Truck Accidents

Large trucks can weigh as much as 80,000 pounds when loaded; so, when a semi-trailer truck crashes into a car, motorcycle, bicycle or pedestrian, the outcome is often deadly. Causes of a truck crash may include driver fatigue, a violation of federal regulations limiting driving hours; driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs; distracted driving; or mechanical failure.  The negligence could also be caused by the trucking company that employs the driver for failure to do its due diligence before hiring.

Smaller trucks, including box trucks, which have a cab and separate cargo area and are often used for deliveries of cargo, can be extremely dangerous to both motorists and pedestrians. 

Unlike drivers of semi tractor-trailers, box truck drivers are not required to have commercial driver’s licenses, and they can lack training and experience.  Also, box trucks have high sides, which make them prone to tipping when turning a corner and prone to drifting into another lane during high winds. In addition, box trucks have several blind spots and are often loaded with goods, making them heavy and deadly in a crash with lighter vehicles.

Call for a Free Consultation with an Experienced Truck Accident Lawyer in Chicago

Our highly skilled and experienced attorneys promptly and thoroughly investigate our trucking cases to preserve evidence, determine fault and assess liability on behalf of injured individuals and the families of those killed in trucking crashes. Corboy & Demetrio’s 65-year history of representing victims of personal injury has resulted in more than $5 billion in verdicts and settlements in all areas of practice. 

Recent Truck Accident Verdicts and Settlements:

Our expertise has resulted in record-setting and top verdicts and settlements for our clients. The following are examples of the results we have achieved:

• Co-founder Thomas Demetrio acquired a record $40 million verdict in a case where a woman - wife and mother - was horribly injured when her car was hit by a truck. The verdict represented compensation to her for $34 million, plus $6 million to her husband for the loss of his wife's companionship.
• The Illinois Supreme Court upheld a verdict of nearly $22 million for a woman rendered a quadriplegic when the car she was in was hit from behind by a semi-tractor trailer truck whose driver had fallen asleep. The award is the largest compensatory verdict for an individual ever upheld by the Illinois Supreme Court.  The woman was represented, at trial and on appeal, by Thomas Demetrio.
• Founding Partner Thomas Demetrio obtained a $10.6 million settlement for the family of Vincenzo Petrella, a 39-year-old IL Tollway worker killed by a truck driver while helping a disabled trucker on I-88 in 2014.
• Corboy & Demetrio negotiated a $10 million settlement for a teenager who was trapped and burned in her car, due to the negligence of a truck driver.
• Partner William T. Gibbs obtained an $8.5 million settlement on behalf of an Illinois woman who was injured while she was crossing the street and was struck by a delivery truck in 2014.
• Partner Philip Harnett Corboy, Jr. obtained a jury verdict of $8 million for the family of Homewood wife and mother who was fatally struck by a truck as she stood on the shoulder of I-294 to investigate a flat tire.
• Co-founder Thomas Demetrio obtained a $7.4 million settlement for a 25-year-old nanny who was pushing a toddler in a stroller in a crowd in Chicago's Gold Coast neighborhood when a Chicago Streets & Sanitation worker plowed into her.  She suffered multiple fractures to her pelvis, hips and legs as well as degloving injuries.  
• Partner William Gibbs obtained a $6.6 million record-setting verdict in a case in which a semi-trailer truck crashed into the vehicle of a family on Interstate 80, killing one passenger and injuring the driver. It is the largest verdict of its kind in a civil case by a Federal District Court in Omaha, Nebraska.
• Corboy & Demetrio attorneys obtained a $6.5 million settlement for a college student who was a passenger in a car on Interstate 57 when it was struck by a truck transporting equipment for the VH1 show, Rock of Love with Brett Michaels.

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