Aviation Trial Attorneys

All our attorneys are pilots.

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35+Years in the courtroom
45+Years in the cockpit
15,000+Combined flight hours

About Aviation Law Group

Who We Represent

Aviation Law Group represents families and survivors in aircraft accident, serious injury, and wrongful death cases across the United States, from offices in Seattle, Austin, Honolulu, and Palm Beach, Florida.

Pilots and Mechanics

Every ALG attorney is a certified private or commercial airline pilot; two are also certified aircraft mechanics. In cases that turn on weather, aircraft systems, maintenance, and what happened in the cockpit, that experience is the difference.

Nationwide Reach

Aviation cases rarely stay in one state. With attorneys licensed in eight states, and working with local counsel in the rest, we take on airlines, charter and corporate jet operators, manufacturers, and maintenance providers in all 50 states.

Families deserve answers from people who know flying, maintenance, and the courtroom.

Bob Hedrick

Bob Hedrick

Attorney 30+ years
Commercial Pilot
A&P Aviation Mechanic
20+ Years Professor of Aviation Accident Law

Casey DuBose

Casey DuBose

Attorney 10+ years
Commercial Pilot
Flight Instructor
Fluent Mandarin Chinese
Professor of Aviation and Space Law 

 

Kerry Kovarik

Kerry Kovarik

Attorney 16+ years
Commercial Pilot
Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic
Former FAA Authorized Inspector 

Chris Rusing

Chris Rusing

Attorney 20+ years
Airline Pilot & Instructor
Airbus 320 Series Captain
Former Airline Chief Pilot

 

Brendan Keegan

Brendan Keegan

Pilot 15+ years
Attorney 3+ years
Airline Pilot & Instructor
Boeing 737/757 First Officer

WHAT WE DO

Aviation Accident Law

 

 

General Aviation Accidents

General aviation involves private and recreational flight activity. It includes non-airline flights such as scenic flights, flight training, private flights, recreational flights, helicopter flights and operations, seaplanes, flying clubs, business flights, gliders, and a lot of other aerial activity. All of Aviation Law Group attorneys have extensive experience in many aspects of general aviation, from flying and instructing, to operations and aircraft maintenance. Since 1988, our lawyers have handled accidents involving nearly all aspects of general aviation activity for airplanes, helicopters, and fixed base operators.

Helicopter Accidents

Helicopter accidents often involve issues of external load operations such as longline or external load (link to external load), heli-lifting, heli-logging, and fire-fighting support.

Major Airline Accidents

ALG attorneys have represented numerous families who lost loved ones in major airline disasters, such as the January 31, 2000, Alaska Flight 261 accident near Point Hueneme, California, and the February 25, 2009, Turkish Airline Flight TK 1951 accident in Amsterdam. We have extensive experience with international airline liability law, including the Montreal Convention and its predecessor the Warsaw Convention, where issues of liability, jurisdiction, applicable law, and recoverable damages are complex. ALG attorneys have given many talks and written numerous articles in this specialized field of law. Mr. Hedrick also teaches the Montreal Convention as part of his Aviation Accident Law course at Seattle University School of Law.

International Coverage and Regional Expertise

Washington

Unfortunately, aircraft accidents occur nearly weekly throughout Washington.  In addition, many aircraft accidents outside of Washington involve Washington manufacturers or operators. 

Alaska

Because of the extent of aviation activity throughout the 49th and largest state in the U.S., Robert Hedrick obtained his attorney license in Alaska nearly 20 years ago in 2002 and is an active member of the Alaska Bar Association.

Hawaii

Aviation activity is unique in the Hawaiian archipelago because of its location and geographical topography.

Recent Aviation Law News

Tragic Learjet 60 Crash in Palm Beach County: What We Know So Far and the Questions Investigators Must Answer

Tragic Learjet 60 Crash in Palm Beach County: What We Know So Far and the Questions Investigators Must Answer

Rapid descents of the type shown by the flight tracking information are indicative of a major problem encountered by the pilots of N722BD. Of particular importance will be determining whether the aircraft experienced a mechanical failure, an aerodynamic upset, or another event that resulted in its rapid descent, and particularly, what factor the reported icing encounter by the aircraft in the minutes before the rapid descent may have played in the accident.

read more

Representative Cases

Airplane Mis-fueling Accident

A lineman working for local aircraft fueling operation pumped Jet-A aircraft fuel into the tanks of a reciprocating single-engine airplane, which required 100 octane low lead fuel.

Defective Carburetor Accident

In February 2013, following a 3-week trial, a Washington jury returned a verdict for $8.9 million in favor of our client against an aircraft engine manufacturer.

Regional Fly-In Accident

After a 3-week jury trial, Robert Hedrick obtained a $10.5 million verdict against a regional fly-in host and its national counterpart. The case involved failure to arrange for adequate fire and emergency response at the event, which caused a pilot to die needlessly. 

Aircraft Design Defect

Last year, after a two-week trial, a 12-person jury returned a verdict in favor of the clients of Aviation Law Group, finding that an aircraft’s flight control system was defectively designed, which caused the deaths of a pilot and his passenger.

World HQ

Seattle

140 Lakeside Ave, A-340
Seattle, WA 98122
Directions →

Hawaii

Honolulu

1003 Bishop St, Suite 2700
Honolulu, HI 96813
Directions →

South Florida

Jupiter

3 Saddleback Road
Jupiter, FL 33469
Directions →

Texas

Austin

1005 Congress Avenue, Suite 925
Austin, TX 78701
Directions →

Firm Contact Information

If you or a loved one has been the victim of an aviation-related accident, please reach out to us. We are always willing to provide a free initial evaluation and meeting.

info@aviationlawgroup.com

(206) 464-1166

Aviation Law Group, 140 Lakeside Ave, A-340, Seattle, WA 98122

Office Hours: M-F (6am-7pm)

Free, Confidential Case Evaluation