Pedestrian Accident Complaint

PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENT COMPLAINT — ALABAMA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Caption
2. Parties, Jurisdiction, and Venue
3. General Factual Allegations
4. Count I — Negligence (Against Defendant Driver)
5. Count II — Negligence Per Se (Against Defendant Driver)
6. Count III — Wantonness (Against Defendant Driver)
7. Count IV — Negligent Entrustment / Vicarious Liability (Against Defendant Owner)
8. Damages
9. Prayer for Relief
10. Jury Demand
11. Reservation of Rights
12. Signature and Service Blocks
13. Verification
14. Certificate of Service
15. Alabama Practice Notes
16. Sources and References

1. CAPTION

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF [COUNTY] COUNTY, ALABAMA

CIVIL ACTION NO. CV-[YYYY]-[________]

COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES (PEDESTRIAN COLLISION)

JURY TRIAL DEMANDED

Plaintiff, complaining of Defendants, alleges as follows:

2. PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE

1. Plaintiff [PLAINTIFF NAME] ("Plaintiff") is an adult resident citizen of [COUNTY] County, Alabama, and at all material times was lawfully present as a pedestrian upon or alongside the public roadways of this State.

2. Defendant [DRIVER NAME] ("Driver Defendant") is, upon information and belief, an adult resident citizen of [COUNTY / STATE] and may be served with process at [SERVICE ADDRESS] pursuant to Rule 4, Ala. R. Civ. P.

3. Defendant [OWNER / EMPLOYER NAME] ("Owner Defendant") is [an individual / a corporation / an LLC] that, at all material times, owned, controlled, and/or maintained the vehicle operated by Driver Defendant and/or employed Driver Defendant. Owner Defendant may be served at [SERVICE ADDRESS / REGISTERED AGENT].

4. Fictitious Defendants "A," "B," and "C" are those persons or entities, whose identities are presently unknown to Plaintiff, who negligently or wantonly caused or contributed to the collision and Plaintiff's injuries, including any additional owner, employer, lessor, or maintainer of the subject vehicle. Plaintiff will substitute their true names by amendment pursuant to Rule 9(h), Ala. R. Civ. P., when ascertained.

5. This action arises under Alabama tort law for personal injuries sustained when a motor vehicle struck Plaintiff, a pedestrian, in [COUNTY] County, Alabama, on [__/__/____].

6. Subject-matter jurisdiction is proper in this Circuit Court pursuant to Ala. Const. art. VI, § 142 and Ala. Code § 12-11-30, as the amount in controversy exceeds the jurisdictional minimum of this Court and the claims sound in tort.

7. Venue is proper in this county under Ala. Code § 6-3-2 because the cause of action arose in this county and/or one or more Defendants resides or does business herein.

3. GENERAL FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS

8. On [__/__/____] at approximately [TIME], Plaintiff was lawfully crossing / walking [DESCRIBE — e.g., within the marked crosswalk at the intersection of ___ and ___; within an unmarked crosswalk at the intersection of ___; along the shoulder facing traffic on ___], in [CITY], Alabama (the "Collision").

9. At the same time and place, Driver Defendant was operating a [YEAR / MAKE / MODEL] [passenger vehicle / pickup truck / SUV / commercial vehicle] owned by Owner Defendant, traveling [direction] on [ROADWAY].

10. [Where applicable] A pedestrian-control or traffic-control signal [displayed "WALK" / displayed a green light in Plaintiff's direction of travel / was not in place or not in operation], and Plaintiff had the right-of-way and was crossing within the crosswalk.

11. Traffic, lighting, and weather conditions were [describe — e.g., clear, dry, daylight; or dusk / nighttime, with Plaintiff in or near a marked crosswalk].

12. The Collision occurred when Driver Defendant [SELECT / DESCRIBE THE MANNER — e.g., failed to yield the right-of-way to Plaintiff in the crosswalk; turned left or right across the crosswalk into Plaintiff's path; failed to keep a proper lookout and struck Plaintiff; was traveling at an excessive or unsafe speed; was distracted by a mobile device; failed to stop for a vehicle already stopped at the crosswalk to let Plaintiff cross; ran a red light or stop sign].

13. Plaintiff was plainly visible to Driver Defendant, who failed to see Plaintiff in time, misjudged the situation, and/or failed to exercise the due care that Alabama law requires of every driver to avoid colliding with a pedestrian.

14. Plaintiff was exercising reasonable care for Plaintiff's own safety at all material times. At no time did Plaintiff do, or fail to do, anything that proximately caused or contributed to the Collision.

15. As a direct and proximate result of the Collision, Plaintiff — an unprotected pedestrian struck by the mass and force of a motor vehicle — sustained severe, painful, and permanent bodily injuries, including but not limited to [LIST INJURIES — e.g., orthopedic fractures, traumatic brain injury, spinal injury, internal injuries, degloving / road rash, and disfiguring scarring].

16. Because a pedestrian has no structural protection, restraint system, or crumple zone, the forces of the Collision caused Plaintiff to suffer catastrophic injuries materially more severe than those typically sustained by occupants of vehicles.

17. Plaintiff received emergency care at [HOSPITAL / EMS PROVIDER] and has since undergone [SURGERIES / HOSPITALIZATION / REHABILITATION / ONGOING TREATMENT], and will require future medical care.

18. All injuries and damages alleged were the foreseeable, natural, and probable consequence of Defendants' conduct.

4. COUNT I — NEGLIGENCE (Against Defendant Driver)

19. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 18 as if fully set forth herein.

20. Driver Defendant owed Plaintiff a duty to exercise reasonable care in the operation of a motor vehicle, to obey the Alabama Rules of the Road, to keep a proper lookout for pedestrians, to yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian lawfully within a crosswalk, and to exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian upon the roadway.

21. Driver Defendant breached that duty by, among other things:

• Failing to yield the right-of-way to Plaintiff, a pedestrian crossing within a crosswalk;
• Failing to keep a proper and careful lookout for pedestrians;
• Operating the vehicle at a speed greater than was reasonable and prudent for the conditions and the presence of pedestrians;
• Driving while distracted, inattentive, or impaired;
• Failing to exercise due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian and to sound a warning when necessary;
• Overtaking and passing a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk to permit a pedestrian to cross; and
• Failing to take reasonable evasive action to avoid striking Plaintiff.

22. Each of the foregoing acts and omissions, separately and in combination, was a direct and proximate cause of the Collision and of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

5. COUNT II — NEGLIGENCE PER SE (Against Defendant Driver)

23. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 22 as if fully set forth herein.

24. The Alabama Rules of the Road impose specific statutory duties on Driver Defendant for the protection of pedestrians such as Plaintiff. These include, as applicable to the manner of the Collision:

• Ala. Code § 32-5A-211 — when traffic-control signals are not in place or not in operation, a driver shall yield the right-of-way, slowing down or stopping if need be, to a pedestrian crossing the roadway within a crosswalk when the pedestrian is upon the driver's half of the roadway or so closely approaching from the opposite half as to be in danger; and no driver approaching from the rear may overtake and pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk to permit a pedestrian to cross;
• Ala. Code § 32-5A-213 — every driver shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian upon any roadway, shall give warning by sounding the horn when necessary, and shall exercise proper precaution upon observing a child or any confused or incapacitated person; and
• Ala. Code § 32-5A-210 / § 32-5A-33 — governing the obedience of pedestrians and drivers to traffic-control and pedestrian-control signals (e.g., "WALK" / "DON'T WALK").

25. Plaintiff is within the class of persons the foregoing statutes were enacted to protect, and the Collision is the type of harm those statutes were designed to prevent.

26. Driver Defendant violated [CITE THE SPECIFIC SECTION(S) APPLICABLE], and was cited for [TRAFFIC CITATION, IF ANY]. Such violation constitutes negligence per se under Alabama law, and was a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

6. COUNT III — WANTONNESS (Against Defendant Driver)

27. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 26 as if fully set forth herein.

28. Driver Defendant, with reckless indifference to the consequences and conscious awareness that injury to a pedestrian would likely or probably result, engaged in conduct including but not limited to [e.g., driving at a grossly excessive speed through a crosswalk, intersection, or school zone; running a red light or stop sign; driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs; driving while distracted by a mobile device; failing to slow or stop for a pedestrian plainly visible in the roadway].

29. Such conduct constitutes wantonness under Alabama law and was a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages, entitling Plaintiff to punitive damages pursuant to Ala. Code § 6-11-20, subject to Ala. Code § 6-11-21.

7. COUNT IV — NEGLIGENT ENTRUSTMENT / VICARIOUS LIABILITY (Against Defendant Owner)

30. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 29 as if fully set forth herein.

31. Owner Defendant entrusted the subject vehicle to Driver Defendant when Owner Defendant knew, or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known, that Driver Defendant was an incompetent, inexperienced, reckless, or otherwise unfit driver.

32. Alternatively, at the time of the Collision, Driver Defendant was operating the vehicle as the agent, servant, or employee of Owner Defendant and within the line and scope of that agency or employment, rendering Owner Defendant vicariously liable under the doctrine of respondeat superior.

33. Owner Defendant's negligent entrustment and/or vicarious liability was a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages, for which Owner Defendant is jointly and severally liable.

8. DAMAGES

34. As a direct and proximate result of Defendants' conduct, Plaintiff has suffered and seeks recovery of the following:

• Past and future medical expenses — emergency, ambulance, hospital, surgical, diagnostic, rehabilitative, pharmaceutical, and physician care;
• Future medical and life care — anticipated surgeries, therapy, assistive devices, prosthetics, and long-term or attendant care, to be proven at trial;
• Lost wages and diminished earning capacity — past lost income and the permanent impairment of Plaintiff's ability to earn;
• Physical pain, suffering, and mental anguish — past and future;
• Permanent physical impairment and disfigurement, including scarring from road rash and surgical intervention;
• Loss of enjoyment of life; and
• Property damage to Plaintiff's personal effects, as applicable.

35. Plaintiff pleads each category of damage separately and in the alternative.

36. Pursuant to Ala. Code § 6-11-20 and § 6-11-21, Plaintiff seeks punitive damages on Count III (Wantonness) in an amount supported by the evidence and consistent with the applicable statutory cap.

9. PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, Plaintiff respectfully demands judgment against Defendants, jointly and severally, as follows:

• A. Compensatory damages in an amount to be determined by the trier of fact, in excess of the jurisdictional minimum of this Court;
• B. Punitive damages on the wantonness count, consistent with Ala. Code § 6-11-21;
• C. Pre-judgment and post-judgment interest as allowed by law;
• D. Costs of this action; and
• E. Such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.

10. JURY DEMAND

Plaintiff demands trial by struck jury on all issues so triable as a matter of right.

11. RESERVATION OF RIGHTS

Plaintiff reserves the right to amend this Complaint to add or substitute parties (including fictitious Defendants under Rule 9(h)), to assert additional claims, and to conform the pleadings to the evidence as discovery proceeds. Plaintiff specifically denies any contributory negligence and pleads, in rebuttal to any such affirmative defense, the doctrines of last clear chance, subsequent negligence, and discovered peril.

12. SIGNATURE AND SERVICE BLOCKS

Respectfully submitted this [____] day of [MONTH], 20[____].

/s/ [________________________________]

[ATTORNEY NAME] (ASB-[________])

[LAW FIRM NAME]

Attorney for Plaintiff

[STREET ADDRESS]

[CITY, STATE ZIP]

Telephone: [NUMBER]

Email: [EMAIL]

13. VERIFICATION

STATE OF ALABAMA

COUNTY OF [COUNTY]

I, [PLAINTIFF NAME], being first duly sworn, state that I am the Plaintiff in the foregoing action; that I have read the foregoing Complaint; and that the facts stated therein are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, information, and belief.

[________________________________]

[PLAINTIFF NAME], Plaintiff

Sworn to and subscribed before me this [____] day of [_______________], 20[____].

[________________________________]

Notary Public

My Commission Expires: [_______________]

14. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on this the [____] day of [_______________], 20[____], I served (or will cause to be served with the summons) a copy of the foregoing COMPLAINT upon the following by [the Clerk via certified mail under Rule 4 / process server / AlaFile electronic service]:

[NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) OF DEFENDANT(S) / COUNSEL]

/s/ [________________________________]

[ATTORNEY NAME]

15. ALABAMA PRACTICE NOTES

• Statute of limitations. Personal-injury actions in Alabama must be commenced within two years of accrual. Ala. Code § 6-2-38(l). Wrongful-death actions carry their own two-year period under Ala. Code § 6-5-410 (and Alabama wrongful-death recovery is punitive in nature; verify if the pedestrian was killed).
• PURE CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE — the central issue. Alabama is one of only a handful of jurisdictions (with Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and the District of Columbia) that retains the pure contributory-negligence bar. Any negligence by the pedestrian that proximately contributes to the injury — even the slightest — is a complete bar to recovery on the negligence counts, subject only to the last-clear-chance / subsequent-negligence doctrine. This is the single most important strategic feature of an Alabama pedestrian case, because the defense will argue the pedestrian "darted out," jaywalked, or crossed against a signal.
• The pedestrian's own duties. Alabama law imposes reciprocal duties on pedestrians: a pedestrian crossing outside a marked or unmarked crosswalk must yield the right-of-way to all vehicles (Ala. Code § 32-5A-212); a pedestrian must not suddenly leave a curb or place of safety into the path of a close vehicle (§ 32-5A-211(b)); and pedestrians must obey pedestrian-control and traffic-control signals (§ 32-5A-210, § 32-5A-33). A violation of these duties supplies the defense's contributory-negligence theory. Counsel should investigate the precise crossing location, the signal phase, conspicuity, and whether the driver had the last clear chance to avoid the Collision. Note that, regardless of the pedestrian's right-of-way, every driver still owes the independent due-care duty under § 32-5A-213.
• Wantonness preserves recovery. Because contributory negligence is not a defense to wantonness, a well-supported Count III (¶¶ 27–29) can be outcome-determinative — and the only path to recovery — where the pedestrian faces any fault exposure. Plead it whenever the facts permit (speeding, signal violations, impairment, distraction). Wantonness is also the predicate for punitive damages under Ala. Code § 6-11-20.
• UM/UIM and hit-and-run. A pedestrian struck by a motor vehicle may recover under their own automobile uninsured/underinsured-motorist (UM/UIM) coverage — and under the UM/UIM coverage of a resident relative's policy — even though the pedestrian was not in a vehicle, because pedestrians are "insureds" for UM/UIM purposes. UM coverage also responds to a hit-and-run / phantom vehicle, subject to prompt-reporting and physical-contact requirements. Promptly identify and notify every applicable policy, preserve the UM/UIM claim, and comply with consent-to-settle / subrogation procedures before resolving the liability claim. Verify the current UM/UIM and hit-and-run requirements under the applicable policies and Alabama law.
• Punitive damages. Punitive damages require clear and convincing evidence of wantonness, malice, or oppression (Ala. Code § 6-11-20) and are capped under Ala. Code § 6-11-21 (generally the greater of three times compensatory damages or $1,500,000 for physical-injury actions; verify current figures).
• Fictitious-party practice. Alabama permits fictitious-party pleading under Rule 9(h), Ala. R. Civ. P., useful for preserving claims against later-identified owners, employers, or component defendants within the limitations period.
• Service. Service is governed by Rule 4, Ala. R. Civ. P. (commonly via the Clerk by certified mail); out-of-state defendants may be served under Alabama's long-arm provision, Rule 4.2.

16. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Code of Alabama (Title 6 — Civil Practice; Title 32 — Motor Vehicles and Traffic) — https://alison.legislature.state.al.us/code-of-alabama
• Ala. Code § 6-2-38(l) (two-year limitations) — https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-6/chapter-2/
• Ala. Code § 32-5A-211 (pedestrians' right-of-way in crosswalks) — https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-32/chapter-5a/article-10/section-32-5a-211/
• Ala. Code § 32-5A-212 (crossing at other than crosswalks); § 32-5A-213 (drivers to exercise due care); § 32-5A-210, § 32-5A-33 (pedestrian / traffic-control signals)
• Ala. Code § 6-11-20, § 6-11-21 (punitive damages and cap)
• Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure (Rules 4, 4.2, 8, 9(h), 38)
• Alabama Pattern Jury Instructions — Civil (Motor Vehicle; Pedestrian; Wantonness; Contributory Negligence; Last Clear Chance)

Disclaimer: This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. An attorney licensed in Alabama must review and customize this document before filing. Laws, citations, and court rules change frequently; verify all authorities before use.