Memphis Trucking Accident Lawyer

Were you injured in a trucking accident in Memphis, TN?

At Patterson Bray PLLC, we are trucking accident lawyers who pursue full recovery for injured clients and their families.

If you were injured in a collision with a tractor-trailer or another commercial truck, a lawyer can help you pursue compensation from every company responsible for the crash. Those companies can include the motor carrier, the cargo loader, and the business that maintained the truck.

A Memphis, TN trucking accident lawyer at Patterson Bray PLLC can investigate the carrier’s safety history, preserve the truck’s electronic data, and build the claim around what that evidence shows. Our firm has served Tennessee clients for more than 20 years. Contact our office to schedule a free consultation.

Trucking Accident Lawyer Memphis, TN

A trucking accident lawyer represents people hurt in crashes involving tractor-trailers, box trucks, tankers, and other commercial vehicles. The evidence, the insurance coverage, and the number of potential defendants all differ from a typical car wreck. Carriers keep driver logs and inspection reports, and their insurers begin building a defense early.

Shelby County recorded 2,038 crashes involving large trucks in 2023, and 14 of those crashes were fatal, according to the Memphis MPO safety report built on the state’s TITAN crash data. Behind each crash is a set of records, from the truck’s engine data to the carrier’s maintenance files, that a trucking accident attorney in Memphis works to secure before it is lost.

Types of Trucking Accident Cases We Handle in Memphis

Freight moves through Memphis by interstate, rail yard, river port, and air cargo hub, and trucks connect all of them. The type of collision often determines which evidence matters most and which companies share responsibility.

• 18-wheeler accidents. A fully loaded tractor-trailer can weigh many times more than a passenger car, and the injuries reflect that difference. We examine the driver’s hours, the load, and the brake system to learn why the rig could not stop or steer clear.
• Tow truck accidents. Tow operators work on the shoulder in live traffic, often at night, hauling vehicles that can shift or break loose. A claim may involve the towing company, the operator, or a passing driver who failed to give the scene room.
• Head-on collisions. When a truck crosses the center line or enters a highway going the wrong way, the other driver has almost no time to react. Electronic logging data can show how long the trucker had been driving before the crash.
• T-bone accidents. Long trailers need extra time to clear an intersection. We review signal timing, nearby video, and the truck’s speed data when a rig runs a light or pulls out and strikes a car broadside.
• Multicar accidents. One truck can set off a chain reaction on I-40 or I-240 that involves several vehicles and several insurers at once. Sorting out each party’s share of fault is often the most contested issue.
• Rear-end collisions. A loaded truck needs far more distance to stop than a car does. Following too closely, distraction, and worn brakes are frequent causes, and the engine control module often captures speed and braking in the final seconds.
• Jackknife accidents. The trailer swings out at an angle to the cab and can block several lanes. Hard braking, an empty or unevenly loaded trailer, and wet pavement all contribute.
• Underride accidents. A smaller vehicle slides beneath the side or rear of a trailer. These crashes are frequently fatal, and the condition of the trailer’s underride guard becomes a central issue.
• Rollover accidents. Taking a ramp too fast, overloading, or a shifting liquid cargo can tip a truck onto its side. Spilled freight then creates hazards for everyone behind it.

Memphis Truck Accident Infographic

Why Choose Patterson Bray PLLC as My Trucking Accident Lawyer in Memphis, TN?

Attorneys Who Know the Shelby County Courts

Chris Patterson has represented plaintiffs in catastrophic injury and death cases that resulted in multiple seven-figure recoveries. He also served as a law clerk to the Shelby County Criminal Court judges. Chris is a member of the National Crime Victim Bar Association.

Will Patterson‘s practice includes tort litigation and personal injury. During his final year at the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law, he clerked for a judge of Shelby County Circuit Court, where many local injury lawsuits are heard. When you choose Patterson Bray PLLC as your personal injury lawyer in Memphis, TN, you are choosing a firm whose attorneys have worked inside the local court system.

A Record in Serious Motor Vehicle Cases

Across our injury practice, clients have seen millions of dollars recovered, and several of those recoveries came from motor vehicle crashes.

• A confidential settlement for the children of a couple killed in a head-on crash with a tractor-trailer, after witnesses blamed the father and other firms declined the case. Our investigation uncovered the carrier’s poor safety rating and a brake citation issued days after the crash.
• A policy-limits settlement for a client paralyzed when another driver ran off the road, plus a separate confidential settlement, reached with co-counsel, against the vehicle’s manufacturer.
• A settlement at the full policy limits for a passenger with severe spinal injuries and more than $300,000 in medical bills, with the health insurer’s reimbursement claim reduced to $0.

Understanding Trucking Accident Cases

Damages, Liability, and Compensation for Trucking Accident Cases

Compensation in a truck case generally covers two kinds of loss: economic damages, which carry a dollar figure, and noneconomic damages, which reflect the personal toll of an injury.

• Medical bills for emergency care, surgery, rehabilitation, and future treatment.
• Lost wages during recovery, plus reduced earning capacity if the injury limits future work.
• Pain, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life.
• Repair or replacement of your vehicle.
• When a crash takes a life, certain family members may pursue a wrongful death claim for losses connected to the death.

Fault often reaches beyond the driver. The carrier that employed the driver is usually a defendant, both for the driver’s conduct and for its own decisions about hiring, training, supervision, and maintenance. Tennessee follows a comparative fault rule. An injured person who is less than 50% at fault can still recover, but the award is reduced by that percentage.

What Are Important Aspects of a Trucking Accident Case?

Evidence in a truck case can disappear quickly. Most commercial trucks carry an engine control module that records speed, braking, and throttle data, and many use electronic logging devices that track driving time. Carriers also maintain driver qualification files, inspection reports, and dispatch records. A truck accident attorney in Memphis, TN will typically send a preservation letter early to keep that material from being overwritten or discarded, and phone records may reveal distracted driving in the moments before impact.

Several companies besides the driver can be held liable, including the motor carrier, a shipper that loaded the trailer, a maintenance vendor, or a parts manufacturer. Much of a carrier’s inspection and crash history is public through the FMCSA Company Snapshot. When fault is disputed, accident reconstruction can establish speeds, sightlines, and the order of impacts.

What Is the Trucking Accident Case Timeline?

Most truck claims move through the same stages, although the pace depends on the injuries and how hard the carrier contests fault. Tennessee generally allows one year from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit under section 28-3-104, and only narrow exceptions extend that deadline.

1. Our Memphis truck accident lawyers review the crash report, your injuries, and the available insurance at a free consultation.
2. Preservation letters go to the carrier to protect truck data, driver logs, and video.
3. We gather records, interview witnesses, and consult reconstruction or medical professionals while you focus on treatment. Clients with catastrophic injuries often need months of care before the full cost is clear.
4. Once damages are documented, we present a demand to the insurers and negotiate.
5. If negotiation stalls, we file suit, complete discovery, and prepare for mediation or trial.

What Should You Bring to Your Trucking Accident Consultation?

The items below help a trucking accident lawyer in Memphis evaluate your claim at the first meeting. Our office can request anything you don’t have yet.

• The crash report from the Memphis Police Department or the Tennessee Highway Patrol, or at least the report number.
• Photos or video of the scene, the vehicles, and the truck’s markings, including any USDOT number on the cab.
• Medical records, bills, and discharge paperwork.
• Any letters, emails, or recorded-statement requests from an insurance company.

The consultation is free. We’ll explain how Tennessee law applies to the facts you describe and outline the next steps.

Most Dangerous Locations for Trucking Accidents in Memphis, TN

Statewide, one in four reportable crashes involving a large truck in 2023 occurred on an interstate, according to state crash data. Truck risk also overlaps with the city’s dangerous intersections, especially where interstate ramps feed commercial roads.

Dangerous streets

• Lamar Avenue (US 78). This corridor runs from southeast of downtown to the Mississippi line through dense freight and industrial development. Construction on the Lamar widening project continues between Shelby Drive and Raines Road.
• Sycamore View Road near Summer Avenue. The Memphis MPO placed this stretch near the I-40 interchange on its High Injury Network, and its crash history includes large-truck collisions.
• US 61 (South Third Street) near East Mitchell Road. The MPO counted 35 large-truck crashes on the high-injury segments where these roads meet from 2019 through 2023.

Dangerous highways

• Interstate 40. The city’s main east-west freight route crosses into Arkansas on the Hernando de Soto Bridge and meets I-240 at two interchanges.
• Interstate 55. Trucks moving between Mississippi, Memphis, and Arkansas cross the Memphis-Arkansas Bridge, which opened in 1949 and is the subject of a planned replacement.
• Interstate 240. The loop links I-40, I-55, and the airport area along Airways Boulevard, where freight and commuter traffic merge.

Reach Out to Patterson Bray PLLC to Schedule a Consultation

Early review gives us the best chance to secure the carrier’s records and the truck’s data. Patterson Bray PLLC offers free consultations for trucking accident claims in Memphis and throughout Shelby County. Our office answers calls 24 hours a day, and an attorney will follow up after reviewing what you share. Contact us to talk with a Memphis trucking accident attorney about your options.