Say good bye to a very nice car. Or help me fix it. It was worse in 84

true enough - but the burden of proof and all that.. you'll probably never get a shop to admit they screwed the pooch.. for nearly 30k, they'll fight you ALL the way
I would think that all you need is a receipt (for the alignment) and less than 30 days (or so) since the accident??? I would at least talk to a lawyer (free consultation) and check the legal options unless it sat for 6 months after the alignment. The insurance companies also have free lawyers that will fight for you so that they don't have to pay.

I'm sure there's at least one lawyer that is an FABO member who can shed some light on the subject????

Treblig