California Accident & Injury Laws
Like other states, courts in California handle almost all lawsuits and civil cases including injury and accident claims. California injury law covers claims for medical and professional malpractice, product liability, motor vehicle accidents, slip and fall type accidents and other matters like assault and battery. Accident and Injury laws are similar in states, but each state can have different statutes of limitations, limits on the amounts of settlements for certain claims and other types of regulations.
California, like some other states, has a tort system for insurance claims which requires that a driver seeking compensation must show fault on the part of the other driver if he or she wants their claim to be successful.
In California, if your case goes to trial, the judge or jury will calculate percentages of fault for each driver, and reduce each driver’s liability accordingly. For example, if a driver suffers $50,000 in damages, but is found to be 10 percent at fault, his recovery will be reduced to 90% of his damages — here, $45,000.
Below, are some links to California’s car accident compensation laws, including time limits, limits on damages.
| Statute of Limitations | • 2 years for personal injury lawsuits (Cal. Code of Civ. Proc. § 335.1)
• 3 years for property damage lawsuits (Cal. Code of Civ. Proc. § 338). • 6 months for claims involving a government agency (Cal. Gov’t Code § 911.2) |
| Limits on Damages | No non-economic damages for uninsured drivers (Prop. 213, codified at Cal. Code of Civ. Proc. § 3333.4) |
| Other Limits | Medical Malpractice non-economic damages limited to $250,000 (Cal. Code of Civ. Proc. § 3332) |
Contacting an experienced personal injury lawyer is an important step if you’ve been injured in a California accident.
- Car / Auto Accident Lawyers
- Motorcycle Accident Lawyers
- Commercial Truck Accident Lawyers
- Uber / Lyft Accident Lawyers
- Pedestrian Accident Lawyers
- Bicycle Accident Lawyers
- Slip and Fall Lawyers