Aviation Accident Attorneys
Aviation Law Group PS is a leading West Coast law firm representing plaintiffs in the West Coast, the United States, and the World in aircraft accidents and other aviation-related cases involving serious injury/wrongful death. With more than 30 years of experience practicing law, and more than 40 years in aviation, ALG is proud of our excellent legal work on behalf of hundreds of clients. We routinely handle cases with local counsel in all 50 State and Internationally. Additionally, ALG attorneys are licensed to practice law throughout the Western United States including Alaska, Washington, Hawaii, and California.
Bob Hedrick
Attorney 30+ years
Commercial Pilot
A&P Aviation Mechanic
20+ years Teaching
Aviation Accident Law
Casey DuBose
Attorney 9+ years
Commercial Pilot
Flight Instructor
Aviation Law Speaker
Kerry Kovarik
Attorney 11+ years
Flight Instructor
IA Aviation Mechanic
Chris Rusing
Attorney 20+ years
Airline Pilot & Instructor
Airbus 320 Series Captain
WHAT WE DO
Aviation Accident Law
General Aviation Accidents
General aviation involves private and recreational flight activity. It includes non-airline flights such as scenic flights, flight training, private flights, recreational flights, helicopter flights and operations, seaplanes, flying clubs, business flights, gliders, and a lot of other aerial activity. All of Aviation Law Group attorneys have extensive experience in many aspects of general aviation, from flying and instructing, to operations and aircraft maintenance. Since 1988, our lawyers have handled accidents involving nearly all aspects of general aviation activity for airplanes, helicopters, and fixed base operators.
Helicopter Accidents
Helicopter accidents often involve issues of external load operations such as longline or external load (link to external load), heli-lifting, heli-logging, and fire-fighting support.
Major Airline Accidents
ALG attorneys have represented numerous families who lost loved ones in major airline disasters, such as the January 31, 2000, Alaska Flight 261 accident near Point Hueneme, California, and the February 25, 2009, Turkish Airline Flight TK 1951 accident in Amsterdam. We have extensive experience with international airline liability law, including the Montreal Convention and its predecessor the Warsaw Convention, where issues of liability, jurisdiction, applicable law, and recoverable damages are complex. ALG attorneys have given many talks and written numerous articles in this specialized field of law. Mr. Hedrick also teaches the Montreal Convention as part of his Aviation Accident Law course at Seattle University School of Law.
International Coverage and Regional Expertise
Washington
Unfortunately, aircraft accidents occur nearly weekly throughout Washington. In addition, many aircraft accidents outside of Washington involve Washington manufacturers or operators.
Alaska
Because of the extent of aviation activity throughout the 49th and largest state in the U.S., Robert Hedrick obtained his attorney license in Alaska nearly 20 years ago in 2002 and is an active member of the Alaska Bar Association.
Hawaii
Aviation activity is unique in the Hawaiian archipelago because of its location and geographical topography.
Recent Aviation Law News
Provo Airport Phenom 300 fatal accident: What caused the loss of control?
Winter flying requires an extra margin of safety to account for falling snow and slippery conditions.
HA 35 Preliminary Report Raises More Questions About Flight Crew Information And Response
The NTSB issued its preliminary report on the HA 35 flight turbulence accident that occurred on December 18, 2022. The Hawaiian Airlines flight was approaching Hawaii after leaving Phoenix, when it hit severe turbulence, injuring at least 25 persons (passengers and...
Hawaiian Airlines Flight 35: Severe Turbulence Must Be Avoided At All Costs
While airlines are not absolutely liable for every turbulence caused injury, they are liable if they knew or should have known of potentially dangerous turbulence, and failed to take reasonable safety precautions to protect passengers. As airlines are certified air carriers for public transport, they are held not just to regular negligence standards, but as common carriers, they must exercise the highest degree of care consistent with aviation industry standards.
Representative Cases
Airplane Mis-fueling Accident
A lineman working for local aircraft fueling operation pumped Jet-A aircraft fuel into the tanks of a reciprocating single-engine airplane, which required 100 octane low lead fuel.
Defective Carburetor Accident
In February 2013, following a 3-week trial, a Washington jury returned a verdict for $8.9 million in favor of our client against an aircraft engine manufacturer.
Regional Fly-In Accident
After a 3-week jury trial, Robert Hedrick obtained a $10.5 million verdict against a regional fly-in host and its national counterpart. The case involved failure to arrange for adequate fire and emergency response at the event, which caused a pilot to die needlessly.
Aircraft Design Defect
Last year, after a two-week trial, a 12-person jury returned a verdict in favor of the clients of Aviation Law Group, finding that an aircraft’s flight control system was defectively designed, which caused the deaths of a pilot and his passenger.
Firm Contact Information
If you or a loved one has been the victim of an aviation-related accident, please reach out to us. We are always willing to provide a free initial evaluation and meeting.