Expertise
Commercial Vehicle Expert Witness Areas of Expertise
As a commercial vehicle expert witness, Bill's practice covers the FMCSA regulations, operational disciplines, and forensic techniques most often at issue in semi truck and tractor-trailer litigation. What follows is a specific inventory of the regulatory parts, records, and subject areas he handles as a retained expert. For how that subject matter is applied from initial review through trial, see how a trucking expert witness works in a case.
FMCSA Regulations (49 CFR Parts 350-399)
Twenty-eight years teaching the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations to commercial drivers, including every major regulatory update during that period. Bill's analysis maps specific carrier and driver conduct to the operative CFR provisions in plain language a judge and jury can follow. Parts most often at issue: Part 382 (controlled substances and alcohol), Part 383 (CDL standards), Part 391 (driver qualifications), Part 392 (driving of commercial motor vehicles), Part 393 (parts and accessories necessary for safe operation), Part 395 (Hours of Service), Part 396 (inspection, repair, and maintenance), and Part 397 (hazardous materials driving and parking).
Hours of Service and ELD Analysis
Forensic review of ELD data, paper logs, and supporting records to identify HOS violations under 49 CFR 395. Analysis includes 11-hour driving limits, 14-hour on-duty windows, 30-minute break requirements, 60/70-hour cumulative limits, sleeper-berth provisions, and personal conveyance claims. ELD edit history, unassigned driving events, and yard-move designations are cross-referenced against fuel receipts, toll records, dispatch communications, and shipper check-in logs to reconstruct actual duty status.
Logbook Reconstruction and Falsification
Identification of falsified hours-of-service records in both electronic and paper form. Common patterns include unassigned driving assigned to co-drivers, personal conveyance used to reposition for the next load, misclassified on-duty non-driving time, and edited ELD entries that conflict with GPS, telematics, and third-party records. Reconstruction produces a defensible timeline of the driver's actual activity in the hours and days leading up to a crash.
Driver Fatigue
Analysis of the operational, scheduling, and regulatory factors that produce driver fatigue in commercial vehicle crashes. Circadian timing, prior sleep opportunity, dispatch pressure, load scheduling, and off-duty conditions are reviewed together to distinguish fatigue that a compliant operation would have prevented from fatigue that reflects unavoidable operational factors.
Carrier Safety Management
Review of carrier hiring, training, supervision, and safety management practices under Parts 385 and 390. Includes safety management controls, driver monitoring, corrective action for observed violations, and the carrier's response to prior roadside inspection results and CSA scores. The analysis focuses on what the carrier knew, what its own records show it did about what it knew, and whether its practices met the standards its safety management system was required to enforce.
Driver Qualification Standards
Review of driver qualification files under 49 CFR 391, including application, motor vehicle records, prior employment verification, medical certification, road test, and annual review documentation. Also covers Entry-Level Driver Training under Part 380 and the specific competencies a properly trained CDL holder is expected to demonstrate. Gaps in the DQF and non-compliant qualification decisions are identified and mapped to the operative regulation.
Commercial Vehicle Operations
Firsthand knowledge of commercial vehicle operation drawn from over 50 years of class A driving, fleet management of 24 vehicles under FMCSA compliance requirements, and ownership of a truck driving school. Includes pre-trip and post-trip inspection standards under Part 396, cargo securement under Part 393 Subpart I, and the routine operational decisions drivers and dispatchers make that regulatory analysis often overlooks.
