Results & Experience
You Can Trust!
Over 50 Years of Experience
Over $150 Million Recovered
Over 98% of Cases Won
You Can Trust!
Over 50 Years of Experience
Over $150 Million Recovered
Over 98% of Cases Won
Personal Injury Claims in California: Your Rights and Compensation
What is personal injury law and when can you seek compensation? Personal injury law lets a person who has been physically or emotionally harmed by someone else’s carelessness or who has lost a family member in a wrongful death, seek compensation from the person, company or government agency at fault. For more than 50 years, our personal injury and wrongful death lawyers have helped injured people throughout Los Angeles, the San Fernando Valley, Ventura, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties and all of California recover after car accidents, truck and motorcycle crashes, pedestrian collisions, dog bites, slip and falls and defective products. Contact us now for your case evaluation.
If you have been injured because of someone else’s negligence, you do not need to worry about navigating the legal process alone , contact our Personal Injury Lawyers today to learn about your legal rights and options for seeking compensation. Our personal injury attorneys will explain how a personal injury claim works: who is responsible, what you must prove, who pays and which deadlines apply. Please contact us now for your FREE consultation. It is absolutely FREE and confidential and there is NO FEE until you win.
| Key Takeaways ● What it is: A personal injury claim seeks money from the person, company or government agency whose carelessness (or defective product) caused your physical or emotional injury or the death of a family member. ● What you must prove: (1) someone else is legally responsible, (2) you were actually injured or damaged and (3) the incident caused your injuries — by a “preponderance of the evidence,” meaning more likely than not. ● Who usually pays: In most cases the at-fault party’s insurance company pays a settlement or judgment, not the person or business personally. ● Deadlines are short: Most California injury lawsuits must be filed within two years (Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1). Claims against a city, county or state agency can require written notice within six months (Gov. Code § 911.2). ● Fault can be shared: Under California’s pure comparative negligence rule, you can recover even if you were partly at fault — your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault. |
What Counts as a Personal Injury?
The injury may be physical, such as a fracture, back or neck injury, head injury or burns or emotional, such as anxiety, depression or a lasting fear of driving after a collision or of dogs after an attack. The party at fault can be a person, a business or a public entity such as a city, county or the State of California.
Who Actually Pays for a Personal Injury Claim?
The person who caused the accident rarely pays out of pocket. Drivers, homeowners landlords and businesses commonly carry liability insurance, which does two things:
- Defense: The insurer investigates the claim, assigns an adjuster and, if a lawsuit is filed, hires and pays defense attorneys.
- Indemnification: The insurer pays an agreed settlement, a binding arbitration award or a court judgment, up to the policy limits.
The insurer is a business with its own interest in paying as little as it can, so you need someone whose only job is to protect you.
Policy limits matter. Effective January 1, 2025, California’s minimum liability coverage rose to $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident for bodily injury, plus $15,000 for property damage (SB 1107). Serious injuries can exceed those amounts quickly, which is why your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage and medical payments coverage can be critically important. (See Ins. Code § 11580.2 for UM/UIM requirements.)
Tort Law: The Legal Foundation of Injury Claims
Injury claims rest on “tort law.” A tort is a civil wrong, as opposed to a crime, that the law remedies with money damages. A drunk-driving crash, for example, can lead to both a criminal case and a separate civil claim and the two use different standards of proof. California injury cases generally fall into three categories.
1. Negligence
Negligence is the most common basis for an injury claim and the type our firm handles most often. It means failing to use the care that a reasonably careful person would use in the same situation (see Civ. Code § 1714(a), which makes people responsible for injuries caused by their lack of ordinary care).
It includes careless acts, such as texting while driving and rear-ending a stopped car on the 101 and failures to act when the law imposes a duty, such as a store that never cleans up a spill or marks the hazard.
2. Intentional Torts
These occur when someone deliberately causes harm, such as an assault or battery and can open the door to punitive damages in appropriate cases.
3. Strict Liability and Product Defects
In a product liability case, California law can hold manufacturers, distributors and retailers responsible for a defective product that injures someone, even if they were not careless and did not know about the defect (Greenman v. Yuba Power Products, Inc. (1963) 59 Cal.2d 57). Defective vehicles, tires, medications, medical devices and consumer goods can all give rise to strict liability claims. California also imposes strict liability on dog owners for most dog bites (Civ. Code § 3342).
In short: negligence is about carelessness, intentional torts are about deliberate harm and strict liability is about defective products and certain inherently dangerous situations — and the category determines what you must prove.
The Three Things You Must Prove
A personal injury plaintiff carries the burden of proof. In California civil cases, that burden is a “preponderance of the evidence” (Evid. Code § 115) — evidence showing something is more likely true than not, or put numerically, greater than 50%. That is far lower than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard used in criminal trials. To win, you must establish three elements:
| The Three Elements of a Personal Injury Claim Liability: Someone else was legally responsible for causing the incident. Injuries and damages: You were actually harmed — physically, emotionally, financially or all three. Causation: The incident, not something else, was the actual and legal (“proximate”) cause of your injuries and losses. |
Each element is a battleground. Insurers often accept that an accident happened but dispute fault, minimize the injuries or claim a pre-existing condition caused your pain. Strong medical documentation and carefully preserved evidence are how those arguments are answered.
Shared Fault: California’s Comparative Negligence Rule
Insurers frequently argue that the injured person was partly to blame. California follows “pure comparative negligence,” established in Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) 13 Cal.3d 804. You can still recover when you are partly at fault; the amount is simply reduced by your share of responsibility.
| Example A driver on Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks is rear-ended by a distracted motorist while the injured driver’s brake light is out. A jury finds total damages of $200,000 and assigns 20% of the fault to the injured driver. The recovery is reduced by 20%, to $160,000. Because percentages of fault can move the final number dramatically, arguments over fault are among the first places insurers push back. |
Types of Personal Injury Accidents We Handle
Injury cases tend to fall into three broad groups. Each has its own evidence, defendants and insurance issues.
Motor Vehicle Accidents
- Car accidents, including rear-end, T-bone, head-on and multi-vehicle freeway collisions
- Truck and commercial vehicle accidents
- Motorcycle accidents, bicycle accidents and pedestrian accidents
- Bus, train and rideshare accidents
- Hit-and-run, uninsured motorist (UM) and underinsured motorist (UIM) claims
Southern California’s busy corridors — the 101, 405, 5, 118, 134, 170 and 210 freeways and surface streets such as Ventura, Sepulveda, Van Nuys, Topanga Canyon and Wilshire boulevards — put thousands of drivers, cyclists and pedestrians in close contact every day. Statewide, the California Office of Traffic Safety reports that 4,061 people died in traffic crashes in 2023, including 1,106 pedestrians and 583 motorcyclists. Behind every one of those numbers is an injured person or a family in crisis.
Types of Injuries Victims Suffer
In a rear-end collision, whiplash-type neck, shoulder and back injuries are common and air bags can cause facial, jaw (TMJ) and chest injuries or broken ribs. More serious crashes can cause fractures, torn ligaments such as ACL tears, head injuries and concussions, spinal cord injuries and burns.
Some injuries — particularly concussions and soft-tissue injuries — may not be obvious at the scene and can worsen over several days. Seeing a doctor promptly protects both your health and your claim.
What Compensation Can You Recover?
California law allows an injured person to recover money damages intended to compensate for the harm caused (see Civ. Code § 3333). Damages fall into several categories:
| Category | What it covers |
| Economic damages | Past and future medical expenses, rehabilitation, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, home or vehicle modifications, property damage |
| Non-economic damages | Physical pain, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, disfigurement, loss of companionship |
| Punitive damages | Rare; available only where the defendant’s conduct involved malice, oppression or fraud proven by clear and convincing evidence (Civ. Code § 3294) |
| Wrongful death damages | Financial support and household services the family lost, funeral and burial costs and the loss of love, companionship and guidance |
A few California-specific points are worth knowing. In ordinary negligence cases California does not place a general cap on pain-and-suffering damages (medical malpractice claims are treated differently). Recoverable past medical expenses are generally limited to the amount actually paid or incurred, not the full amount originally billed (Howell v. Hamilton Meats & Provisions, Inc. (2011) 52 Cal.4th 541). And when more than one party shares fault, Proposition 51 (Civ. Code § 1431.2) limits each defendant’s liability for non-economic damages to its own percentage of fault.
Wrongful Death Claims
When someone dies because of another’s wrongful act or neglect, specific family members may bring a wrongful death action under Code of Civil Procedure § 377.60, including a surviving spouse or domestic partner and children and, in some circumstances, other heirs or dependents. The decedent’s personal representative may also pursue a separate “survival” claim for losses the person suffered before death (Code Civ. Proc. § 377.30). If you have lost a loved one, we will listen first, explain your options and handle the legal burden while you focus on your family.
Deadlines: The Clock Starts Sooner Than You Think
| Key California Filing Deadlines ● Personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits: generally two years from the date of injury or death (Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1). ● Claims against a city, county, school district or state agency: a written government claim generally must be presented within six months (Gov. Code § 911.2) and if the claim is rejected, a lawsuit generally must be filed within six months of the written rejection (Gov. Code § 945.6). ● Medical malpractice: generally three years from the injury or one year from discovery, whichever comes first (Code Civ. Proc. § 340.5). ● Exceptions exist for minors, incapacitated persons and other situations. Never assume you have more time than you do. |
Missing a deadline can end your claim permanently, no matter how strong the facts are. Insurance company negotiations do not stop these clocks from running.
Evidence Worth Preserving
- Photos and video of the scene, vehicles, hazards and your injuries
- The police or CHP report number and the names of responding officers
- Medical records, bills, prescriptions and appointment reminders
- Pay stubs, tax records and employer letters documenting lost income
- Dash-cam footage, and a request that nearby businesses save surveillance video before it is overwritten
- The damaged vehicle or defective product itself — do not repair or discard it until it has been inspected
- Text messages, emails and social media posts relating to the accident
Practical tip: Surveillance video and event data from a vehicle’s onboard computer can be lost within days or weeks. Early preservation requests can make the difference between proof and a dispute.
Common Mistakes That Can Hurt Your Claim
- Waiting too long to see a doctor or stopping treatment early
- Accepting the first offer before knowing the full extent of your injuries
- Giving a recorded statement or posting on social media without legal advice
- Missing the two-year (or six-month) deadline
- Repairing or discarding the vehicle or product before it is inspected
Medical Bills, Health Insurance and Liens
Treatment may be paid through health insurance, medical payments coverage, Medi-Cal, Medicare or a provider’s lien. Each can carry repayment rights against your settlement, so a careful lawyer identifies every lien early and works to leave you with as much of your recovery as the law allows.
Our Approach: We treat clients like Family
Walch Law is a family-focused firm. You will not be treated like a case number. For more than 50 years, we have handled thousands of personal injury and wrongful death cases for California families and we return calls, explain what is happening and tell you the truth about your case, including its challenges. Our consultation is absolutely FREE and there is NO FEE until you win, so please contact us now for your FREE consultation and case evaluation.
We help clients throughout Los Angeles County — including Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank, Calabasas, Woodland Hills, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys and Tarzana — as well as the San Fernando Valley, Ventura County, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino and communities throughout California.
Take the Next Step: Talk to Us Today
If you have been injured or have lost someone you love, please do not wait. Evidence fades, deadlines run and insurance companies move quickly. Speaking with a lawyer costs you nothing and can protect your rights. Please contact us now for your FREE consultation or you can contact our office by dialing our toll free number 866-INJURY-2 (866-465-8792) — after hours, dial “1” and 818-222-3400.