When You Need A Los Angeles Train Accident Attorney

By Author: Dietrich Elliot
Total Articles: 16
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Every 90 seconds, somewhere in this country, a Train Accident happens: a car dips behind a crossing guard rail and causes a devastating accident involving dozens of innocent commuters; an engineer gets caught accidentally between two cars at a siding; a signal light goes haywire, misdirecting a train into the path of another.

Train Accident Attorneys are presented with tragic scenarios like this every day and must deal with the devastating ramifications for their clients who, in some cases, must live with the consequences of those Train Accidents for the rest of their lives.

In September 2008, the worst Train Accident in forty years occurred when a freight train and a passenger train collided in Chatsworth, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. Twenty-five people were killed in that accident and more than a 130 injured. The cause? Reports say that the engineer was too busy texting some teenagers to notice the signal light. Secondary reports say there may have also been issues with the signal switches. The results ...
... were devastating. Train Accident Attorneys are all too familiar with this sort of negligence. Most people involved in an accident like this aren't aware of their rights as passengers of mass transit systems such as trains.

An experienced Los Angeles Train Accident Attorney will tell you that trains, like busses, cruise ships, airlines, subway trains and any other system that transports the public, has a special obligation to the safety of its riders. Train Accident Attorneys will tell you that it's not just an obligation like you might have if you drove a friend in your car. Transportation companies that serve the public are held to the highest standard of operation when it comes to protecting the people they transport or, in the case of trains, also to protect the public from the trains they run.

Equally important, as in the case of the train in Los Angeles, if a train company hires an engineer from outside its own company, that other company is also held to the highest standard of safety. If that company was negligent in allowing an engineer to operate a train, for instance, who had a history of using his cell phone on duty, outside the company rules, then they would be at fault as well.

Train Accident Attorneys have years of experience uncovering whether or not that standard of safety has been met. And most often, in a Train Accident, there is some fault involved that does not meet that highest standard of care. Train companies must constantly test signal lights, crossing arms and track lines to ensure safety of their trains. It is estimated that human error and faulty equipment are the two most common causes for railway accidents.

If a worker on a train is injured in a Train Accident, he/she is initially covered by workman's compensation. Therefore, because of laws passed by the U.S. Government, he cannot sue his own company for compensation. Without an experienced Train Accident Attorney, victims often find themselves lost in a maze of legal mumbo jumbo and intimidation from high-pressure lawyers on the other side of the table protecting the interests of the company.

Unfortunately, that's where many people believe the story ends. The victims of Train Accidents like this can suffer for a lifetime, without being fairly compensated by the very companies that have failed to meet their own standards. Train Accident Attorneys have long experience unraveling the tangle of fault and blame when it comes to these kinds of accidents.

Thirty-two year old Melvin Jeglon, an engineer for a train company, trusted that his company would always take care of him. But the day he lost his hand in a coupling accident in Los Angeles caused by a faulty mechanism, he discovered that his workman's compensation would only go so far in helping him with the disability he now had to cope with for the rest of his life. He was forced to retire. Out of work after his workman's compensation ended, he nearly lost his home. He didn't know where to turn. The Los Angeles Train Accident Attorney he finally hired proved negligence on the part of the company that manufactured the mechanism. They won a big settlement that saved Melvin's home and got him back on his feet again. Melvin had every right to that compensation, but would never have received it if he hadn't consulted an attorney who specializes in Train Accidents.

Train Accident Attorneys are equally familiar with accidents that happen on roadways every day in America where trains and cars collide. It's a mystery why ever railroad crossing is not armed with crossing bars and signal lights, but there are many that are not. For instance, a crossing in Valencia, California had lost its Railroad Crossing street sign after a car accident at the intersection some weeks before. Though the train company had been informed of the loss, they were slow to put the sign back up. In the interim, a car unfamiliar with the area accidentally crossed in the path of a train and the driver was killed. Who is at fault? The driver for not being aware? Or the train company, for not immediately putting up a warning sign? Train Accident Attorneys will tell you that it is the obligation of the train company to protect the public first. Its failure to put up adequate warning caused the driver to inadvertently risk his life by crossing those tracks. His family sued the train company and their attorney was able to win a large settlement for the family.

Should you find yourself in the middle of a train accident, your best resource for help is a Train Accident Attorney with years of experience, fighting for clients injured by trains. In an industry that holds itself to the highest standard of care, you have every right to expect exactly that.

Author Bio:

Dietrich Elliot is a freelance writer, teacher and retired Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney. He writes about Personal Injury Law as it pertains to Los Angeles, the city in which he lives. You can contact Mr. Elliot by emailing him at: DietrichElliot@aol.com.