Interstate & Highway Accident Lawyers in Louisiana

Baton Rouge Interstate Highway Car Accident

As you may expect, the increased speeds allowed on Louisiana interstates and highways result in more destructive crashes when car accidents occur. When high-speed intersate highway accidents happen in heavy traffic, multiple vehicles may become involved, resulting in pileups that damage many cars and injure or kill multiple people.

Types of Baton Rouge Car Accident Cases
- Rear end accident in Baton Rouge
If you have been hit from behind in a car accident, you are not alone. Rear-end collisions are the most common type of car accident. They are also the most common cause of whiplash, a painful and potentially disabling neck and back injury.
- Head on collision car accident in Baton Rouge, LA
A head-on collision is the type of car accident most likely to result in death. Head-on collisions account for about 2 percent of car accidents but cause about 10 percent of all motor vehicle fatalities.
- Roll over accident in Louisiana
A rollover accident, in which a car tips over onto its side or roof, is a dangerous car crash. Rollover accidents have a higher fatality rate than other car accidents. If you or a loved one has survived a rollover, your injuries are likely to be serious, but you may be lucky to be alive.
- Distracted driving or texting and driving car accident in Baton Rouge
The driver who caused your car accident may have had something entirely different from driving on their mind at the time of the wreck. We’ve all seen examples of distracted driving: cell phone use behind the wheel, texting while driving, turning to deal with kids, applying makeup or shaving, fiddling with the radio, etc.
Distracted driving is multitasking at its potentially deadly worst. When a car accident has been caused by a distracted driver, those who have been injured or lost a loved one deserve swift and sure compensation for their losses.
- A collision or car accident at an intersection in Louisiana
It should come as no surprise that intersections are the scenes of many car accidents. Multiple streams of traffic cross and turn in front of each other. When drivers don’t pay attention at intersections, crashes are often the result.
- In a car accident on the highway in Louisiana
As you may expect, the increased speeds allowed on Louisiana interstates and highways result in more destructive crashes when car accidents occur. When high-speed highway accidents happen in heavy traffic, multiple vehicles may become involved, resulting in pileups that damage many cars and injure or kill multiple people.
- Injuries, scars, or lacerations caused by a Baton Rouge Car Accident
Baton Rouge auto accidents can often lead to scars, lacerations or disfigurement. Sometimes those accidents come in the form of auto accidents, other times it may be from a dog or animal bite.
Contact a Baton Rouge Interstate Accident Attorney Today
We are confident that we can make a difference for you. In fact, having an experienced accident lawyer on your side may be the number one factor in your obtaining any recovery at all. That said, if you don’t obtain a financial recovery, you will pay no attorney’s fee or costs.
And if you are not satisfied with how your case is going, we will return your case file to you within 30 days of being hired as part of our 100% Satisfaction Guarantee with no attorney’s fee or costs owed to us whatsoever.
Don’t wait to take action after a car accident. GET EVEN. CALL STEPHEN.™

Speed, congestion and destruction of multiple vehicles can also make it difficult to determine how an accident happened and who or what may be responsible for it.

Babcock Partners can help you pursue what may be a complex insurance claim after an interstate or highway accident. We can assist with claims that account for the long-term costs of catastrophic injuries. We also have the resources required to investigate complex accidents, like pileups and crashes involving commercial trucks (i.e., 18-wheelers, tractor-trailers, etc.)

Attorneys Stephen Babcock and Chase Tettleton, have dedicated their professional lives to representing accident victims. They are members of Trial Masters™ – a national organization of lawyers who have tried 35 or more trials to verdict. Among many citations for their work, they are consistently named among the Top 10 Personal Injury Attorneys in Louisiana.

Contact Babcock Partners today for a free case evaluation about your highway accident and injuries. We’ll outline your legal options and our 100% Satisfaction Guarantee: No fee until we recover a monetary award for you and, anytime within 30 days of hiring us, you can ask for and receive your case file and walk away if you are unhappy with our representation and owe us nothing for our attorney’s fees or costs.

GET EVEN. CALL STEPHEN.™

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When I needed a personal injury attorney after my car accident, I called Stephen Babcock and his firm represented me and got me a great settlement from my car wreck. Continue reading →

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Highway Speeds and Interstate Accidents in Louisiana

Interstate highways, including five primary interstates in Louisiana, are characterized by limited access points and increased speeds, a design that theoretically allows traffic to flow without congestion. State highways are also built as multi-lane, primary roadways for speed and convenience.

If you have driven any interstate or state highway in Louisiana, you know that they do accommodate high speeds but they do not necessarily flow without congestion, especially if you are in Baton Rouge and New Orleans. When traffic does move freely, cars and trucks typically speed along so close to each other that the slightest mistake can spell disaster.

Louisiana allows a top speed of 75 mph on rural stretches of interstate and 70 mph on urban interstates and other limited-access roads.

Interstate highways in Louisiana include:

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the main east-west route across southern Louisiana, connecting Lake Charles, Lafayette, Baton Rouge and New Orleans

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bypassing New Orleans to the north of Lake Pontchartrain

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the main east-west route through northern Louisiana

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the primary north-south route through the state

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North–south route in southeastern Louisiana via Hammond

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North–south route in southeastern Louisiana via Slidell

There are also multiple interstate spurs and loops, such as Interstate-110 in Baton Rouge, Interstate-210 in Lake Charles, Interstate-220 in Shreveport–Bossier City, Interstate-310 west of New Orleans, Interstate-510 in Eastern New Orleans, and Interstate-610 in New Orleans downtown. You can conduct a search online with the name of any Louisiana interstate highway and find multiple reports of terrible crashes.

High speeds make collisions more deadly because crash energy increases exponentially as speeds increase. To quote the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS):

In a high-speed crash, a passenger vehicle is subjected to forces so severe that the vehicle structure cannot withstand the force of the crash and maintain survival space in the occupant compartment. Likewise, as crash speeds get very high, restraint systems such as airbags and safety belts cannot keep the forces on occupants below severe injury levels.

Claims for Catastrophic Injuries in Interstate Highway Accidents

High-speed car accidents that are not fatal can cause such severe injuries as:

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). A blow to the head or a sudden jolt in the impact of a car crash can cause bruising, tearing, bleeding or other physical damage to the brain. A severe TBI is typically a debilitating injury, and the worst cases are degenerative.
Spinal Cord Injury / Paralysis. Trauma to the spinal cord can cause paralysis in one or more limbs (paraplegia), or more widespread portions of the body (tetraplegia, aka quadriplegia). Tetraplegia can affect the function of organs, as well as musculoskeletal control. Some tetraplegia victims require mechanical help to breathe, for example.
Internal Injuries. Crushing injuries in a collision can fracture the ribs and/or sternum (chest bone), or rupture major organs. Broken bone fragments can dislodge and penetrate vital organs. Torn abdominal organs, if not surgically repaired quickly, can cause sepsis, shock and death.
Whiplash. Whiplash is a traumatic neck injury caused by the sudden jerking motion of car accident, particularly when a car is struck from the rear in a highway pileup. Most cases heal, but whiplash can cause chronic pain and other complications.
Fractures. Broken arms, legs, ribs and collarbones are among the most frequently suffered car accident injuries. While young passengers typically recuperate from broken bones in six to eight weeks, bones heal more slowly and less fully as we age.
Lacerations. Broken glass and/or sheared metal sent flying in a high-speed crash can cause disfiguring, if not deadly, cuts and gashes.
Burns. Third- and fourth-degree burns from fire or contact with hot elements of the vehicle can cause deep tissue damage and disfiguration. Smoke from a fire can cause lung damage and ongoing respiratory issues.
Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD). Psychological injuries suffered in a catastrophic car accident are very real and should not be overlooked. A person who has been put through the shock of a crash and injury, or witnessing a loved one being badly injured or killed, may suffer from PTSD, guilt and/or depression. Psychological counseling is compensable medical assistance when needed following a car accident.

One or more catastrophic injuries suffered in a car accident may leave the victim disabled for life. Depending on the victim’s age and long-term prognosis, the cost of their care may easily run into the millions of dollars. In such cases, depending on the prospects for damages to be recovered in a claim, it may be proper to develop a life care plan in support of the demand for medical expenses.

A life care plan documents anticipated costs required to meet the patient’s needs over the course of their expected lifespan. The plan takes into account the patient’s medical prognosis and long-term medical, psychological, rehabilitation and lifestyle requirements. Many catastrophic injuries are degenerative, requiring additional treatment and more extensive care as the patient’s condition worsens.

Specialists develop life care plans to outline current and future needs due to the patient’s disability, such as:

Medical tests, exams
Routine medical care
Anticipated surgical procedures
Medication
Consumable medical supplies
Rehabilitative therapy
Psychological assessment and counseling

Adaptive devices (walker, wheelchair, communication devices, etc.), including maintenance and replacement
Transportation adaptation (i.e., van with lift, modified controls, etc.) or assistance
Home and/or furnishings adaptation (ramps, wider doorways, lavatory renovations, hospital bed, etc.)
In-home / personal assistance
Institutional care

Babcock Partners provides the legal knowledge and investigative work necessary to obtain the most compensation available from a car accident claim for catastrophic injuries. In cases of long-term or permanent disability, we can work with economic, medical and health-related professionals to ensure we have a full accounting of the accident victim’s demonstrated needs for the present and future.

Reconstructing Complex Car Crashes for Accident Claims

In multi-car accidents, pileups and other complex wrecks, which may occur in heavy, high-speed traffic, it can be difficult to determine what happened and why. In such cases, our attorneys at Babcock Partners sometimes turn to accident reconstruction specialists for help.

Accident reconstruction consultants are professionals trained in engineering, physics and forensics. They are recognized by the courts as expert witnesses, and their opinions and testimony help demonstrate liability in personal injury and wrongful death cases involving motor vehicle accidents.

Reconstructing a car accident involves gathering and analyzing a variety of technical data related to the vehicles before, after and at the point of impact in a collision or multiple collisions. The work requires recording (photographing), modeling, testing and measuring such factors as:

Vehicle damage
Use or capability of vehicle systems (i.e., brakes, steering, suspension, etc.)
Vehicles’ direction of travel before and after impact
Distances moved post-impact

Impact angles
Length of pre-impact skid marks and yaw (side-to-side) marks
Friction values for traffic surfaces

Part of the information used in accident reconstruction comes from vehicles’ “black box” Event Data Recorders (EDRs) now found in most late-model vehicles. When an airbag is deployed, the vehicle’s EDR records information that includes but is not limited to:

Date and time
Vehicle speed
Engine speed (RPMs)
Steering angle

Throttle (gas pedal) position
Braking
Force of impact
Seatbelt status

Forensic experts gather data like that above and analyze it with specialized computer programs, which can also create graphic and animated depictions of a car crash. In addition to a narrative report entered into evidence, the consultant’s expert testimony and multi-media presentation can help a jury understand the facts in a car accident case or persuade an insurance company that it should settle.

Babcock Partners can obtain the assistance of crash reconstruction experts when this additional work will prove beneficial to a complex claim. However, this type of forensic work requires prompt access to the accident scene and vehicles involved in the crash.

We urge anyone seriously injured in a car crash contact an experienced car accident attorney as soon as possible to protect their rights to compensation for their losses. Babcock Partners can assist you promptly with a free, no-obligation case review.

free, no-obligation case review and our 100% Satisfaction Guarantee.