Joseph Fried

On Monday morning, that more traditional type of communication, a phone call, revealed it wasn’t just one case that settled last week. It was six, including two on Friday.

Six?

“I guess the planets aligned,” said Fried, a partner at Fried Rogers Golderg. “I resolved six cases last week.”

Total value of the six settlements: $20 million. Fried said his partner, Michael Godberg, told him, “You just had an incredible year – in a week.”

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Exhaustion Puts Other Drivers at Risk

What’s more frightening is that 14% of truck drivers report that fatigue caused them safety issues while on the job, such as narrowly missing an accident. Clearly there is more at stake than a typo when a trucker makes as work mistake. About 100,000 crashes and 1,800 deaths are attributed to accidents involving fatigued truck drivers, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Why are truckers so tired?

More than 25% of truck drivers say that their current work schedule does not allow enough time for sleep. Hours of service (HOS) regulations are designed to limit the number of hours a trucker drives. However, online message boards and blogs for truckers reveal that many drivers exceed the legal hours, sometimes in order to move product in the timeframes set by their employers.

The poll also showed that truck drivers face 40% longer workdays than the bus, taxi and limo drivers with whom we share the roadway.

What about you?

Has your fatigue lead to a “near miss” at work that could have resulted in harm to yourself or others? Have you ever fallen asleep while driving home from work? View our tips for staying awake on the road, and share your tips in the comments below for staying awake at work, on your commute or while driving long distances.

Contact us if you have been injured or if you have lost a loved one in an accident caused by another person. You may be eligible to receive compensation for damages and suffering.

There are a variety of charities the attorneys of the firm of Fried Rogers Goldberg LLC support, but their favorite is the firm’s annual scholarship. Says firm partner Joe Fried, “We always welcome the chance to give back to the community and at the same time, make kids think about the importance of the law.”

The Scoop

Each year, high school seniors from the metro Atlanta area are given the opportunity to participate in an essay contest.The 2012 contest topic is “If Congress and the President had to listen to me, here is what I would tell them needs to be done.” The piece must contain no more than 1,000 words, and the deadline is March 15, 2012. Click here to submit your essay.

The first place winner receives a $1,000 scholarship, and second and third place recipients each get $500.

Last year’s winners Ruchir Khaitan, Amber Green and Freddy Carbajal were chosen for their essays on the topic of “The Importance of a Trial by Jury.”

If you are interested in participating, get more information and submit your essay here.