Transportation

Goldberg Segalla’s Transportation Group attorneys have decades of trial and appellate experience defending the transportation industry and hold leadership roles within national organizations including:

• Fellows in the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) who have served as faculty members (and in one case, a dean) of its Trial College
• Graduates and former faculty of the prestigious Trial Academy run by the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC)
• Fellows in the American College of Trial Lawyers
• Attorneys recognized by the American Academy of Trial Attorneys as among the best and most experienced practitioners in the jurisdictions where they practice

Much more than a last line of defense, our appellate attorneys are key partners from the initial stages of litigation, bringing a unique skill set, trial assistance, formidable writing talents, and a global perspective to every matter across our entire national footprint.

Our coast-to-coast rapid response efforts are led and coordinated by Goldberg Segalla’s National Investigations Counsel A.J. Holl, utilizing the comprehensive accident response protocols developed by our team. A 17-year veteran of the FBI with 25 years of combined investigative and legal experience, A.J. deploys to critical incidents and catastrophic accident scenes to provide timely and crucial information to key stakeholders. He ensures necessary investigative and expert resources are engaged, that key witnesses are identified, critical evidence and documents are preserved, and the right steps are taken at the right time—when every second counts. And when continued investigative action is required through the aftermath, A.J. provides guidance and regular updates to the client, allowing the trial team to focus on strategy and defense.

When an accident occurs, time is of the essence. We get investigators to the scene quickly to build the best possible defense. Our clients can reach our partners at any hour, any day of the year. We arrive on scene with a comprehensive and meticulously prepared Truck Trauma Kit, and an investigations manual with protocols for every aspect of the effort. We act immediately and manage the first response to any accident, including:

• Developing contacts with the police agencies involved
• Getting photographers and accident reconstruction experts to the scene
• Obtaining witness statements before they can be corrupted by the passage of time or the influence of other investigators
• Securing the client’s vehicle as soon as it is released from police impound
• Beginning the process of building a defense to a potential claim right away, before skid marks fade, evidence is moved, or witnesses cannot be located

We understand a truck crash in no way parallels a car accident. Motor carriers, their insurers, and their attorneys must contend with a myriad of federal and state regulations, and analyze troves of data from ever-evolving onboard technologies. Small details add up and evidence capture starts in the immediate aftermath of an accident.

Accident scenes are inherently fluid, and evidence can change or disappear quickly—witnesses leave, memories fade, vehicles are moved, debris is discarded, road marks vanish, and electronic data is overwritten. To minimize post-accident chaos for our clients, our dedicated professionals leverage standardized investigation protocols with clearly defined tasks and responsibilities.

Clients rely on our steady guidance and complete situational control from the minute we answer their call. We understand the first hours, days, and weeks are critical, and have developed detailed protocols to ensure we collect and secure all the evidence needed to evaluate exposure and build your best defense. With Goldberg Segalla handling the rapid response to a catastrophic accident, you’ll know what to expect at every step.

When faced with litigation, you want trial-tested litigators, ready to defend against liability and damages claims. We have experience trying and winning multimillion-dollar cases involving accidents and all common causes — including claims of negligent-driver operations, maintenance, hiring, and training. We have strong relationships with leading national experts in accident reconstruction, trauma medicine, vocational rehabilitation, and other disciplines. We have strategically, and successfully, leveraged onboard electronic recording systems data, global positioning, and other technologies employed by our clients in the courtroom to help a jury understand how an accident developed and occurred.

Goldberg Segalla is recognized as a leader in product liability litigation and risk avoidance and serves as trusted defense counsel for Fortune 500 and FTSE 100 companies across the U.S. including leading manufacturers, distributors, and retailers of industrial, commercial, and consumer products. We bring that experience to our transportation clients and have a successful record in cases involving airplanes, all-terrain vehicles, automobiles, boats and personal watercraft, buses, heavy trucks, motorcycles, and forklifts and other materials-handling machinery—and their countless components.

Transportation industry clients benefit from our skilled team of insurance coverage attorneys, including leading practitioners in trucking and transportation insurance coverage. We have extensive experience with complex coverage and regulatory issues that may arise in cases involving the contractual relationship or insured status of various parties. We are well versed in property damage, uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage, excess/primary insurance obligations, permissive use, scope of employment, and the federally regulated MCS-90 endorsement.

With an Employment and Labor practice recognized as among the foremost in the nation, we help transportation clients with every aspect of the employee relationship, including hiring and termination practices, policy manuals, background checks, benefits, union grievances and collective bargaining negotiations.

Through engaged counsel and interactive training sessions, we help companies minimize risk and avoid litigation. When claims cannot be mediated, we defend employers against discrimination, wrongful termination, ADA and other claims in state and federal courts, and before government agencies.

Our workers’ compensation attorneys have successfully defended transportation clients against meritless medical and injury claims and worked collaboratively to improve clients’ overall workers’ compensation programs. With teams on the ground across our footprint, we know the intricacies involved in navigating each state’s Workers’ Compensation Board claims and unique hearing systems.

We offer additional value-added programs targeted at alleviating pressure points including a light-duty return-to-work program, Medicare Compliance and Medicare Set-Asides (MSAs) team, Opioid Impact Program, and an Integrated Disability and Workforce Management Program.

Our experienced and well-versed attorneys can guide trucking companies through any business decision, commercial interaction, transaction, legal dispute, or government investigation they may face. We frequently act as a trusted partner to transportation companies, guiding them through, and providing counsel on, a wide range of complex matters they might encounter in the course of conducting their business.