Losing a loved one is by-far, one of the worst experiences you’ll ever feel. In the middle of shock and paperwork, you’re asked to make fast decisions about investigations, insurance, and deadlines. West Coast Trial Lawyers handle that burden so you can focus on your family while we pursue accountability, justice and full compensation. Your experienced Los Angeles Wrongful Death Lawyer is just one call away.
Why Los Angeles Families Turn to Us
- Local to L.A.: We know LAPD collision reports, the L.A. County Medical Examiner process, and how local insurers and public entities defend these cases.
- Evidence-first approach: From black-box vehicle data, forensics and security video to economic modeling, we build cases juries and adjusters respect.
- No upfront cost: You pay nothing unless we recover money for your family.
- Proven Track Record of Success: Our attorneys have decades of experience winning tough cases inside and out of the courtroom. With Over 1.7 billion won for our clients, we bring results.
- Super Lawyers on Stand-by: From award winning accolades to record settlements, our wrongful death lawyers continue to win “super lawyer of the year”
What Counts as “Wrongful Death” in California?
A death caused by another’s wrongful act or neglect. California’s wrongful death statute lets certain family members (or a personal representative for them) bring the claim—typically a spouse or domestic partner, children, and, in some cases, putative spouse, stepchildren, parents, or heirs under intestate succession. We’ll confirm eligibility during your consultation. (Code Civ. Proc. §377.60).
L.A. examples we handle: fatal traffic crashes, dangerous condition of public property, defective products, medical negligence, construction/worksite incidents, and unsafe premises.
Wrongful Death vs. Survival Action (And Why Most Families File Both)
- Wrongful death compensates your family’s losses—financial support the decedent would have provided, the value of household services, and non-economic losses like loss of love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society, and moral support. Grief or sorrow itself isn’t recoverable in a wrongful death claim under California law. (CACI 3921; see also Civil Code §3294(d) note below.)
- Survival action is brought by the estate to recover losses the decedent suffered before death—including pre-death pain, suffering, or disfigurement for cases filed Jan 1, 2022–Jan 1, 2026 under CCP §377.34 as amended by SB 447. Lawmakers are considering SB 29 (2025) to extend or make this permanent; we’ll advise based on the filing date and current law.
Punitive damages? In California, punitive damages are generally not available in wrongful death, except when the death resulted from a felony homicide and the defendant was convicted. (Civ. Code §3294(d)). Survival actions can pursue punitive damages the decedent could have recovered.
Public entities: You cannot recover punitive damages against a public entity (Gov. Code §818).
Who Can File and How Recovery Is Shared
California treats wrongful death as one cause of action on behalf of all eligible heirs. We typically file one case and resolve shares by agreement or, if needed, ask the court to apportion according to each person’s loss. (Practice guidance & caselaw overview.)
What Compensation Can Your Family Recover?
Economic Losses
- Financial support the decedent would have contributed
- Loss of benefits/gifts expected
- Value of household services
- Funeral and burial expenses
Non-Economic Losses (Wrongful Death Only)
- Loss of love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society, and moral support (jury decides a reasonable amount). (Not grief/sorrow.)
Special Rule for Medical Malpractice Deaths (AB 35)
For medical negligence wrongful death cases filed/resolved after Jan 1, 2023, non-economic damages are capped and increase annually for 10 years. In 2025, the cap is $600,000, and separate caps can apply to different healthcare defendants (e.g., providers vs. institutions). Caps rise by $50,000 per year until $1,000,000 in 2033, then adjust for inflation. Economic damages remain uncapped.
Deadlines
- General wrongful death: 2 years from the date of death. (CCP §335.1).
- Public entity involved (e.g., City of L.A., County of L.A., Caltrans): Government Claim due in 6 months (Gov. Code §911.2) → if rejected, 6 months to sue; if no rejection, up to 2 years.
- Medical malpractice: The outside limit is generally 3 years from the injury or 1 year from discovery, whichever occurs first, with special rules for minors. (CCP §340.5). Talk to a Los Angeles Wrongful Death lawyer quickly—this timeline can be shorter than you think.
How These Tragedies Happen in L.A. (And How We Prove Fault)
- Traffic violence: high-speed arterials (Sepulveda, Sunset, Venice Blvd.), turning conflicts, DUI, and poor visibility. We secure LAPD TCRs, dash/business cameras, and EDR (“black box”) data, and use city safety studies to show foreseeability.
- Dangerous public property: missing crosswalk visibility, short walk phases, burnt-out lighting, bad sightlines. We file public-records requests for signal timing sheets, maintenance logs, complaints, and crash histories; we anticipate design immunity defenses and counter with changed conditions and inadequate warnings.
- Worksites & construction: OSHA and Cal/OSHA investigations, third-party contractors, defective equipment. (BLS fatality data shows obvious risk).
- Medical negligence: delayed diagnosis, medication errors, surgical mistakes. We navigate AB 35 caps and line up the right medical experts.
- Defective products/premises: from e-bike battery fires to unsafe stairs—engineer inspections, product testing, and spoliation letters day one.
Our L.A. Case Playbook
- Immediate preservation: send evidence-hold letters to at-fault parties, businesses, public agencies, and carriers.
- Video & data sweep: canvass for nearby CCTV and surveillance video, pull telematics/EDR, and collect 911/CAD audio.
- Accident reconstruction: model speeds, angles, visibility, and stopping distances.
- Damages proof: economists, life-care planners, and vocational experts to value lost financial support and services; for survival claims, document pre-death pain and suffering where allowed.
- Settlement leverage: present a concise liability timeline + damages model that speaks to juries.
Wrongful Death Fatalities Stats
Geography |
Latest figure |
Yr |
Source |
| City of Los Angeles – traffic deaths | 336 | 23’ | LADOT & Speed Safety System. Los Angeles Department of Transportation |
| California – traffic deaths | 4,061 | 23’ | CA Office of Traffic Safety Quick Stats. Office of Traffic Safety |
| California – workplace deaths | 439 | 23’ | BLS CFOI. Bureau of Labor Statistics |
| U.S. – unintentional injury deaths | 222,698 | 23’ | CDC FastStats. CDC |
What to Do Now (A Simple Checklist)
- Gather documents: death certificate (when available), incident reports, insurance letters, any photos/video.
- List beneficiaries: spouse/partner, children, other dependents.
- Avoid recorded statements to insurers before you have counsel.
- Call Our Los Angeles Wrongful Death Attorneys at (213) 927-3700—we’ll take it from here.
Talk to a Los Angeles Wrongful Death Lawyer Today
You deserve clear answers and a plan. We’ll listen carefully, explain your options, and move quickly to protect your family’s rights.
Call (213) 927-3700 or send a message for a free, no-obligation consultation.
We represent families throughout Downtown L.A., Hollywood, Koreatown, Silver Lake, Echo Park, Westwood, Beverly Hills, Venice, South L.A., the Valley, and across Los Angeles County.
