Pedestrian Accident Complaint

PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENT COMPLAINT — NEBRASKA

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 (Crosswalk / Right-of-Way / Due Care) (Against Defendant Driver)
6. Count III — Negligent Entrustment / Vicarious Liability (Against Defendant Owner)
7. Damages
8. Prayer for Relief
9. Jury Demand
10. Reservation of Rights and Preservation of Evidence
11. Signature and Service Blocks
12. Verification
13. Certificate of Service
14. Nebraska Practice Notes
15. Sources and References

1. CAPTION

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF [COUNTY] COUNTY, NEBRASKA

CASE NO. CI [____]-[________]

COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES (PEDESTRIAN COLLISION)

JURY TRIAL DEMANDED

COMES NOW Plaintiff, by and through undersigned counsel, and for Plaintiff's causes of action against Defendants, alleges and states as follows:

2. PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE

1. Plaintiff [PLAINTIFF NAME] ("Plaintiff") is an individual who at all material times resided in [COUNTY] County, [Nebraska / State], and who, at the time of the Collision described below, was lawfully on foot as a pedestrian upon the public roadways of this State.

2. Defendant [DRIVER NAME] ("Driver Defendant") is, upon information and belief, an individual residing in [COUNTY / STATE] and may be served with process at [SERVICE ADDRESS] pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-505.01 and the Nebraska rules governing service of process.

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

4. This action arises under Nebraska tort law for personal injuries sustained by a pedestrian in a motor-vehicle collision occurring in [COUNTY] County, Nebraska, on [__/__/____].

5. This Court has subject-matter jurisdiction pursuant to Neb. Const. art. V, § 9 and Neb. Rev. Stat. § 24-302, as the District Court has general original jurisdiction over civil matters and the amount in controversy exceeds any applicable jurisdictional minimum.

6. Venue is proper in [COUNTY] County under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-403.01 because the Collision occurred in said county and/or one or more Defendants resides therein.

3. GENERAL FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS

7. On [__/__/____] at approximately [TIME], Plaintiff was lawfully on foot, [crossing within a marked crosswalk / crossing within an unmarked crosswalk at the intersection / walking along the shoulder / SELECT AND DESCRIBE] on or across [ROADWAY] at or near its intersection with [CROSS STREET / LANDMARK / MILE MARKER], in [CITY], Nebraska (the "Collision").

8. 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 [northbound / southbound / etc.] on [ROADWAY].

9. Traffic, lighting, and weather conditions were [describe — e.g., clear, dry, daylight; or dusk with the pedestrian in a marked, signed crosswalk], and Plaintiff was plainly visible to any driver keeping a proper lookout.

10. The Collision occurred when Driver Defendant [SELECT / DESCRIBE THE MANNER OF COLLISION — e.g., failed to yield to and struck Plaintiff while Plaintiff was crossing within 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 for conditions; was distracted by a cell phone or other device; overtook and passed another vehicle that had stopped to allow Plaintiff to cross].

11. Driver Defendant failed to see what was plainly there to be seen, failed to bring the vehicle to a complete stop to yield to Plaintiff as Nebraska law requires, and/or failed to exercise the due care required to avoid colliding with a pedestrian.

12. At all material times, Plaintiff was crossing or proceeding with the right-of-way and in a lawful, prudent, and careful manner, and did not suddenly leave a curb or place of safety into the path of a vehicle so close that it was impossible for the driver to stop.

13. As a direct and proximate result of the Collision, Plaintiff — an unprotected and vulnerable road user with none of the structural protection, restraint systems, or crumple zones of a motor-vehicle occupant — was struck with great force and sustained severe, painful, catastrophic, and permanent bodily injuries, including but not limited to [LIST INJURIES — e.g., traumatic brain injury, orthopedic and pelvic fractures, spinal injury, internal organ injury, degloving and road rash, and disfiguring scarring].

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

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

4. COUNT I — NEGLIGENCE (Against Defendant Driver)

16. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 15 as if fully set forth herein.

17. Driver Defendant owed Plaintiff, a pedestrian lawfully using the roadway, a duty to exercise reasonable care in the operation of a motor vehicle, to obey the Nebraska rules of the road, to keep a proper lookout for pedestrians, to yield the right-of-way where required, and to refrain from conduct endangering others.

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

• Failing to keep a proper and careful lookout for Plaintiff, a plainly visible pedestrian;
• Failing to yield the right-of-way to Plaintiff and to bring the vehicle to a complete stop as required for a pedestrian in a crosswalk;
• Failing to exercise due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian and to give a warning where necessary;
• Turning across or into the path of Plaintiff when it was unsafe to do so;
• Overtaking and passing a vehicle stopped to allow Plaintiff to cross;
• Operating the vehicle at an excessive or unsafe speed for conditions;
• Driving while distracted or inattentive; and
• Failing to maintain proper control of the vehicle so as to avoid striking Plaintiff.

19. 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.

20. As a direct and proximate result, Plaintiff has sustained the damages described in Section 7 below.

5. COUNT II — NEGLIGENCE PER SE (CROSSWALK / RIGHT-OF-WAY / DUE CARE) (Against Defendant Driver)

21. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 20 as if fully set forth herein.

22. The Nebraska 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:

• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,153 — when traffic control signals are not in place or not in operation, the driver of a vehicle shall yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing the roadway within a crosswalk who is in the driver's lane or the lane immediately adjacent thereto, by bringing the vehicle to a complete stop; and whenever a vehicle is stopped at a marked or unmarked crosswalk to permit a pedestrian to cross, the driver of any other vehicle approaching from the rear shall not overtake and pass the stopped vehicle;
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,109 — every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian, shall give warning by sounding the horn when necessary, and shall exercise proper precaution upon observing any child or any confused or incapacitated person;
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,140 — a driver shall not follow another vehicle more closely than is reasonable and prudent; and
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,185 — the duty to operate at a reasonable and prudent speed for conditions.

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

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

6. COUNT III — NEGLIGENT ENTRUSTMENT / VICARIOUS LIABILITY (Against Defendant Owner)

25. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 24 as if fully set forth herein.

26. 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.

27. 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 course and scope of that agency or employment, rendering Owner Defendant vicariously liable under the doctrine of respondeat superior.

28. Owner Defendant's negligent entrustment and/or vicarious liability was a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

7. DAMAGES

29. 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, and long-term 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 clothing, mobility aids, electronics, and personal effects.

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

8. PRAYER FOR RELIEF

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

• A. Compensatory damages in a fair and reasonable amount to be determined by the trier of fact;
• B. Pre-judgment and post-judgment interest as allowed by law;
• C. Costs of this action; and
• D. Such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.

9. JURY DEMAND

Pursuant to Neb. Const. art. I, § 6 and Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-1104, Plaintiff demands trial by jury on all issues so triable as a matter of right.

10. RESERVATION OF RIGHTS AND PRESERVATION OF EVIDENCE

Plaintiff reserves the right to amend this Complaint to add or substitute parties, to assert additional claims (including any claim against an uninsured/underinsured-motorist carrier), and to conform the pleadings to the evidence as discovery proceeds.

Plaintiff places Defendants on notice to preserve all evidence relating to the Collision, including but not limited to the vehicle, event-data-recorder ("black box") and telematics data, photographs, video (including surveillance, dashcam, and traffic-camera footage), electronic and cell-phone records, maintenance logs, and insurance communications. Failure to preserve such evidence may result in sanctions, adverse-inference instructions, or other remedies.

11. SIGNATURE AND SERVICE BLOCKS

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

[LAW FIRM NAME]

By: /s/ [________________________________]

[ATTORNEY NAME], Neb. Bar No. [________]

Attorney for Plaintiff

[STREET ADDRESS]

[CITY, STATE ZIP]

Telephone: [NUMBER]

Email: [EMAIL]

12. VERIFICATION

STATE OF NEBRASKA

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

Subscribed and sworn to before me this [____] day of [_______________], 20[____].

[________________________________]

Notary Public

My Commission Expires: [_______________]

13. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on this the [____] day of [_______________], 20[____], a true and correct copy of the foregoing COMPLAINT was served upon the following by [summons and service of process under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-505.01 / the Court's electronic filing system]:

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

/s/ [________________________________]

[ATTORNEY NAME]

14. NEBRASKA PRACTICE NOTES

• Statute of limitations. Actions for personal injury (an injury to the rights of the plaintiff, not arising on contract) must be commenced within four years of accrual. Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-207. Wrongful-death actions carry a separate two-year period (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 30-810). Claims against political subdivisions or the State trigger separate notice and limitation rules under the Political Subdivisions Tort Claims Act and State Tort Claims Act.
• MODIFIED COMPARATIVE NEGLIGENCE — 50% BAR (equal-or-greater). Under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-21,185.09, the plaintiff's contributory negligence reduces recovery proportionately but completely bars recovery if the plaintiff's negligence is equal to or greater than the total negligence of all persons against whom recovery is sought. A 50/50 allocation bars the plaintiff. The jury must be instructed on the effect of its allocation. In pedestrian cases the central battleground is the pedestrian's own statutory duties (see below).
• Pedestrian vs. driver duties. The driver's principal duties are to yield and bring the vehicle to a complete stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk (§ 60-6,153) and to exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian (§ 60-6,109). The pedestrian's principal duties are not to suddenly leave a curb or place of safety into the path of a vehicle too close to stop (§ 60-6,153(2)), to yield when crossing outside a marked or unmarked crosswalk at an intersection (§ 60-6,154), and to use a sidewalk where provided (§ 60-6,156). Frame the right-of-way and visibility facts to maximize the driver's share and minimize the pedestrian's. Note the Nebraska authority that a § 60-6,154 violation is not determinative of the degree of a pedestrian's negligence (Hennings v. Schufeldt), and that causation can defeat a claim where a darting pedestrian could not have been avoided (Fidler v. Koster) — verify current case law.
• Fault state; no no-fault/PIP. Nebraska applies traditional tort liability; there is no automobile no-fault regime and no injury threshold. A struck pedestrian's medical bills are typically paid by the pedestrian's own health insurance and/or med-pay, with the tort claim pursued against the at-fault driver/owner.
• No punitive damages. Nebraska does not allow punitive damages; the Nebraska Constitution directs penalties to the school fund. Do not plead punitive damages. Aggravating conduct (e.g., DUI, hit-and-run) is relevant to liability and fault allocation only.
• UM/UIM and hit-and-run. Nebraska is a fault state. Pedestrians struck by minimally insured, uninsured, or hit-and-run drivers may have recourse to their own (or a resident relative's) uninsured/underinsured-motorist coverage; UM/UIM commonly responds to a pedestrian struck by a covered vehicle, and a "phantom" or unidentified hit-and-run driver is generally treated as an uninsured motorist (subject to corroboration and policy/notice conditions). Promptly identify and notify all potentially applicable policies, preserve UM/UIM claims, and comply with consent-to-settle and subrogation procedures before resolving the liability claim. Verify current coverage and notice requirements.
• Court and procedure. The Nebraska District Court is the court of general original jurisdiction for personal-injury actions; the County Court has concurrent civil jurisdiction subject to a statutory amount limit (verify the current threshold). Pleadings follow Nebraska's notice-pleading rules; service is governed by Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-505.01 et seq. Confirm county venue, the correct judicial district, and any local rules and e-filing requirements.

15. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Revised Statutes of Nebraska (Chapter 25 — Courts; Civil Procedure; Chapter 60 — Motor Vehicles) — https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/browse-chapters.php
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-207 (four-year limitations) — https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=25-207
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-21,185.09 (comparative negligence) — https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=25-21,185.09
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,153 (pedestrians' right-of-way in crosswalk) — https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=60-6,153
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,154 (crossing at other than crosswalks; yield) — https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=60-6,154
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,109 (driver's duty of due care to avoid colliding with pedestrian) — https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=60-6,109
• Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-6,156 (pedestrians on roadways; sidewalks)
• Nebraska Court Rules of Pleading in Civil Actions; service of process (§ 25-505.01)
• Nebraska Jury Instructions — Civil (Negligence; Comparative Negligence allocation; Pedestrian Right-of-Way)

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