Articles Posted in Automobile Accidents

I was hit by a drunk driver and was seriously hurt.  The police officer told me the guy tested .20 – over twice the legal limit.  I found out that the guy spent all afternoon in a local bar and was on his way to another bar when he hit me.  Can I sue the bar where he got drunk? 

Perhaps.  Tennessee law permits you to sue a bar that over-served a drunk driver if you can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that they served alcoholic beverages to a visibly  intoxicated person.

If your information is correct and the drunk was only served at one bar, you must then be able to demonstrate that he was visibly intoxicated and therefore the bar should have stopped serving him.  You also must be able to demonstrate that the driver’s drunken condition contributed to cause the wreck.

I was driving in Nashville and was broad-sided by a taxi that ran a red light. I was hospitalized for four days and am not yet back to work.   What are my rights?

You have a personal injury claim.  Our office has published this Legal Guide to answer your questions on the law of automobile accidents in Tennessee.  This Legal Guide will help you understand the damages you may be entitled to receive.

The problem you will face is that many taxis are owned by the individual driver and have very limited insurance coverage.  If that is true in your case, you will have to rely on uninsured / underinsured motorist coverage to recover damages.

Does Tennessee have limits on the amount of damages a jury can award in a car wreck case?

Only for car wrecks that occur on or after October 1, 2011.  For Tennessee car wrecks that occur before that date, there is no arbitrary limit on damages that can be awarded.

For Tennessee car accidents that occur on or after October 1, 2011, damages for pain, suffering, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of consortium are limited to $750,000 in almost every type of case.  In certain types of cases involving catastrophic damages,  the damage cap is increased to $1,000,000.  There is no cap on damages if the person who caused the wreck was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

My son (age 8) was hurt in a car wreck.  How much time to I have to bring a lawsuit against the driver responsible for the wreck?

Under the law in Tennessee, there are time limits on which any person can bring a lawsuit against another. The general rule is that a child has until one year after his or her eighteenth birthday to bring a lawsuit to recover for a personal injury. Some people argue, however, that a parent’s claim for medical expenses incurred on behalf of the child must be filed by the parent within one year of the incident causing the injury, and thus it makes sense to consult with a lawyer promptly about any injury to your child that you believe was caused by someone else’s negligence.

Please note that different rules apply if a child was injured as a result of medical malpractice.  Medical malpractice claims are subject to a statute of repose. A statute of repose imposes an absolute time limit for bringing a claim regardless of the age of the injured person. The statute of repose for bringing a medical malpractice claim is three years. This means that a medical malpractice claim must be initiated within three years of the date of the malpractice regardless of the age of the injured person. Therefore, for example, a medical malpractice claim for a child injured during birth must be initiated within three years of the date of the birth of the child.

I was in a car wreck last month.  I was hurt pretty bad.  I got home from the hospital last night and a lawyer called me and said that he wanted to represent me in my case.  I have no idea who this man is or how he got my name and telephone number.  Nobody in my family has ever heard of him and I asked the lawyer who did my divorce case about him and she said she never heard of him.  Can he call me like this?  Should I hire him?  He said he could get me a lot of money.

This lawyer is a scumbag – not only should you not hire him but you should report him to the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility.  Rule 7.3(a) of the Rules of Professional Conduct says this about soliciting a potential client by telephone:  "(a) If a significant motive for the solicitation is the lawyer’s pecuniary gain, a lawyer shall not solicit professional employment by in-person, live telephone, or real-time electronic contact from a prospective client who has not initiated the contact with the lawyer and with whom the lawyer has no family or prior professional relationship."  The Comment to the rule explains why is exists:

[1] There is a potential for abuse inherent in direct in-person or live telephone contact by a lawyer with a prospective client known to need legal services. These forms of contact between a lawyer and a specifically targeted recipient subject the layperson to the rivate importuning of the trained advocate in a direct interpersonal encounter. The prospective client, who may already feel overwhelmed by the circumstances giving rise to the need for legal services, may find it difficult fully to evaluate all available alternatives with reasoned judgment and appropriate self-interest in the face of the lawyer’s presence and insistence upon being retained immediately. The situation is fraught with the possibility of undue influence, intimidation, and overreaching.

Unless the parties to the lawsuit agree otherwise, twelve jurors will decide the case and all twelve must find in favor of the plaintiff (the person bringing the lawsuit) or the defendant (the person or entity that has been sued.)  If less than twelve people agree on the outcome, the judge will declare a mistrial and the case will have to be tried again. 

I was hit by a drunk driver – he ran a red light and broad-sided me.  He told the cop that he was drinking at home all day, got in an argument with his wife, left the house, and then had the wreck with me. I spent seven days in the hospital and have missed four weeks of work so far.  I still don’t know when I can go back to work.  I just found out that the drunk did not have any liability insurance on his car.  Now what?

You will have to rely on your uninsured motorist insurance coverage.  Look at the declarations page of your insurance policy and see what amount of coverage you have.  It is designed to protect you in this situation.

If you have uninsured motorist coverage (and Tennessee law requires your insurance company to sell it to you unless you right it in writing) you will have to collect your damages from your own insurance company.  Your company cannot raise your rates because of an uninsured motorist claim.