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. ALG attorneys are licensed to practice law throughout the western United States including Alaska, Washington, Hawaii, and California. We routinely handle cases throughout the US and Internationally.
Bob Hedrick
Attorney 30+ years
Commercial Pilot
A&P Aviation Mechanic
20+ years Teaching
Aviation Accident Law
Casey DuBose
Attorney 7+ 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
Who’s at fault for mid-air collision?
The potentially at-fault parties include the pilots and operators of one or both aircraft, air traffic control, the manufacturer of any defective ADS-B units, and possibly other individuals or entities, depending on the facts. If a mid-air collision case goes to trial, a jury will allocate fault on a percentage basis to each of the culpable persons and entities. This is done regardless of the NTSB findings and NTSB probable cause, which is inadmissible in evidence at trial.
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.
Recent Aviation Law News
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 15 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.
Representative Cases
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.
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.
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.