$1.5 M Settlement Secured for Family After Disputed Trucking Crash on NJ Turnpike

Dennis Shlionsky, counsel in the firm’s Personal Injury Department, reached a global settlement totaling $1.5 million in a contested multi-vehicle trucking case arising from a double-impact crash on the New Jersey Turnpike.

The plaintiff, a former firefighter who had been receiving disability benefits since 2010, was operating a vehicle when he was rear-ended by a tractor-trailer that had followed him for over ten minutes. The impact rotated his vehicle into a concrete barrier and into the path of a second tractor-trailer, which struck him broadside while executing a right-lane maneuver on cruise control.

Neither carrier accepted responsibility, each pointing to the other, and at one point suggesting the plaintiff contributed by braking too abruptly. Plaintiff’s counsel focused instead on the operational breakdowns that experienced truck drivers are trained to avoid through application of FMCSA regulations and key provisions of the CDL manual, wherein the case centered on failures in time-speed-distance judgment, inadequate following protocols, and unsafe lane-change execution at highway speeds. Dashcam and ECM data, combined with expert reconstruction, revealed that both drivers ignored critical safety rules. In deposition, one acknowledged he had not reviewed his company’s safety materials or CDL guidance in over a decade.

The plaintiff, who did not undergo surgery, sustained multiple orthopedic and internal injuries including spinal fractures, multi-level disc herniations, a splenic laceration, pelvic trauma, and chronic pain exacerbation. His complex medical background, coupled with a cancer diagnosis revealed during post-crash imaging, allowed the defense to aggressively challenge causation and damages. Nonetheless, a life care plan and functional capacity evaluation supported claims for pain and suffering, future medical needs, and psychological impact.

“We were grateful to represent such kind and decent people,” said Shlionsky. “Cases like this come down to accountability and safety. We focused on what the law requires from professional drivers. How the training fell short, how the harm could have been prevented, and where the rules were broken. Even with a history of injury and no surgery, those standards still matter. We were just honored to help tell their story and make sure it was heard.”

The matter, resolved after two rounds of mediation before retired Superior Court Judge Robert Reddin, involved contested liability, complex causation defenses, and a plaintiff with longstanding disability and comorbidities, but no surgical intervention following the incident. Of the $1.5 million total settlement, the first trucking defendant contributed $1.125 million, and the second contributed $375,000.