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Safety Policies and CDL Manuals: How to Ensure They Are Not Used Against Your Clients to Establish Liability
Session Description:
Plaintiffs are slowly turning away from Reptile Theory and adopting a new approach focusing on company safety policies and CDL manuals to establish a “duty” the motor carrier or driver violated. Join two seasoned trucking attorneys as they delve into just how these policies/manuals are being used to establish liability in trucking cases and what defense attorneys can do from the pre-suit stages through trial to prevent a violation of a policy or manual from increasing the value of your case or the verdict award.
Who Should Attend?
- Defense attorneys representing motor carriers or drivers in connection with commercial motor vehicle accident cases; and
- Industry professionals and clients who are interested in learning how safety policies and state CDL manuals are being used to establish liability.
What will you learn?
- How plaintiff’s attorneys use company safety policies and state CDL manuals to establish a “duty” owed by the motor carrier or driver;
- How to prepare your witnesses or clients to respond to questions about the company safety policies or state CDL manuals; and
- Winning strategies defense attorneys can utilize from the pre-suit stages through trial to prevent a violation of a safety policy or CDL manual from increasing the value of the case or the verdict award.
Larry Hall, Heyl Royster Voelker & Allen PC
Larry Hall, Heyl, Royster, Voelker & Allen, P.C., focuses his practice on representing local, regional, and national trucking companies throughout the litigation process. He works with his clients in all aspect of their business including immediate response investigations, safety policies/training, regulatory compliance, and general risk management. Larry's knowledge and passion for the industry has led him to be called upon to serve as lead counsel in high-exposure and difficult losses.
Eric Miersma, Balestreri Potocki & Holmes
Eric Miersma is a Senior Attorney with Balestreri Potocki & Holmes in San Diego, California. He has over 20 years of experience in complex multi-party litigation, arbitration, and mediation representing Southern California builders, contractors, design professionals, trucking companies, and general business owners in state and federal court. Eric is an experienced litigator having successfully negotiated resolutions of single case claims in excess of $70 million against a public works engineer, $40 million against a trucking company arising from multiple fatality interstate tractor-trailer roll-over, and more than $7 million against a high-rise condominium builder. He is a frequent speaker to industry groups and is a published author in DRI’s own In Transit magazine. Before settling on law as a profession, Eric put himself through college driving over-the-road for Mayflower and Schneider.
