Helicopter Crash Litigation, Second Edition is, simply put, an essential volume for any lawyer litigating a helicopter crash case. No other book is devoted exclusively to the representation of plaintiffs in helicopter crash cases. These unique cases require a different approach and techniques, which you will learn from accomplished trial lawyer Gary Robb, who has used these same techniques in a brilliant career as a trial lawyer. This indispensable text travels through the different knowledge and skill sets critical in the successful handling of these cases, ranging from the basic elements of helicopter structure and flight, through the preliminary factual investigation, filing the case, discovery, common defenses, damages and trial. Real helicopter case examples are utilized throughout so as to give context to the suggestions and techniques discussed. The author also recommends safety improvements within the helicopter industry for preventing these accidents in the future.

"Much has happened as affects helicopter crash litigation in the intervening eight years since the publication of the Second Edition of this book in 2015. Highlights of recent developments covered in this Third Edition include: 1. The U.S. Supreme Court clarified the jurisdictional landscape for the better in Ford Motor Co. v. Montana Eighth Judicial District by emphatically rejecting the defendant manufacturer's claim that the litigation must "arise out of" the defendant's contacts with the forum state and re-affirming the stream of commerce doctrine. This unanimous Supreme Court decision is arguably the most significant development in helicopter crash litigation as it substantially minimizes the prospect of culpable manufacturing defendants' securing dismissal on jurisdictional grounds. 2. The "Helicopter Fuel System Safety" Amendment was enacted to require that all helicopters manufactured and delivered for use in the United States after April 5, 2020 must be equipped with crash resistant fuel systems (CRFS). There is no single greater recent safety improvement within the entire helicopter industry than the addition of CRFS to helicopters. 3. The Federal Officer Removal Statute was rejected as a basis for any aircraft manufacturing defendant's removal of a design defect case to federal court. The Ninth Circuit's decision in Riggs v. Airbus Helicopters, Inc. -- which the author briefed and argued - - laid to rest any notion that aircraft manufacturers are "agents of the FAA" as Airbus Helicopters strained to argue. The defendant sought a writ of certiorari before the U.S. Supreme Court which was summarily denied. 4. The global pandemic of 2020-21 engendered the widespread and continued use of virtual or remote depositions in civil discovery and helicopter crash litigation was no exception. 5. The universal social and business usage of electronic media has led to a corresponding explosion in the use of electronically-stored information (ESI) discovery. So-called e-discovery encompasses all manner of electronic communication including e-mails, social media, cell phone data and e- storage, all of which is proving fertile discovery grounds in helicopter crash litigation In addition to addressing in detail the foregoing developments, this Third Edition: Updates and "modernizes" Chapters 1 and 2 dealing with helicopter operation and common failure modes. Updates all of the legal, statutory and regulatory framework applicable to helicopter crash litigation. Continues to expand and (hopefully) upgrade the actual practice techniques and methods recommended for handling helicopter crash litigation including new material on jury selection, opening statement and closing argument. Incorporates material from recent helicopter crash cases handled by the author including the Calabasas, California helicopter crash that caused the deaths of NBA legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna; the Frisco, Colorado crash that resulted in horrific 90% total body burn injuries to flight nurse David Repsher because of the lack of a crash-resistant fuel system (CRFS); and the Kentucky air ambulance helicopter crash that killed three crew members caused by a defectively manufactured main rotor blade. Updates helicopter accident statistics and reviews ongoing efforts for industry safety improvements. As with the First and Second Editions, the greatest outcome of all would be to render the need for helicopter crash litigation much more infrequent if not all together unnecessary"--

This volume discusses the substantive law of aviation liability, the damages recoverable, the technical steps involved in aviation litigation, alternative theories & defenses of liability, instructions for investigating the cause of an aircraft accident, & the presentation of expert witnesses.

This book provides a sound introduction to the considerations that must go into aircraft accident causation analysis and litigation. Written for the aeronautical engineer, reconstruction expert, or legal professional, Aircraft Accident Reconstruction and Litigation translates complex wreckage reconstruction analysis into useful and credible information for application in the search for causes and legal aspects of aircraft accidents. This book also includes the most comprehensive listing of aviation state law and cases ever published, plus a worldwide list of aviation experts and organizations as well as data resources and excerpts from the government manual.

Covers the fatal helicoper accident on the set of the movie "The Twilight Zone" and the subsequent trial.

An attorney and Marine veteran must unravel a deadly conspiracy in this explosive legal thriller by a New York Times–bestselling author. The President rushes across the South Lawn through a pounding thunderstorm to board Marine One and fly to Camp David late at night. Advisors plead with him not to go—but he insists. He has arranged a meeting that only three people in his administration know about. But he never gets there. Marine One crashes into a ravine, killing all aboard . . . The government accuses the French helicopter manufacturer of killing the president. Senate Investigations and Justice Department accusations multiply as Mike Nolan, a trial attorney and a Marine Corps reserve helicopter pilot, is hired to defend the company against a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the First Lady. Now Nolan must find out what really caused Marine One to crash, and why the president threw caution aside to attend a secret meeting. To clear his client, Nolan must win the highest-profile trial of the last hundred years with very little working for him and many working against him—intent on stopping him at any cost . . . Praise for Marine One “Bestseller Huston . . . grabs the reader by the lapels with the opening sentence of the first chapter of this outstanding thriller. . . . This is nonstop legal suspense at its best.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) “This gripping thriller opens with a bang. . . . The author smoothly combines the political-conspiracy and courtroom-drama formats, and he nicely explores the story’s fundamental moral quandary. . . . The book has echoes of Michael Crichton’s Airframe.” —Booklist