Claims against governmental entities are governed by statute, and require special
expertise. Cities, counties and states enjoy many defenses provided as a matter
of law. These include the defect being "open and obvious", or perhaps a "trivial
defect", that is one so insignificant that as a matter of law the government
cannot be held responsible. Another common defense is that the rider acted in such
a way that it was not foreseeable that an accident would occur, even if a
defect exists. Nonetheless, it is important to analyze the accident carefully to
determine whether a roadway defect caused or contributed to the accident.
Examples of governmental entity cases the lawyers at Magaña, Cathcart & McCarthy
have experience in are: - Construction on or near the roadway which funnels cyclists from the safe haven of a shoulder or bike lane into the throng of motorized traffic.
- Insidious defects in the road such as large cracks, invisible bumps, or other hazards which are not easily discernable to a reasonably prudent cyclist.
- Roadway designs which cause a dangerous traffic situation.
- Improper or inadequate roadway markings.
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