How to Win a Truck Accident or Bus Accident Injury Case
Farmington Hills, MI (PRWEB) July 19, 2013 -- Steven M. Gursten, head of Michigan Auto Law and a nationally recognized truck accident attorney, will be lecturing to injury lawyers from across the country on trial tactics for bus and truck accident injury lawsuits this week in San Francisco.
Gursten will teach lawyers how to better protect their clients who have been seriously injured in truck wrecks, based on his experience litigating more than 300 truck accident and bus accident cases over the past 20 years.
On Monday, July 22, 2013, Gursten will be presenting during the American Association for Justice 2013 Annual Convention, to the Motor Vehicle Collision and Premises Liability Sections and the Bus Accident Litigation Group. Gursten's seminar is called “Injuries in the Bus, School Bus and Truck Accident Case.”
"There are very common injuries that are often overlooked by doctors and lawyers in these cases," Gursten said. "People who get hit by a bus normally have lots of different injuries, and the problem is like the blind man and the elephant, as each medical specialist only usually focuses on one injury."
He added, "No one is looking at how all of these various injuries impact the total person. They can seriously impact fatigue, anxiety and depression and cognitive issues, as well as make other physical pain and problems worse."
If injury lawyers understand these injuries and learn to prove them during trial, then they can better serve their clients, Gursten says.
But what happens if an attorney is faced with an extremely hostile jury?
Gursten will cover that difficult situation during his seminar today, called "How to Win a Truck Accident Case with 5 Truckers on Your Jury.” He will be presenting to the Melvin M. Belli Society.
This presentation is based on one of Gursten's toughest truck accident trials, Shekoski v. Allied Trucking Company et. al (Case No. 10-9159-N1, Macomb County Circuit Court), where an 83-year-old man named Michael Shekoski was run over by a truck and killed as he was trying to legally cross the street on his bicycle.
"Believe it or not, there were actually five members of my jury that were either truckers or had strong ties to the trucking industry," Gursten said, noting that due to Michigan law, he was stuck with the jury he drew during voir dire.
"I got through this challenging experience on top, so I want to share my tips and ideas for connecting with a hostile jury, and how I was able to convince this jury that the truck driver and trucking company were negligent and needed to be held fully accountable for the rules they violated," Gursten said.
According to court documentation and court testimony, the lawyers defending the defendant trucking company refused to accept any responsibility for Mr. Shekoski’s death, Gursten noted.
The defense offered $250,000 before trial and $500,000 when the jury was deliberating. The jury returned a $2.55 million verdict for the wrongful death truck accident case.
The American Association for Justice is the nation’s largest injury attorney group, with more than 50,000 lawyer members.
The Melvin M. Belli Society is a legal group that presents seminars to help attorneys become better trial lawyers.
About Steven M. Gursten:Attorney Steven Gursten is head of Michigan Auto Law. He is president of the Motor Vehicle Trial Lawyers Association and past president of the American Association for Justice Truck Accident Litigation Group. Steve has been named a Lawyers Weekly "Leader in the Law" for his efforts to prevent truck accidents and promote national truck safety. He was also a Michigan Lawyers Weekly "Lawyer of the Year" for a record settlement in a truck accident case, as well as for recovering the top auto and truck verdicts, according to published reports.
About Michigan Auto Law: Michigan Auto Law has 18 lawyers exclusively handling auto accident and No-Fault insurance litigation throughout the state. The law firm has received the top-reported jury verdict for a car or truck accident victim for the past 15 consecutive years, according to published reports by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. Michigan Auto Law has offices in Farmington Hills, Sterling Heights, Detroit, Ann Arbor and Grand Rapids. For more information, call Michigan Auto Law at (800) 777-0028.
Natalie Lombardo, Michigan Auto Law, (248) 353-7575, [email protected]
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