For Referring Attorneys: A Trial Partner Who Has Tried Aviation Cases
Aviation accident cases are among the most technically demanding and financially high-exposure matters in personal injury litigation. They involve federal regulatory frameworks, multiple potentially liable parties — manufacturers, operators, maintenance contractors, air traffic control — and defense teams backed by airline insurers with unlimited resources.
If you have an aviation accident case that exceeds your firm's trial capacity or technical expertise, we are built for exactly this. Haytham Faraj has tried over 80 civil and criminal jury and bench trials across federal, state, and military courts. We prepare every case for trial — not for settlement — and we treat your client relationship as protected and your referral fee as earned.
When an Aviation Accident Destroys a Life, the Fight for Full Compensation Requires a Trial Lawyer
A plane crash is not an ordinary accident. The injuries are catastrophic — traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, severe burns, wrongful death. The defendants are not individuals. They are airlines, aerospace manufacturers, and government contractors with legal departments that have handled hundreds of these cases before you ever picked up the phone.
Insurance adjusters move fast after a crash. Evidence gets preserved — or doesn't — in the first hours and days. Liability is contested across multiple parties, each pointing at the others. And the settlement offers that come early are almost never close to what the case is worth.
You need an attorney who has stood in front of juries in federal court and won. Not one who settles because trial preparation is hard.
Why Aviation Cases Demand a Different Level of Preparation
Most personal injury firms will not take aviation accident cases to trial. The preparation is expensive, the liability theories are complex, and the defense is well-resourced. Firms that lack genuine trial experience settle early — often for a fraction of what the case is worth — because they have no credible threat to deliver a jury verdict.
We operate differently. Aviation accident litigation, like any high-stakes adversarial matter, rewards the side that has done the deeper reconnaissance: identified every liable party, secured every piece of evidence, retained the right experts, and built a case that can withstand a federal courtroom.
That is the standard Haytham Faraj brought from 22 years of Marine Corps service — including infantry officer training and JAG defense work — and it is the standard applied to every aviation case this firm handles.
Aviation Accident Cases We Handle
We represent victims and families in the full range of aviation accident matters. Each case type carries distinct liability theories and requires specific investigative and legal strategy.
Commercial airline accidents
When a major carrier's aircraft crashes or causes serious injury, the liable parties can include the airline, the aircraft manufacturer, maintenance contractors, and the FAA. These cases move quickly in federal court. The airline's legal team is in motion within hours of an incident. Your attorney needs to be in motion too.
Private, charter, or corporate aircraft accidents
Private and charter aviation operates under different regulatory standards than commercial carriers. Liability may rest with the aircraft owner, the charter operator, the pilot, or the manufacturer of a defective component. We investigate each link in the chain.
Military contractor air crashes
Crashes involving military contractors introduce federal sovereign immunity questions, government contractor defense claims, and specialized jurisdictional issues. Haytham Faraj's background in military law and federal courts gives this firm a foundation that civilian personal injury attorneys rarely have.
Small plane and general aviation accidents
General aviation accidents — private pilots, flight schools, recreational aircraft — often involve equipment defects, pilot error, or inadequate maintenance. The damages in these cases can be severe, and the liable parties are sometimes less obvious.
Helicopter accidents
Helicopter crashes occur in commercial, medical transport, tour, and law enforcement contexts. Mechanical failure, pilot error, and improper maintenance are common causes. These cases require aviation experts and meticulous evidence preservation.
Spinal cord and catastrophic injury cases
Across all aviation accident types, the injuries that survive a crash are often the most severe: spinal cord damage, traumatic brain injury, severe burns, and permanent disability. These injuries require full-life damages analysis — lost earning capacity, lifetime medical costs, and pain and suffering calculated over decades.
What Causes an Aviation Accident — and Why It Matters for Your Case
The cause of a crash determines who is liable and what evidence must be preserved. We investigate every potential contributing factor from the first day of engagement.
Equipment failure or malfunction
Defects in aircraft components — whether from design flaw, manufacturing error, or inadequate maintenance — can create strict product liability claims against manufacturers and maintenance contractors. These claims survive regardless of whether the operator was negligent.
Pilot error
When a pilot fails to comply with FAA procedures, responds incorrectly to an emergency, or operates under impaired conditions, the airline or charter operator may bear direct liability. Pilot error cases require FAA records, cockpit voice recorder analysis, and expert reconstruction.
Human error by ground crew or air traffic control
Mechanics, ground crew, and air traffic controllers each play a role in safe flight operations. Errors by any of these parties — missed maintenance items, incorrect clearances, miscommunication — can be the proximate cause of a crash.
Mid-air collisions
Though rare, mid-air collisions raise complex questions of air traffic control negligence and FAA oversight. These cases often involve federal administrative proceedings alongside civil litigation.
Weather-related accidents
When pilots or dispatchers proceed into known dangerous weather conditions, the decision itself may constitute negligence. The question is not whether weather was present — it is whether the decision to fly was reasonable.
The Insurance Company Is Already Working Against You
Within hours of a significant aviation accident, the airline or insurer has assigned a team to manage the claim. That team's job is not to help you. It is to document the incident in the way most favorable to the defense, make early contact with victims and families before they have legal representation, and move toward a settlement that closes the file at the lowest possible number.
Speaking with the airline or its insurance company before you have an attorney is one of the most common mistakes aviation accident victims make. Statements given in the immediate aftermath of a crash — when grief, shock, and physical injury are present — can be used to limit or eliminate your recovery.
Smart families protect themselves by consulting an attorney before making any statements. Here is what that looks like with this firm: a free consultation, no obligation, and an honest assessment of what your case is worth and what it will take to get there.
What It Costs to Hire an Aviation Accident Attorney
For personal injury and wrongful death cases, we work on a contingency fee basis. There are no upfront fees, no hourly charges, and no retainer required. Our fee comes from the recovery — if we do not win, you do not pay.
This means the firm's financial interest is aligned with yours from day one. We only get paid when you get paid, and we only get paid well when you get paid well. That is the right structure for a case where the fight may take years and require significant investment in investigation and experts.
How Long Does an Aviation Accident Case Take?
Aviation accident cases are among the most complex in personal injury law. A straightforward commercial airline case may resolve in 18 to 36 months. Cases involving multiple defendants, disputed liability, or catastrophic injuries requiring full life-care planning can take longer. Federal court timelines differ from state court timelines.
What we can tell you with certainty: the clock starts running from the date of the accident. Aviation accident claims are subject to statutes of limitations that vary depending on the defendant, the jurisdiction, and whether a government entity is involved. In some cases — particularly those involving government contractors or federal agencies — the deadline to file is shorter than you expect.
Do not wait to find out whether your deadline has passed. Contact us for a free consultation and we will tell you exactly where you stand.
Trial-Ready Aviation Accident Representation in Los Angeles and Chicago
The Law Offices of Haytham Faraj represents aviation accident victims and families in Los Angeles, Chicago, and throughout California, Illinois, Michigan, and Washington D.C. We handle commercial airline crashes, private aircraft accidents, helicopter accidents, and military contractor air crashes.
Haytham Faraj has tried over 80 jury and bench trials across federal, state, and military courts. He graduated at the top of his class from the Marine Corps Infantry Officer Course — earning the Wheeler Award for infantry excellence — and served as Senior Defense Counsel at Camp Pendleton before transitioning to civilian trial practice. He is a faculty member at the Gerry Spence Trial Lawyers College, where he teaches trial skills to attorneys nationwide.
When you hire this firm, you work directly with Haytham Faraj. There is no handoff to a junior associate after the initial consultation. The attorney whose credentials you evaluated is the attorney who prepares and tries your case.
Get a Free Case Evaluation — No Fee Unless We Win
If you or a family member were injured or killed in an aviation accident, the decisions you make in the first weeks matter. Evidence must be preserved. Statements must be managed. The right attorney must be in place before the defense has time to shape the narrative.
We offer free consultations for aviation accident victims and families. We work on contingency — no fee unless we win. And we will give you an honest assessment of what your case is worth and what it will take to fight for it.
Need a Consultation? We Are Here to Help You!
Feel free to contact us to schedule a consultation.