Keating, O’Gara, Nedved & Peter

Your Nebraska Lawyers

Automobile Accidents

A traveler passing through Nebraska on U.S. Highway 81 or Interstate 80, a young motorcyclist hit by an inattentive driver, a family in a minivan that rolled over—in a few moments an auto accident changes the lives of all involved.

At Keating, O’Gara, Nedved & Peter, P.C., L.L.O., our attorneys handle serious injury claims involving motor vehicle accidents and fatal car crashes. It is our goal to see that every client at our Lincoln, Nebraska, firm recovers full and fair compensation for his or her losses.

Our personal injury lawyers are respected by insurance companies as determined negotiators and litigators, a reputation that helps us resolve our clients’ cases quickly and effectively.

Our lawyers and staff are prepared to handle all types of auto accident injury claims, including those involving the following factors:

• Railroad crossing accidents
• Auto wrecks caused by drunk drivers
• Bicycle accidents
• Work-related car crashes
• Car accidents caused by defective equipment
• Pedestrian accidents
• Accidents causing catastrophic injuries
• Fatal auto accidents
• Accidents involving commercial trucks

Our attorneys have successfully resolved hundreds of auto accident cases, including the following:

* Recorded the largest verdict ever against the Department of Roads when a malfunctioning traffic signal caused our client’s vehicle to be struck by a semi-tractor/trailer rig at the junction of Highways 15 and 30.

* Settled a case for $2.2 million for a teenager who suffered a brain injury in a motor vehicle accident. The firm’s lawyers personally visited with the client’s physicians, had independent testing conducted to verify changes in the client’s cognitive function and had professional videotaping conducted of various activities performed by the client. The settlement is one of the largest ever in the state of Nebraska for this type of injury.

* Settled a product liability case against a major truck manufacturer as the result of brake failure which caused a construction truck to go out of control and kill a 19 year old college student. Through a detailed and vigorous investigation, the firm’s attorneys discovered that the truck manufacturer knew of the defect but failed to conduct a recall of the trucks to correct the problem. The settlement is believed to be one of the largest in the state of Nebraska for the death of a teenager.

* Settled personal injury cases for two high school students against the State of Nebraska who were injured in a bus in which they were riding went over a bridge in a construction zone. The firm’s attorneys participated with attorneys for other victims to establish that the construction zone was defectively designed.

* Settled for $450,000 a lawsuit against the Missouri Department of Roads and the driver of the vehicle arising out of an accident on I-29 in Missouri where the Missouri Department of Roads violated its own guardrail standards which allowed the vehicle to proceed into the median and eventually causing the vehicle to collide at the bottom of the underpass. The client was a twelve year old girl who suffered serious injuries.

* Obtained a verdict of $1,653,650 in Lancaster County District Court on on behalf of a young man who sustained a traumatic brain injury as a result of a motor vehicle accident which left him with permanent impairments in cognitive functioning, sustained attention, mnestic processes, motivation, selft-starting, and social functioning.

* Before going to trial in federal court, settled a complex case involving the wrongful deaths of two over-the-road truckers who were killed on Interstate 80 near North Platte. The men were team drivers returning to California to spend the Christmas season with their families when another truck lost control and crossed the median striking their vehicle nearly head-on. After the defense lawyers vigorously disputed liability, the case settled when the president of the trucking company admitted in his depostion that “of course” the accident was their fault.

* Settled the case of an all-American teenager tragically killed in a rollover accident on a county road in rural Nebraska. The young man was a passenger in a car driven by another teen-age driver who lost control of the car on loose gravel.

* Obtained a favorable jury verdict for the tragic death of a young man who was killed on Highway 34 when a construction vehicle made a left turn in front of his motorcycle. During the case it was discovered that the driver of the construction truck only had vision in one eye and misjudged the distance between his vehicle and the oncoming motorcycle.

* Obtained a favorable jury verdict for the pain and suffering of a client who sustained a temperomandibular joint injury in a motor vehicle accident despite the defense vigorously disputing whether the TMJ injury was related to the car accident.

* Obtained a substantial jury verdict for a farmer who sustained a soft tissue injury to his neck when another farmer negligently pulled his tractor from a field driveway onto the county road causing a collision. In instructions to the jury, the court had limited the evidence the jury could consider on lost future earnings. Despite the limiting instruction, the jury generously compensated the plainfiff for his injuries.

If you were injured in an auto accident, you may already have been approached by an insurance company representative. We strongly recommend that before you sign a settlement agreement or give a statement, that you have your car accident claim evaluated by an experienced personal injury lawyer. If you would like to speak with a member of our firm, please contact our Lincoln office to arrange a free consultation.