However, just because a truck jackknifes doesn’t automatically mean that the driver was negligent. The driver may not have been at fault because of road conditions, because he or she was trying to avoid another car, or because the jackknife was caused by some inherent problem with the truck.

Proceeding only against the truck driver may not be your best strategy. There may be other potential parties to sue, such as the trucking company, a contractor of the trucking company, the employer or the driver, or the manufacturer or distributor of a faulty truck part (a product liability case). It may also be a public entity such as a town, city, county or state for negligent design of a road. An experienced trucking accident attorney will turn up other potential defendants to file claims against or name in a lawsuit.