In the vast majority of auto and truck accident cases, the other driver is the most likely place to look when assigning fault. However, other factors and parties could be partially or even wholly to blame, and third parties may share in the responsibility for causing a serious vehicle accident. Effective attorneys always consider the contributions that parties other than the directly involved drivers could have made to an accident.

As a rule when filing a lawsuit, attorneys include every party against whom they have a reasonable claim in order to avoid inadvertently forfeiting their clients’ rights should things not proceed as planned. These can include vehicle manufacturers, municipalities, state transportation departments, surrounding property owners or engineering firms to name a few. However, sometimes it may be especially important to pursue claims against a third party:

• Insurance reasons — Georgia law only requires drivers to carry a minimum of $25,000 in bodily injury liability insurance. In the context of a serious car accident, this amount is almost inconsequential. When the other driver has little or no insurance and little in the way of personal assets, it may be necessary to look elsewhere for compensation.
• Lack of fault — Simply being involved in a car accident is not enough to establish liability. In a few cases, the other driver may simply not have done anything wrong. When negligence does not appear to rest with the other driver, it may be necessary to look elsewhere.
• Catastrophic injuries — Catastrophic injuries can carry with them mountains of medical bills and a lifetime of diminished earning capacity, not to mention years of pain and lost enjoyment of life. In cases of this magnitude, even a well-insured defendant may not have the resources to adequately compensate the victim. Under these circumstances, an attorney may need to identify additional defendants in order to see a client receive fair compensation.

An experienced catastrophic injury attorney in Georgia can thoroughly research your case to identify all the parties who are potentially at fault.