Do you work plaintiff or defense?

Both. Bill's opinions are based on what the records show and what the FMCSA regulations require — not on the theory the retaining attorney is advancing. He has been retained by plaintiff and defense counsel on commercial vehicle cases and approaches each engagement the same way. That independence is not a limitation — it is what makes his testimony credible when the other side challenges it.

What does your initial case review involve?

Book a consultation through the calendar and meet with Bill over video. He reviews every case personally, no intake screener, no associate. In the consultation he gives you a direct read: whether he can help, what the regulatory analysis would involve, what records would strengthen the case, and his rates. There's no obligation to retain and every conversation is confidential.

Have you been qualified as an expert witness and deposed?

Yes. Bill has been retained and provided testimony in multiple commercial vehicle litigation cases. His background — Over 50 years of class A driving, 28 years certified FMCSA instructor, fleet management experience, and a perfect safety record — has withstood Daubert scrutiny and cross-examination. His CV is available upon request.

Are you available for cases outside of Minnesota?

Yes. Bill is based in West St. Paul, MN and serves attorneys throughout the Midwest (MN, WI, IA, IL, MO, ND, SD, NE, KS) and Southwest (TX, OK, NM, AZ, CO, UT, NV). He is available to travel for depositions, site visits, and trial testimony. Remote case review and consultation are available for attorneys in any location.

What happens if the facts don't support the case theory?

Bill says so — and he says so early. His practice of declining involvement when the evidence does not support a defensible opinion is part of what makes his analysis credible when he does engage. If the records don't hold up the theory, you will know before you have committed resources to expert work — not after. That is a feature, not a limitation.

What types of cases do you handle?

Fatigue and Hours of Service cases, FMCSA regulatory violation cases, logbook and ELD falsification cases, carrier liability cases, and driver qualification failures. Many commercial vehicle matters involve overlapping issues across more than one of these categories. If you are not sure whether your case fits, submit it for review — Bill will tell you directly what the analysis can and cannot support.

Trucking Expert Witness | W.S. Bill Collins

A trucking expert witness who taught the federal regulations for 28 years.

W.S. Bill Collins is a trucking expert witness retained by plaintiff and defense counsel in commercial vehicle litigation. His work covers semi truck and tractor-trailer crashes, Hours of Service and ELD analysis, logbook falsification, carrier safety management, and driver qualification failures. Every opinion is grounded in the operative section of 49 CFR rather than general industry practice.

Attorneys searching for a semi truck expert witness or a commercial vehicle expert witness usually need two things at once: someone who can read the records correctly and someone a jury will follow. Bill spent 28 years as a certified FMCSA instructor doing the second and over 50 years of class A driving doing the first. Start with the truck accident expert witness overview or the full areas of expertise.

Why attorneys retain Bill

Four reasons his opinions hold up under cross-examination.

A Background Opposing Counsel Cannot Impeach

Bill holds a Class A CDL spanning over 50 years of class A driving, with every DOT audit passed. That is not a credential stack built for a CV. It is a record built over five decades behind the wheel that withstands cross-examination because there is nothing in it to attack.

He Taught the Regulations. He Didn't Just Read Them.

For 28 years Bill was a certified FMCSA instructor — training commercial drivers on the exact CFR sections your case turns on, including every major regulatory update during that period. When he explains a violation to a judge or jury, it lands because he has spent three decades explaining it to the drivers who are supposed to follow it.

Retained for Both Sides — Because His Opinions Are Actually Objective

Bill works plaintiff and defense. His analysis is based on what the records show and what FMCSA regulations require — not on the theory the retaining attorney is advancing. That independence is not a limitation. It is what makes his written opinions defensible and his testimony credible when the other side pushes back.

Driver. Instructor. Fleet Manager. He Has Operated on Every Side.

Bill has driven commercial routes, taught the regulations to the drivers who operate on them, and managed a fleet of 24 vehicles under FMCSA compliance requirements. When he testifies about what a driver should have known or what a carrier was required to do, it is not drawn from regulatory reading — it is drawn from Over 50 years of class A driving.

Read Bill's full background

Core service highlights

What you get when you retain Bill.

01

Forensic HOS & Log Analysis

Hours of Service violations are the most common — and most concealed — factor in commercial vehicle fatigue crashes. Identifying them requires more than reading a logbook. It means cross-referencing ELD data against fuel receipts, toll records, dispatch communications, and supporting carrier documents to reconstruct what the driver's actual duty status was in the hours and days before a crash. Bill has operated under HOS rules for over 50 years of class A driving and taught them to commercial drivers for 28. He knows what compliant records look like, what shortcuts look like, and what falsification looks like — in both paper logs and electronic systems. His analysis produces a timeline and written opinion that hold up against the hardest cross-examination opposing counsel can mount.

Discuss Your Case

02

Case Review & Consultation

Before you commit resources to expert work, you need a clear read on whether the regulatory theory holds. Bill's initial case review gives you exactly that — a direct assessment of what FMCSA violations the records support, what they don't, and what additional discovery would strengthen the analysis. You will leave the consultation with a defensible foundation for your case strategy, not a preliminary opinion that shifts when the other side challenges it. Bill reviews all submitted materials and responds within one business day.

Discuss Your Case

03

Expert Reports

A written expert opinion is only as useful as the scrutiny it can survive. Bill's reports identify the specific FMCSA regulatory violations at issue, explain what the regulations require and why, and connect the regulatory failures to the events at the center of your case — in language a judge and jury can follow without a trucking background. These are not boilerplate documents adapted from prior cases. They are built from the specific records in your matter and written to withstand the hardest challenge opposing counsel can make.

Discuss Your Case

04

Deposition & Trial Testimony

Effective expert testimony requires two things most witnesses have only one of: the substantive knowledge to answer technical questions under pressure, and the ability to explain complex regulatory standards in plain language a jury retains. Bill has both. Twenty-eight years as an FMCSA instructor means he has spent his career translating technical regulations into terms that non-experts understand and remember. His courtroom presence is grounded in that same approach: objective, direct, and built on a factual record opposing counsel cannot unwind.

Discuss Your Case

FAQ

What attorneys ask before retaining Bill.

See all FAQs

FMCSA Instructor.
Trucking Expert Witness Services

A trucking expert witness who taught the federal regulations for 28 years.

What a trucking expert witness does for your case.

FMCSA instructor background

Services available to retaining counsel

How Bill helps attorneys build the case

Four reasons his opinions hold up under cross-examination.

A Background Opposing Counsel Cannot Impeach

He Taught the Regulations. He Didn't Just Read Them.

Retained for Both Sides — Because His Opinions Are Actually Objective

Driver. Instructor. Fleet Manager. He Has Operated on Every Side.

Expert Witness Services

Case Types Bill Handles

What you get when you retain Bill.

Forensic HOS & Log Analysis

Case Review & Consultation

Expert Reports

Deposition & Trial Testimony

W.S. "Bill" Collins

What attorneys ask before retaining Bill.

Send Your Case Materials for Review.

FMCSA Instructor.Trucking Expert Witness Services

A trucking expert witness who taught the federal regulations for 28 years.

What a trucking expert witness does for your case.

FMCSA instructor background

Services available to retaining counsel

How Bill helps attorneys build the case

Four reasons his opinions hold up under cross-examination.

A Background Opposing Counsel Cannot Impeach

He Taught the Regulations. He Didn't Just Read Them.

Retained for Both Sides — Because His Opinions Are Actually Objective

Driver. Instructor. Fleet Manager. He Has Operated on Every Side.

Expert Witness Services

Case Types Bill Handles

What you get when you retain Bill.

Forensic HOS & Log Analysis

Case Review & Consultation

Expert Reports

Deposition & Trial Testimony

W.S. "Bill" Collins

What attorneys ask before retaining Bill.

Do you work plaintiff or defense?

What does your initial case review involve?

Have you been qualified as an expert witness and deposed?

Are you available for cases outside of Minnesota?

What happens if the facts don't support the case theory?

What types of cases do you handle?

Send Your Case Materials for Review.

FMCSA Instructor.
Trucking Expert Witness Services