The news out of Illinois today is tragic. At least one life has been lost at the scene, due possibly to excessive speed for the wet conditions. This tragedy will need prompt investigation by several independent investigators to determine what the appropriate speed was for the conditions and what precautions should have been in place to prevent the train from derailing.
Often in cases like this our litigators have engineers at the scene within 24 - 72 hours, to preserve evidence and build the case from the ground up. Many intersection cases involving trains can also be lost by a failure to quickly gather this evidence. By contrast the insurer and claims team for the railroad are likely on the scene now. They may be collecting photographic, video and witness information.
At trial there may well be a team of defense experts in addition to this initial investigative team. The result may well be a legal battle of experts, and a jury left to determine which group is most credible and objective.
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