Wrongful death guide
Wrongful Death Claims in California
When someone dies because of another person’s negligence or wrongful act, California allows two kinds of claim. The family’s wrongful death claim compensates what they lost: financial support, household services, and the love and companionship of the person who died. The estate’s survival action carries the losses the person suffered before death.
This guide explains who can bring each claim, what they recover, the evidence involved and the deadline, and links to the detail.
Assess My CaseWho can bring a claim
California limits wrongful death standing to a defined group. A surviving spouse or domestic partner and children come first; others, such as parents, may qualify when there is no spouse or child or when they were financially dependent. The survival action is brought separately by the estate’s personal representative.
Common causes
Most wrongful death claims arise from the same events as injury claims: vehicle collisions, including drunk and distracted driving, medical errors, unsafe property and neglect in care facilities. The cause determines who is responsible and what insurance applies.
Proving responsibility
A wrongful death claim requires the same proof as the injury claim the person could have brought had they survived: that someone’s negligence or wrongful act caused the death. Where a criminal case exists, a conviction can help but is not required; the civil standard of proof is lower.
Medical care before death
Where there was a period of treatment between the injury and the death, the medical records establish the cause of death, the medical expenses the estate can recover, and what the person endured. A chronology of that care is often the most important document in the file.
Insurance
Recovery usually comes from the responsible party’s liability insurance: an auto policy, a commercial policy, a property policy or a professional liability policy. Where the at-fault driver was uninsured or underinsured, the deceased’s own uninsured motorist coverage may apply.
Evidence
The death certificate, coroner or autopsy findings, police and accident reports, medical records, and records of the person’s earnings and role in the household all have a place. Evidence of the relationship itself matters too, because the family’s loss of companionship is part of what is compensated.
What affects the value of a wrongful death claim
The family recovers lost financial support, the value of household services, funeral and burial costs, and the loss of love, companionship and guidance. California does not compensate the family’s grief itself. The survival action adds the person’s own losses before death, including, under California law as amended, their pain and suffering.
The filing deadline
The general deadline for a California wrongful death lawsuit is two years from the date of death. A death caused by medical malpractice follows the malpractice deadlines instead, and a claim against a government entity usually needs a written claim within six months.
Wrongful Death near you
Local guides cover the courts, roads and agencies that matter in each city, alongside the statewide rules above.
- Anaheim Wrongful Death Claims
- Bakersfield Wrongful Death Claims
- Fresno Wrongful Death Claims
- Long Beach Wrongful Death Claims
- Los Angeles Wrongful Death Claims
- Oakland Wrongful Death Claims
- Riverside Wrongful Death Claims
- Sacramento Wrongful Death Claims
- San Bernardino Wrongful Death Claims
- San Diego Wrongful Death Claims
- San Francisco Wrongful Death Claims
- San Jose Wrongful Death Claims
Common questions
Who can file a wrongful death claim in California?
A surviving spouse or domestic partner and children first, and in some cases parents or others who would inherit or who were financially dependent.
What is the difference between wrongful death and a survival action?
The wrongful death claim compensates the family’s losses. The survival action is brought by the estate for the losses the person suffered before death.
How long does the family have to file?
Generally two years from the date of death, with shorter or different rules for medical malpractice and for claims against government entities.
Does a criminal case have to come first?
No. A civil wrongful death claim can proceed independently, and it uses a lower standard of proof than a criminal case.
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ClearCaseIQ is not a law firm, and this guide is general information rather than legal advice. A licensed California attorney can review the facts particular to you.