$3.2 Million – Delivery Truck Strikes Child Pedestrian

What Happened

A commercial delivery truck struck a young child as the child was crossing the street in a quiet residential neighborhood on Long Island. The collision appeared, on the surface, to be a tragic accident — the driver showed no obvious signs of negligence, was not speeding, and had no history of violations. Initial review of the facts suggested the defense would have a strong argument that the driver did nothing wrong.

The Challenge

Cases involving child pedestrians and commercial vehicles are often vigorously contested. Here, the driver’s conduct appeared lawful at first glance, and without deeper investigation the case could easily have been framed as an unavoidable accident. The key question was not simply what happened — but whether a closer examination of the driver’s precise position on the roadway would change the legal picture entirely.

How We Built the Case

1	Early Scene Investigation Retained an accident reconstruction expert immediately after engagement to document the roadway, measure lane widths, and preserve physical evidence before it disappeared.
2	Roadway Position Analysis Expert analysis determined the driver was traveling down the center of the roadway rather than keeping right — a direct violation of New York Vehicle and Traffic Law.
3	Sight-Line Reconstruction By mapping the truck’s actual position, we demonstrated that the driver’s deviation reduced the time and distance the child had to observe and avoid the oncoming vehicle.
4	Pre-Trial Pressure Armed with expert findings and a clear VTL violation, we built a liability narrative that compelled the carrier and insurer to settle significantly before trial.

Result & Key Insight

The $3,200,000 pre-trial settlement was only possible because of early, aggressive investigation. What initially looked like a case with no liability became a clear VTL violation once an expert reconstructed the driver’s exact position on the road. The lesson: in commercial truck cases, the driver doing “nothing obviously wrong” is never the end of the inquiry — it is the beginning.

Key Legal Takeaways

Commercial truck drivers are required by New York VTL to keep right — deviating to the center of the roadway is a violation regardless of speed
A driver’s lane position directly affects a pedestrian’s ability to observe, react, and avoid — a critical element of causation
Accident reconstruction experts can uncover violations invisible to the naked eye and transform the liability picture in a case
Early investigation before evidence disappears is the single most important step in any serious truck accident case

All Case Results

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case is different, and the results obtained in this matter depended on the specific facts and circumstances involved. This case study is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.