Ask Rich
The questions families actually ask
These are the questions that come up in the first two weeks, answered the way I would answer them on the phone.
The test is whether someone else’s negligent or wrongful conduct caused the death, and whether there is a source of recovery, usually insurance, behind that person or company. Both halves matter. A clear liability case against someone with no coverage and no assets may not be worth bringing, and an honest lawyer will tell you that before you spend two years finding out.
Anyone who gives you a number in the first conversation is guessing or selling. Value depends on the relationship between the heirs and the person who died, their age and earning capacity, the degree of fault, the conduct of the defendant, the venue, and above all the available insurance coverage. Early in a case the honest answer is a range and the reasoning behind it.
A straightforward case with clear liability and cooperative insurance can resolve in months. A contested case that has to be filed and worked up commonly runs eighteen months to three years. Cases against government entities, and cases with disputed causation, run longer. I would rather take longer and be right.
No. Accepted cases are handled on contingency and this firm advances the case costs, filing fees, experts, depositions, records. If there is no recovery you owe no fee and no costs.
Most wrongful death cases settle. But cases settle for their proper value only when the other side believes you are genuinely prepared to try them, so every case I accept is worked as though it will be tried. If it does go to trial, you will be prepared and you will not face it alone.
No. Not because they are villains, most adjusters are decent people doing a job, but because their job is to resolve the claim for as little as the file supports, and a recorded statement given in the first week by someone in shock becomes part of that file permanently. Refer them to a lawyer and say nothing else.
That is normal in a death the coroner is required to investigate. Call the county coroner or medical examiner directly, the directory on this site has the number for all 58 counties, and ask for the investigator assigned. If you are getting nowhere, call us and we will make the request for you at no charge.
Usually yes. California uses pure comparative fault, which means a recovery is reduced by the percentage of fault attributed to the person who died, but is not barred by it. Even a substantial share of fault does not necessarily end a case, it changes its value.
Look at your own policies. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage frequently applies to a wrongful death, and often on more than one policy, the decedent’s, a household member’s, or an employer’s. Families regularly have coverage they do not know about. Send us the declarations pages and we will read them.
Maybe not, but do not guess. Two years is the usual deadline for a claim against a private party. Six months is the usual deadline for a written claim against a government agency. If you are close to either, call today rather than tomorrow.
These answers are general information about California law, not legal advice about your situation. The right answer in one case is frequently the wrong answer in another that looks very similar.
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