Clarksville Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

A pedestrian case in Montgomery County usually turns on a question that seems simple and is not: who had the right to be where, and what proof exists of what the driver was doing in the seconds before impact? Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette is a Tennessee personal injury firm that represents people hurt by negligent drivers and families who have lost someone, and we serve injured pedestrians in Clarksville, Montgomery County, and communities across Tennessee. If you are looking for a Clarksville pedestrian accident lawyer, the starting point is understanding how these claims are built, because a person on foot carries almost no protection and the injuries tend to be severe.

Clarksville mixes the things that put walkers at risk: heavy commuter traffic, multi-lane commercial corridors with long gaps between crosswalks, a college population crossing busy streets near campus, and soldiers and families moving on and off the post at all hours. Evening and early morning crashes are especially hard cases, because poor lighting, dark clothing, and driver impairment all become contested facts. Insurance carriers know this, and they often open by suggesting the pedestrian was crossing in the wrong place or was not visible. How that argument is answered in the first weeks often shapes the whole claim.

Why Choose Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette for a Pedestrian Injury Claim

Bruce D. Fox, co-founder of the firm, has tried more than 125 jury trials in state and federal court, and that courtroom record matters in pedestrian cases because many of them do not resolve until an insurer believes a jury will actually hear the evidence. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, a past president of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, and received that association’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2025 along with its Paladin Award in 2011.

Two of our partners spent the early part of their careers defending insurance companies, trucking companies, and businesses before moving to the plaintiff’s side. In a pedestrian case, that means we know how adjusters weigh a crosswalk dispute, how defense lawyers try to assign fault to the person on foot, and which records change the evaluation. Partner Brad C. Burnette holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, serves on the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association Board of Governors, and is a graduate of the Keenan Trial Institute. Partner John Willis also serves on that Board of Governors and is a past president of the Anderson County Bar Association. Trial attorney Michael C. Beehan is fluent in Spanish and represents Spanish-speaking clients in their own language.

The firm has recovered over $100 million for clients, with more than 170 years of combined attorney experience. Results relevant to this kind of case include $1.9 million after a mother was killed and her daughter seriously injured by a driver who failed to yield on Dolly Parton Parkway in Sevier County, and $3.4 million for the family of a man killed in a Morgan County rear-end collision. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Consultations are free, and you pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation. If your injuries make travel hard, we can meet you at home or in the hospital.

What to Do After Being Hit on Foot in Clarksville

Get medical care first and let the records tell the story. Pedestrian injuries often involve head trauma, hip and pelvic fractures, and spinal damage that do not announce themselves at the scene. Adrenaline masks pain, and an insurer will later point to any gap between the crash and the first treatment. Go to the emergency department even if you walked away, and follow through with every referral.

Make sure police respond and a crash report is filed with the responding agency, which will be either Clarksville Police or the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office depending on where the crash happened. Ask for the report number. If you can, photograph the roadway, the crosswalk markings or their absence, signal conditions, lighting, and any skid marks, and get names and numbers for witnesses. Look for cameras: businesses, traffic cameras, and doorbell systems overwrite footage quickly, and a preservation request sent early can be the difference between having video and arguing from memory.

Do not give a recorded statement to the driver’s insurer, and be careful with casual remarks like “I’m fine” or “I didn’t see the car.” Those get quoted back in fault arguments. The deadline is the part people underestimate. Tennessee generally gives you one year from the date of the injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. That period is extended to two years if criminal charges are brought against the driver, the prosecution begins within the first year, and you sue the person who was prosecuted. A claim for property damage, such as a damaged phone or bicycle, has a three-year deadline. If the injured person is a minor, the clock is paused until age 18, and then the one-year period starts. Claims against a city or county entity fall under the Governmental Tort Liability Act, which requires suit within 12 months and caps damages at $300,000 per person and $700,000 per occurrence.

Civil suits for injuries in Montgomery County are filed in the Circuit Court for the judicial district that includes Montgomery and Robertson counties. Most pedestrian claims settle before trial, but the filing and the discovery that follows are what give an insurer a reason to take the evidence seriously. Delay works against you: witnesses move, video disappears, and a one-year deadline leaves little room.

How Fault Is Decided When a Pedestrian Is Struck

Tennessee uses modified comparative fault. A jury or the parties assign percentages of responsibility, and your recovery is reduced by your share. If you are found 50 percent or more at fault, you recover nothing. That is why insurers press hard on arguments such as mid-block crossing, dark clothing, or looking at a phone. Tennessee also allocates fault among each party, including nonparties, rather than making one defendant answer for everyone’s share, so a defense lawyer may try to point at a second driver, a property owner, or a government entity to shrink the number.

Driver conduct is the other half of the picture. Tennessee’s Hands Free law makes it a crime to hold a phone or device while driving, to read or send text-based messages, to watch video, or to reach for a device out of a seated and belted position. Phone records and vehicle data can show whether a driver was breaking that law at the moment of impact. Impairment matters even more. A driver over the 0.08 percent per se alcohol limit, or impaired by drugs, changes both the fault picture and the available damages.

Damages, Caps, and the Insurance Problem

Economic damages, meaning medical bills, lost income, and future care, are not capped in Tennessee. Noneconomic damages for pain, disability, and loss of enjoyment of life are generally limited to $750,000, rising to $1 million for a defined catastrophic loss, such as a spinal cord injury causing paraplegia or quadriplegia, amputation of both hands, both feet, or one of each, severe burns, or the wrongful death of a parent of minor children. The jury is not told about the cap; the court applies it afterward. The cap does not apply where the defendant intentionally caused the injury, was intoxicated, destroyed evidence, or was convicted of a related felony. Punitive damages, when warranted, are limited to the greater of two times compensatory damages or $500,000.

Insurance is where many pedestrian cases get squeezed. Tennessee’s minimum liability coverage is $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, which can be exhausted quickly by a single hospital admission. That makes your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage a real source of recovery, and it is why we look at every policy that might apply, including those covering an employer if the driver was working.

Types of Pedestrian Cases We Handle

• Crosswalk and Intersection Collisions: Drivers who fail to yield on a walk signal, run a red light, or turn into a person lawfully crossing. Wide Clarksville arterials with turn lanes create blind spots that an investigation of signal timing and sight lines can sort out.
• Hit-and-Run Crashes: When the driver flees, recovery may depend on locating the vehicle through video and witnesses, or on your own uninsured motorist coverage. Our firm has recovered $2.3 million for a Knox County motorcyclist who lost his leg after a driver fled the scene.
• Impaired and Distracted Drivers: Alcohol, drugs, and phone use are common in nighttime crashes. Proof of impairment can lift the damage cap and support punitive damages.
• Parking Lot and Driveway Strikes: Backing vehicles at shopping centers and apartment complexes hit people who are lawfully on foot, and property owners may share responsibility for poor lighting or layout.
• Commercial and Delivery Vehicle Impacts: Trucks, delivery vans, and company cars bring employer liability, driver logs, and larger insurance policies.
• Wrongful Death of a Pedestrian: The claim belongs to the surviving spouse, then the children or next of kin, or the personal representative, and the one-year clock runs from the date of the crash, not the date of death.
• Roadside and Work Zone Incidents: Pedestrians struck near construction areas or disabled vehicles, where contractors and traffic-control plans come into play.

Serving Pedestrian Injury Clients in Clarksville and Montgomery County

We represent injured pedestrians in Clarksville and throughout Montgomery County, from the neighborhoods near downtown and the riverfront through the commercial areas along Wilma Rudolph Boulevard, Madison Street, and Fort Campbell Boulevard, and into Sango, Woodlawn, and the communities that surround the city. Our reach also takes in neighboring Robertson County and Stewart County, and we work with families across Middle Tennessee, including Nashville, as well as East Tennessee communities such as Knoxville, Clinton, Maryville, Sevierville, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and LaFollette. We also represent clients in Knox, Anderson, Blount, Sevier, Campbell, Roane, Claiborne, Morgan, Jefferson, and Monroe counties, and visitors and residents from Johnson City to Memphis. Hablamos español.

Frequently Asked Questions About Clarksville Pedestrian Accidents

How long do I have to file a pedestrian injury lawsuit in Tennessee?

Generally one year from the date you were hurt. If the driver is criminally charged within that year and you sue the person prosecuted, the period extends to two years. Property damage claims have three years, and claims against government entities must be filed within 12 months.

What if I was crossing outside a crosswalk?

It does not end your claim. Tennessee’s comparative fault rule lets you recover as long as you are less than 50 percent at fault, with your award reduced by your percentage. Drivers still owe reasonable care to people on the road, and the evidence on speed, attention, and visibility often matters more than the crossing location.

Can I recover if the driver left the scene?

Often yes. Investigation may identify the vehicle through video, witnesses, or parts left at the scene. If the driver is never found, your own uninsured motorist coverage may apply, which is why we review your policy early.

What compensation is available?

Medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, future care costs, and noneconomic damages such as pain and diminished quality of life. Economic damages are uncapped, while noneconomic damages are generally limited to $750,000, or $1 million for a catastrophic loss.

What does a wrongful death claim for a pedestrian involve?

The right to sue passes to the surviving spouse, then children or next of kin, or the personal representative. Recoverable losses include lost income, medical and funeral expenses, and the value of the life taken. The one-year deadline starts on the date of the crash.

The driver’s insurance only has minimum limits. Now what?

Minimum coverage is $25,000 per person for bodily injury, which rarely covers serious injuries. We look at your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, any employer policy if the driver was working, and other responsible parties.

Will my own health insurance pay while the claim is pending?

Usually, and you should use it so treatment is not delayed. Your health plan may have a right to be repaid from a recovery, so we account for that when evaluating a settlement.

Does the driver’s phone use matter to my case?

Yes. Holding a device or texting while driving violates Tennessee’s Hands Free law. Phone records and vehicle data can show distraction, which strengthens the fault case against the driver.

What if the driver was drunk?

Intoxication can lift the cap on noneconomic damages and support punitive damages. A criminal DUI prosecution can also extend your filing deadline to two years, though you should not rely on that without speaking to a lawyer.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer if my injuries seem minor?

Often, yes. Pedestrian injuries can worsen over days and weeks, and an early settlement closes the claim permanently. With a one-year deadline and fault arguments aimed at the injured person, having someone review the evidence early costs you nothing, since you pay no fee unless we recover.

Can I meet with you if I am still in the hospital?

Yes. We can meet clients at home or in the hospital when injuries make travel difficult.

Talk With a Clarksville Pedestrian Accident Attorney Today

If a driver hit you or someone you love on a Clarksville street, a Clarksville pedestrian accident attorney from Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette can review what happened, explain how Tennessee’s one-year deadline and comparative fault rules apply, and tell you honestly what the claim may be worth. The consultation is free, and there are no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you. Call us to talk through your situation.