Trial Magazine

Doe, 47, was riding his bicycle to work in a designated bicycle lane. A driver for Roe Waste Hauling Co. made a right turn into a driveway, directly in front of Doe. Doe’s bicycle struck the side of the truck causing him to fall under its rear wheels. Doe suffered fatal injuries. He had been a professor earning approximately $85,000 annually and is survived by his wife, to whom he was recently married.

Doe’s wife sued the waste hauling company, alleging liability for its ­driver’s failure to avoid the collision while turning into the bicycle lane. 

The defense argued that Doe had been riding too fast and failed to pay attention to traffic conditions, including the garbage truck and its flashing lights. The defense also argued that sun glare had prevented the driver from seeing Doe in his rearview mirror, a contention that the plaintiff refuted by examining the subject truck at the scene on the first anniversary of the incident.

The parties reached a settlement at mediation for $4.5 million.

Citation: Doe v. Roe Waste Hauling Co., Confidential Dkt. No. (Cal. Super. Ct. Yolo Cnty. Nov. 9, 2018).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ member Bruce M. Brusavich and Anna Cronk Small, both of Torrance, Calif.

Plaintiff experts: Thomas Braun, accident reconstruction, Livermore, Calif.; Robert Post, human factors, Granite Bay, Calif.; Paul Herbert, truck safety, Quincy, Calif.; and Philip Allman III, economics, Oakland, Calif.