across Dallas, Dallas County, and the communities around them, including crashes on I-35E, I-30, I-45, I-20, and the I-635 loop, some of the busiest freight corridors in Texas. Cases arising from Dallas crashes are generally heard in the Dallas County civil district courts at the George L. Allen, Sr. Courts Building at 600 Commerce Street, where we are fully prepared to try your case.
Our office is in Fort Worth, about 30 minutes down I-30, and we handle Dallas cases as a core part of our practice rather than an occasional stretch. As DFW truck accident lawyers, we go where the case is: we meet clients where it is convenient for them, and through our Texas commercial truck accident practice we take serious trucking cases statewide.
Dallas Truck Accident FAQs
How do I choose a truck accident lawyer Dallas has hundreds of?
Ask two questions. First, is the attorney board certified in Truck Accident Law, and by whom? Certification through the National Board of Trial Advocacy requires documented trucking case experience and an examination, which advertising does not. Second, how many jury trials has the attorney actually tried? Insurers track which firms try cases, and it changes what they offer.
Do I need a lawyer based in Dallas for a Dallas truck accident?
You need a lawyer who tries cases in Dallas County courts, wherever their office sits, and who knows what to do in the first days after a truck accident in Dallas. We handle Dallas truck accident cases regularly from our Fort Worth office, and what matters to your outcome is trial experience, certification, and how thoroughly your case is investigated, not the mailing address on the letterhead.
How much are most truck accident settlements?
There is no honest average. Value turns on the severity of your injuries, your medical needs going forward, lost earnings, the insurance available, and how clearly fault can be proven. Commercial policies are dramatically larger than personal auto coverage, which raises both the stakes and the resistance. A Dallas truck accident attorney can assess your specific case in a free consultation, and ours are always free.
Can I afford a truck accident lawyer?
Yes. We take truck accident cases on contingency with no fee unless we win, and you can schedule a free consultation 24/7. Investigation costs are carried by the firm, not paid out of your pocket.
How long do I have to file a truck accident lawsuit in Texas?
Generally two years from the crash, or two years from the date of death in a wrongful death case. Exceptions can shorten or extend the window, and the evidence that wins these cases disappears far sooner, so get specific advice about your own deadline early.
What if the trucking company’s insurance adjuster contacts me?
Take their name and number and say nothing about fault or your injuries until you have talked to a truck accident attorney Dallas insurers will take seriously. Early recorded statements are a standard tactic for minimizing claims. We have explained what you should know before speaking to an insurance adjuster.
What if my loved one was killed in a truck accident?
You may have a wrongful death claim, and in fatal trucking cases the federal regulatory record often becomes the heart of the lawsuit. These cases are the core of our practice. We handle them with the care they deserve, and our wrongful death lawyers can explain who is entitled to bring the claim and how it proceeds.
Related Practice Areas
- Texas Commercial Truck Accident Attorneys
- Fort Worth Trucking Accidents
- Wrongful Death Lawyers
- Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist Claims
COMMERCIAL TRUCK ACCIDENTS – RESOURCES
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
This website contains information about commercial truck safety programs, trucking industry regulations, regulation enforcement, adjudication decisions, and civil penalties. The site also contains facts related to the prevention of commercial motor vehicle-related injuries and fatalities.
American Trucking Associations
This site includes information and research to help you if you are injured in a collision with a commercial truck. The site provides information on the trucking industry, best practices for commercial truck highway and driver safety, and reports on current trends.
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety / Highway Loss Data Institute
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is an independent, nonprofit scientific and educational organization dedicated to reducing the losses – deaths, injuries, and property damage – from motor vehicle crashes.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
This site provides information about crash statistics and articles about traffic accidents and vehicle safety.
National Safety Council (NSC): Driver Safety
This site features articles on commercial trucking industry safety and training, car maintenance safety, airbag, and seat belt safety, and more.
Share The Road Safely – The No-Zone
This site includes information about truck blind spots and truck blind spot accident prevention.
U.S. Department of Transportation
This site features statistics, dockets, rules, and references regarding automobiles, commercial trucks, buses, and public transit.
Insurance Information Institute
This site includes information on vehicle safety, insurance, and more.