The Fuentes Firm successfully defended an out-of-state trucking company in a personal injury lawsuit in Laredo, Tx. The Plaintiffs, a husband and wife, were involved in an accident with one of trucking company’s tractors and sought $750,000 at trial. The Plaintiffs’ attorney brought in 5 expert witnesses and personally spent over $100,000 on the case. However, the jury was persuaded by Robert Fuentes’s trial arguments and found the trucking company and their driver 0% liable.
The Plaintiffs were driving a non-commercial motor vehicle near the trucking company’s Laredo terminal when the collision occurred. The Plaintiffs were driving on the right side of a two-way street without lane markings. The trucking company’s tractor was traveling in front of Plaintiffs, going the same direction. When the trucking company’s driver attempted a right turn into the trucking company’s terminal, the tractors’ passenger side struck the Plaintiffs’ left-front fender.
The Plaintiffs claimed the road was large enough for 3-4 lanes and the tractor was traveling in an unmarked center-turn lane. The Plaintiffs claimed the truck driver made an unsafe right turn, either from the wrong side of the road or from the center turn lane, by swinging too far to the left before turning to the right. The Plaintiffs also sued the trucking company for negligent training and negligent supervision, based on driver’s hours of service violations, and sought exemplary damages for gross negligence.
Robert Fuentes argued that the hours of service violations did not cause the accident and the truck driver was not fatigued because he obtained adequate sleep. Mr. Fuentes also convinced the jury the Plaintiffs caused the accident by recklessly attempting to pass the tractor on the right side.
After a 6-day trial, the jury found the Plaintiff-driver was 100% responsible for the collision. The Plaintiffs’ attorney hired 5 expert witnesses to support the Plaintiffs’ hours of service violations, fatigue, improper right-hand turn, and damages claims. The Fuentes Firm did not call a single expert to testify at trial.
