Available 24/7 If you need immediate help our attorneys can come to you.
(201) 252-7848
(201) 252-7848 Free Case Review
Middlesex County · Families

When a Truck Crash Takes a Life

If you are reading this, someone you love was killed in a truck crash. We are sorry. This page is for the first weeks: what has to happen, what can wait, and what we take off your hands.

Call Today For A Free Consultation Free Case Review

Garces, Grabler & LeBrocq, P.C. · Edison · New Brunswick · Perth Amboy · AVAILABLE 24/7

Very little has to be done right away. A wrongful death claim in New Jersey can be filed up to two years after the death. The things that cannot wait are quieter: a letter telling the trucking company to keep its records, and a request to the agencies that are holding the file. We send those. You do not need to.

Three things that can wait, three things we do now

These can wait.

  • Calling the trucking company's insurer back. You are not required to give a statement, and nothing is lost by waiting until you have someone to speak for you.
  • Sorting the medical and funeral bills. They are part of the claim, and they will be gathered in time.
  • Deciding whether to bring a lawsuit. The deadline is two years from the death. There is room to grieve first.

These we do now, as soon as you ask us to.

  • Send the trucking company, and any broker or leasing company, a letter requiring it to preserve its records. Driver logs are kept for only six months unless someone says otherwise.
  • Ask the police agencies and the Prosecutor's Office for the crash file, and request the State Police and Turnpike Authority records that are only released on request.
  • Begin the Surrogate's estate paperwork, which has to be in place before a claim can be filed in the family's name.

You are not alone in this county

Between 2019 and 2024, 54 people were killed in 49 Middlesex County crashes involving a large truck (2019–2024, NHTSA FARS). Most were in cars: 38 of the 54. Six were on foot and two were on bicycles. Eight were truck drivers or passengers in the truck. Truck drivers' families read this page too. In May 2025 a truck driver was killed on the Edison Bridge while repairing his disabled rig on the shoulder of Route 9. Involving a truck does not mean the truck caused the crash.

For the county as a whole, counting every kind of vehicle, the State Police recorded 49 traffic deaths in Middlesex in 2025 and 36 in 2026 through September 29 (NJSP fatal crash statistics, unofficial and subject to change).

The estate step: the Middlesex County Surrogate

Why it comes first

A wrongful death claim is brought on behalf of the people who depended on the person who died, but it is filed by a representative of the estate. New Jersey calls that person the administrator ad prosequendum. The Surrogate appoints them.

N.J.S.A. 2A:31-1 et seq.; Middlesex County dossier §8

Where

Middlesex County Surrogate's Office, Surrogate Claribel Cortes, 75 Bayard Street, 1st Floor, P.O. Box 790, New Brunswick, NJ 08901. 732-745-3055.

NJ Courts county surrogates directory (verified September 29, 2026)

What we do

We prepare the application, go with you to Bayard Street or handle it for you, and keep the estate paperwork moving so it is never the reason a claim waits.

Deadlines and what the law allows

Wrongful death

Two years after the death (N.J.S.A. 2A:31-3). There is no deadline where the death resulted from murder, aggravated manslaughter or manslaughter and the defendant was convicted.

N.J.S.A. 2A:31-3

Survival action

The estate's separate claim for what the person went through before death is brought by the executor or administrator (N.J.S.A. 2A:15-3). Its timing is confirmed with counsel for each case.

N.J.S.A. 2A:15-3

Public entity

If a town truck, NJ Transit or the Turnpike Authority is involved, a notice of claim is due within 90 days (N.J.S.A. 59:8-8). This is one of the few early deadlines, and we file it.

N.J.S.A. 59:8-8

Damages

The Wrongful Death Act allows recovery for the pecuniary injuries resulting from the death, together with hospital, medical and funeral expenses (N.J.S.A. 2A:31-5). The recovery goes to the persons who would inherit the decedent's personal property.

N.J.S.A. 2A:31-4, 2A:31-5

Punitive damages

Available only on clear and convincing proof of actual malice or wanton and willful disregard, and capped at the greater of five times compensatory damages or $350,000. The cap does not apply if the defendant was convicted of driving while intoxicated or of manslaughter.

N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.12, 2A:15-5.14

Where the file is

Middlesex County Prosecutor's Fatal Crash Unit

732-745-4328. The unit investigates fatal crashes with the local police department. While it is deciding whether to bring charges, it holds the file.

MCPO

State Police Fatal Accident Investigation Unit

For Turnpike, Parkway, I-287 and NJ 440 crashes. The reconstruction, photos and statements are released through the NJSP portal's $20 serious/fatal request, only with a subpoena or court order, and only after the case is closed.

NJSP crash report portal

Fatal Turnpike or Parkway crash report

The NJTR-1 itself is available only through the New Jersey Turnpike Authority's OPRA form.

NJSP crash report portal

The criminal case

If the driver is charged, the civil claim runs separately. Charges are charges, not findings, and the two-year clock on the family's claim keeps running regardless.

N.J.S.A. 2A:31-3

What is hard about this, and what we carry

The criminal case can hold the crash file for months. The estate must be opened before a suit can be filed. And the trucking company's records expire on their own schedule: six months for driver logs, three months for inspection reports, whatever the family is going through. See evidence deadlines.

Our compassionate attorneys understand the pain of losing a loved one and are committed to guiding you through every step of the legal process. While no legal action can bring someone back, a wrongful death claim can help ease the financial burden and hold negligent parties accountable.

Legal support can provide a clear path forward and allow your family to focus on healing while your rights are protected. Contact us at (201) 252-7848, and let us handle things for you while you take time to recover from your loss.

“Our compassionate attorneys understand the pain of losing a loved one and are committed to guiding you through every step of the legal process.”

Garces, Grabler & LeBrocq, P.C.

If you want to read more

Who investigates

The Fatal Crash Unit, the State Police units and what each one holds.

Read more →

Evidence deadlines

The letters we send in the first days, and why.

Read more →

Where your case is heard

The courthouse on Paterson Street and the Surrogate on Bayard Street.

Read more →

Results

The firm's truck and vehicle case results, with the required disclaimer.

Read more →

Three offices in Middlesex County

Edison

1929 NJ-27, Suite 100
Edison, NJ 08817
(201) 252-7848

On Route 27, near Turnpike Exit 10 and I-287.

New Brunswick

235 Livingston Avenue
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
(201) 252-7848

The county seat. Courthouse at 56 Paterson St and the Surrogate at 75 Bayard St are nearby.

Perth Amboy

502 Amboy Avenue
Perth Amboy, NJ 08861
(201) 252-7848

On the Amboy Avenue corridor, off Route 440 near the Outerbridge Crossing.

Garces, Grabler & LeBrocq, P.C. · Edison · New Brunswick · Perth Amboy · Se habla español. If you need immediate help our attorneys can come to you.

Garces, Grabler & LeBrocq, P.C.

What GGL does for you here

  • Opens the Surrogate process with you, or for you
  • Deals with the Prosecutor's Office and every insurer, so the family is not the one making the calls
  • Sends the preservation letters and records requests in the first days
  • Handles all communication, in English or Spanish, and comes to you if that is easier

Call Today For A Free Consultation

Garces, Grabler & LeBrocq, P.C. will take this from here. Initial consultations are free, and if we take your case, there's no fee unless we win.

(201) 252-7848 Start Your Free Consultation

No Fee Unless GGL Wins