Attorney Profiles

Brett M. Hager is a civil litigation attorney who joined Sanders & Parks in 1999. He is a Shareholder and Director in the firm, and practices in the areas of personal injury and wrongful death, aviation law (including aircraft crashes), product liability, insurance defense, patent-infringement litigation, construction litigation (including mechanic's liens), commercial litigation, and small business formation and representation. Mr. Hager has defended multi-million dollar claims, and has also recovered millions of dollars on behalf of his clients in various jurisdictions. Mr. Hager accepts cases on both hourly and contingency fee arrangements.

Mr. Hager is a seasoned litigator, well-versed in complex litigation. He is a passionate advocate with a relaxed and personal style that juries find appealing, and he can break down even the most sophisticated issues into easily-understandable messages.

AUTO DEFECTS, TIRE DEFECTS, AND VEHICULAR ACCIDENTS

Mr. Hager handles traumatic injury and wrongful death cases arising out of:

• all multiple-vehicle and single-vehicle accidents
• bus accidents
• trucking accidents
• rollovers (including SUVs, 15-passenger vans, mini vans, pick-ups and other vehicles)
• tire defects and tread separations (such as missing or inadequate gum strips, nylon cap, and improper cure, and involving Cooper Tire, Continental Tire, General Tire, Michelin Tire, Bridgestone/Firestone Tire, Goodyear Tire, Uniroyal Tire, Dunlop Tire, Kelly Springfield, Yokohama, Kumho Tire, Westlake, Compass, YKS, Chinese tire manufacturers, and other tire manufacturers, retailers, sellers and installers)
• roof crush
• seatbelt failure
• passenger and driver ejections
• gas tank explosions and fires
• other automotive defects (including Toyota, Lexus, BMW, Mercedes Benz, Daimler Chrysler, Hyundai, Kia, Suzuki, Lincoln, Ford, Mazda, GM, Chevrolet, and Cadillac)
• motorcycle and ATV accidents, including Yamaha Rhino cases

AVIATION LAW

Mr. Hager is also a licensed private pilot with extensive aviation experience. Being involved in aviation carries some extraordinary risks and demands, and Mr. Hager's experience as a pilot helps him understand and navigate these often turbulent waters. For example, owning and maintaining an airplane is difficult, time consuming and expensive. Sometimes an aircraft is not maintained or repaired correctly, with the result being an improper repair bill, or even a crash. On the other hand, operating an FBO or repair station has its own challenges, from business and regulatory considerations to getting paid. For a pilot, simply maintaining currency and proper ratings can be a challenge. On the far end of the spectrum, aviation accidents are typically catastrophic, and place significant strains, both personally and financially, on all concerned.

Mr. Hager handles virtually all manner of aviation cases, from repair disputes between aircraft owners and FBOs, up to personal injury and wrongful death cases arising out of aviation accidents. He has the technical understanding necessary to evaluate and prosecute a wide variety of disputes, and to staff them with the best experts in their respective fields, whether the case involves an engine or structural failure, design defect, maintenance failure, failure to comply with Airworthiness Directives, or simple piloting error. Exemplary cases have involved mid-air collisions, powerline strikes, in-flight wing separation, engine failure within two hours of overhaul, municipal regulations with adverse impacts on an airport manager, damage done to an airplane's avionics and communications during an annual inspection, corrosion to a business jet in connection with stripping and painting techniques, and related matters. Mr. Hager also has the experience and know-how to evaluate all potential sources of recovery or indemnity, including employer liability for business flights, insurance, worker's compensation, governmental liability (including as to air traffic control negligence), and other sources.

Whether the case involves a Beechcraft, Cessna, Piper, Diamond, Cirrus, Lancair, Dessault, Hawker, Learjet, Bell, Taylorcraft, Eurocopter, Sikorsky, Robinson, Fairchild, or even a homebuilt or other experimental aircraft, and whether it is a single engine, twin engine, piston, jet, land, seaplane, or helicopter, Mr. Hager would like to offer his assistance in evaluating your case.

INSURANCE DEFENSE, COMMERCIAL LITIGATION, CONSTRUCTION LAW, SMALL-BUSINESS, AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY REPRESENTATION

Mr. Hager is also a seasoned commercial litigation and insurance defense attorney. His skill set ranges from construction law (including construction defect, contract disputes, indemnity issues, and mechanic's liens) to high-tech patent infringement litigation, business formation and consultation to "outside" general counsel services, and things in between. Mr. Hager is a strong believer that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," especially in commercial settings. Often times, costly litigation can be avoided by utilizing counsel at the earliest signs of a dispute brewing, and this can save the parties significant attorneys' fees and profound aggravation by avoiding litigation. However, if litigation is or becomes necessary, Mr. Hager will work diligently and efficiently to bring your commercial or intellectual dispute to an efficient and satisfactory resolution.

Regarding insurance defense, Mr. Hager handles a variety of insurance defense cases, including premises liability, construction site injuries, advertising injuries, D&O liability, and other cases.

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND, PERSONAL INTERESTS, AND CHARITY WORK

Mr. Hager was admitted to the Arizona Bar in 1998 and the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona in 1999, and is a member of the Maricopa County Bar Association. He graduated from Tulane Law School, magna cum laude, in 1997, was a Notes and Comments Editor of the Tulane Law Review, a member of the Order of the Coif and Phi Delta Phi, and published articles in both the Tulane Law Review and Tulane Environmental Law Journal. After law school Mr. Hager served a clerkship with the Honorable Nauman Scott in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana where he wrote a number of published opinions. Prior to joining Sanders & Parks, he practiced with the firm of Aspey Watkins & Diesel in Flagstaff, Arizona. Mr. Hager holds his Private Pilot certificate, is a member of AOPA (Airplane Owners and Pilots Association), and is an avid SCUBA diver and equestrian.

Mr. Hager is also a member of the Board of Directors for Arizona Blind and Deaf Children's Foundation, the Chairman of that Foundation's annual Swing for Success charity golf tournament, and represents Brambley Hedge Rabbit Rescue and Akita Advocates Relocation Team Arizona as pro bono counsel.