Aviation Accident Lawyer

If you were hurt in a small plane, helicopter or airline accident, or a member of your family was, you probably have more questions than answers. This page explains what an aviation accident lawyer does, who may be responsible, and how to start a free case evaluation with The Ledger Law Firm.

Prefer to talk? Call (800) 300-0001.

What an aviation accident lawyer does

An aviation accident claim asks who is responsible for an injury and what that responsibility is worth. An aviation accident lawyer gathers the records, identifies the people and companies involved, deals with insurers and, if it is needed, brings the claim in court.

Aviation cases are not like most injury cases. The aircraft, the operator, the maintenance history and the investigation records all matter, and more than one party can be involved. The first step is a conversation: you tell the firm what happened, and an attorney tells you whether the firm can evaluate the claim and what it would need to see. The case evaluation is free, and it does not commit you to anything.

Who may be responsible

Responsibility depends on the facts. Depending on the accident, it may rest with one party or with several: the operator of the aircraft or the airline, the pilot, the company that maintained or repaired the aircraft, the manufacturer of the aircraft or of a part, the owner, an airport, or a government body responsible for a service the flight relied on.

Some accidents have a single cause. Many have several, and the people and companies involved often point at one another. Working out who may answer for what is usually the first thing a review of a claim sets out to do.

Who investigates, and how long it takes

The National Transportation Safety Board investigates aviation accidents. Its investigator in charge leads the safety investigation, and the NTSB can name other organizations, companies and agencies as parties to it (NTSB, Aviation Accident).

The NTSB says the preliminary report is typically available within two weeks after the accident, and that the final report is released at the end of the investigation, approximately 18 to 24 months after the accident. Its general page on the investigative process says it tries to complete an investigation within 12 to 24 months (NTSB, The Investigative Process). What the NTSB finds is not the same thing as a legal claim, but the facts it collects can matter to one.

Time limits

Every claim has a deadline. Deadlines depend on the state and on who is responsible, and some of them are short. A claim against a government body can follow different rules from a claim against a private company, and a flight between countries can add rules of its own.

Do not wait for an investigation to finish before you ask. Call early, so that no deadline passes while you are still deciding.

What to keep, and what to bring

Get the medical care you need first. Then keep what you have, and bring it to the evaluation:

• medical records and bills, and photographs of your injuries;
• photographs of the aircraft or the place, if you have any;
• the aircraft's registration number, if you know it;
• your ticket, boarding pass or booking, and anything the airline or operator has sent you;
• your health and other insurance information.

How the firm works

The Ledger Law Firm was founded in 1998. Its attorneys are licensed in California (Emery Brett Ledger and Sabrina Sabbagh), in Texas (Emery Brett Ledger and Randall L. Meredith) and in Washington (Emery Brett Ledger and Bruce Cyra). The firm has offices in Newport Beach, California and Dallas, Texas, and meets people by appointment elsewhere. For a claim in another state, ask the firm how it can help.

The firm can evaluate an aviation accident claim and tell you what it sees. The firm works on a contingency fee: the fee is a percentage of what is recovered. If there is no recovery, you owe no attorney fee, but you may still be responsible for court costs and case expenses. The case evaluation is free.

Questions

Is the case evaluation free?

Yes. Free case evaluation.

Who investigates an aviation accident?

The National Transportation Safety Board. Its investigator in charge leads the safety investigation, and it can name other organizations and companies as parties to it.

How long does the NTSB investigation take?

The NTSB says the preliminary report is typically available within two weeks, and the final report approximately 18 to 24 months after the accident.

Start a free case evaluation

Tell the firm what happened and an attorney calls you. If someone died in the accident, our page for families explains the same steps from that point: Plane Crash Lawyer: What Families Should Know.