The American Association for Justice is an association of lawyers that works to promote justice and fairness in the justice system. The AAJ serves as a platform for lawyers to donate time to their communities in an effort to make those communities safer and better informed about important issues.

The AAJ has recently started a Safe Driving Policy initiative to help prevent avoidable accidents. The initiative encourages members of the AAJ to adopt these policies at their own firms and to make the information provided available to the public at large. The Safe Driving Policy offers recommendations to help you become a safer driver, such as:

  • Driving without texting
  • Driving without using any hand-held device of any kind
  • Reducing, with the goal of eliminating, all/most cell phone use, including hands-free or Bluetooth
  • Letting calls go to voicemail when driving and safely pulling over to retrieve messages and to make calls
  • Ending phone calls/texting upon learning that the recipient is driving
  • Reducing or eliminating other distractions while driving, including eating, reading, programming a GPS while moving, personal grooming and other activities that take the mind and eyes off the task of driving
  • Being a good role model for co-workers, friends and family by driving ina safe, distraction-free manner

Additionally, the policy aims to encourage safety and awareness when others are driving. It offers tips for keeping other drivers safe by:

  • Waiting until they have stopped driving before trying to contact them
  • Being patient and not expecting immediate responses to calls or texts, recognizing that they may be driving
  • Working together to implement a plan for acceptable response time when they will be driving
  • As a passenger, sharing responsibility with a driver for arriving safely and offering safe solutions for when the driver attempts to drive distracted

For more information about how distracted driving affects everyone on the road, please visit www.EndDD.org. It’s our hope that with these tips in mind, members of our community can avoid a best a court visit, and at worst a life-altering accident. If a distracted driver has injured you or a loved one, please contact us for a free consultation.