The American Trucking Research Institute has published a new analysis of the growing number and scope of nuclear verdicts in truck accident litigation. The report defines a nuclear verdict as any court decision, jury verdict, or settlement of $10 million or more.

The report states that nuclear verdicts increased in frequency and median size from 2013 to 2022 across all fields of tort litigation (not just trucking) according to a report by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform (ILR). The median nuclear verdict in 2022, $36 million, was approximately 50 percent higher than the median nuclear verdict in 2013. During the same timeframe, the share of verdicts exceeding $50 million rose by 6.4 percentage points.

The ATRI report asserted that motor vehicle accidents in general were the second most common type of case to result in a nuclear verdict from 2010 to 2019 according to the ILR, and that over the next decade, commercial vehicle litigation is expected to contribute 15 percent to the inflation of food prices. The ILR estimates that every $1 million increase in commercial vehicle tort costs is associated with a $2 million reduction in U.S. gross domestic product.

ATRI noted the social factors that contribute to litigation in excess of general inflation often are termed “social inflation.” These include an increasingly litigious society, third-party litigation funding, anti-corporate attitudes, and manipulative plaintiff strategies such as “reptile theory” tactics.

Increased litigiousness leads to higher litigation expenses by causing more cases to go to trial instead of settling. Rising litigation expenses and awards have been a primary contributor to the persistent unprofitability of the commercial auto insurance segment over the past decade, and insurers pass these costs on to all motor carriers in the form of higher premiums.

Some additional findings:

• In federal courts, the median trial verdict award for trucking cases at or exceeding $1 million was $2,517,500. In state courts, the median trial verdict award for such cases at or exceeding $1 million was $3,600,000.
• Since 2014, the estimated number of filed cases has increased at an average rate of 3.7 percent per year,
• The median award amount for cases of $1 million or more for each year from 2011 to 2023 increased at an average rate of $59,122 per year.