Private contractors and the insurance companies that represent them could face hundreds of millions of dollars in legal claims arising from the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge, attorneys familiar with such cases said Friday.
Private contractors and the insurance companies that represent them could face hundreds of millions of dollars in legal claims arising from the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge, attorneys familiar with such cases said Friday.
Floyd Siefferman, a Minneapolis attorney with experience representing victims of plane crashes, estimated that total legal claims could reach $1 billion. He cited the unusual and horrific nature of the accident as a possible catalyst for large jury awards.
“Jurors are going to say that these people should not have been forced to live through falling 60 feet into a river,” Siefferman said. “That’s really going to weigh heavily on jurors’ hearts.”
The state’s liability is limited by law to $1 million, regardless of how many people were injured.
A larger payout would be possible if the state DOT had an insurance policy, but it doesn’t, according to Robert McFarlin, an assistant to the commissioner of the Department of Transportation.
