KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Motorcycle experience matters. Look for a Virginia motorcycle accident lawyer who understands rider-specific issues, not simply someone who handles general vehicle crashes.
- Rider bias can shape a claim. The right lawyer should know how to counter assumptions that motorcyclists are automatically reckless, speeding, or responsible for their injuries.
- Lane position deserves careful investigation. Motorcycle cases may hinge on where the rider and other vehicle were positioned, whether a lane change occurred, and what Virginia law permits.
- Visibility issues are important. “I didn’t see the motorcycle” is not the end of the inquiry. Visibility disputes should be tested against sight lines, lighting, road conditions, driver attention, video, witnesses, and physical evidence.
When you’ve been involved in a motorcycle crash, finding a personal injury attorney may not seem that challenging. You can do an internet search, ask friends and family for references, and/or check state-specific bar directories. But hiring a good lawyer after a motorcycle accident requires more than finding one with good reviews. 
The motorcycle accident attorneys at Dulaney, Lauer & Thomas know that the physics, injuries, evidence, and arguments surrounding a motorcycle collision are different than with a car accident. They also know that insurance companies for the at-fault party will undoubtedly dispute your claim using bias against riders and visibility issues. The right Virginia motorcycle accident lawyer needs to understand those issues and know how to keep assumptions from replacing evidence. Here, we discuss specific criteria to use when hiring a lawyer for your motorcycle accident case.
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Criteria to Determine the Right Motorcycle Accident Attorney
Even if a lawyer is adept at handling car accidents cases, they may have limited familiarity with motorcycle crashes. If you’ve been injured in a motorcycle crash and are looking for an attorney, it’s important to start the conversation with motorcycle-specific questions and look for signs that the attorney understands bikers and what makes motorcycle claims different.
Experience Confronting Rider Bias
Motorcyclists are sometimes portrayed as reckless simply because they ride. This negative bias can make it more difficult for riders hurt in a crash to obtain fair compensation, especially when a case goes to trial. Good motorcycle accident attorneys counter these prejudices from the very start of the case. They understand that jurors may be unaware that they bring preconceived notions into the courtroom, but those beliefs can shape how they interpret the evidence. To prevent jurors from unfairly assigning blame to the injured motorcyclist, we pursue a multifaceted strategy that includes the following:
- Spotting bias during jury selection. We carefully question jurors during the jury selection process to help reveal negative assumptions about motorcyclists that might prevent them from deciding a case fairly.
- Retaining expert witnesses. Concrete testimony from accident reconstruction and safety experts can help jurors better understand why a motorcyclist took certain actions and how the accident occurred. That can lessen the effect of subjective feelings about motorcyclists.
- Calling character witnesses. Testimony from people who personally know the injured motorcyclist can testify that they are generally cautious and safety-oriented. This can also humanize a rider and bolster their image in the jurors’ minds.
Experience Handling the Driver’s Claim: “The Rider Came Out of Nowhere”
The at-fault driver may use the “I didn’t see the motorcycle” defense, so visibility is an important motorcycle-specific issue to discuss during an initial consultation with an attorney. A good attorney knows that a driver's failure to notice a smaller vehicle does not, by itself, establish what caused a collision.
Virginia requires motorcycles to have approved headlights capable of making a person or object discernible from 200 feet. A strong investigation should examine lighting, weather, sight distance, obstructions, the driver's viewing angle, intersection design, and whether the driver looked before turning or changing lanes.
The attorney should be ready to turn “I didn't see the rider” into more useful questions, such as:
- Why didn't the driver see the motorcycle?
- When should the motorcycle have become visible?
- Where was the driver looking?
The driver’s failure to see the motorcycle doesn’t remove their responsibility for the accident. A good attorney can shift the investigation to keep it focused on evidence instead of assumptions.
Experience With Motorcycle Dynamics and Important Evidence
Lane position, braking, countersteering, and stopping distance can matter when reconstructing what happened. A good attorney pays attention to important evidence, such as helmet damage, riding gear, photographs of the scene, surveillance footage, vehicle damage, and witness accounts, which may reveal details that a generic crash review misses.
Additionally, it’s important that your attorney has deep knowledge of Virginia motorcycle rules. The attorney should be prepared to distinguish legal riding behavior from conduct an insurer merely wants to characterize as dangerous.
Experience Handling Lane-Position Disputes
Motorcycle claims can become contentious when the insurer argues that the rider's lane position caused the crash. What looks unusual to someone who does not ride may have a legitimate explanation—or may raise a legal issue that needs careful analysis.
That makes precision important. A motorcycle accident lawyer should identify exactly where the motorcycle was before impact, whether either vehicle changed lanes, what the road markings permitted, and what witnesses or videos actually show. The attorney should not accept an insurance adjuster's characterization of the maneuver without comparing it with Virginia traffic law and the physical evidence. Ask a prospective lawyer to explain how a disputed lane-position case would be investigated. A detailed answer tells you far more than a promise to “fight the insurance company.”
