A wrongful death claim in California belongs to particular surviving family members, in their own right, for what the death has cost them. It sits alongside a separate survival action belonging to the estate, which covers what the person themselves lost between the injury and the death.
Which claims exist and who is entitled to bring them is settled early, because it shapes everything that follows. Margossian Law represents families in wrongful death matters in California.
Who Is Entitled to Bring a Claim
California limits standing to specific people, in a defined order. Broadly, the right belongs first to:
- The surviving spouse or registered domestic partner
- The surviving children
- If there is no surviving spouse, partner, or child, those who would inherit under California’s intestate succession rules
- Separately, certain people who can show they were financially dependent on the person who died, including a putative spouse, stepchildren, or parents
Two Claims, Often Brought Together
California distinguishes between the losses suffered by the family and the losses suffered by the person who died.
A wrongful death claim compensates surviving family members for what they have lost. A survival action, brought by the estate, pursues the claim the person themselves would have had, including losses they sustained between the injury and their death. These are commonly filed together, and which damages are available under each differs in ways that materially affect the value of the case.
What a Claim Can Recover
- Financial support the person would have contributed over their expected lifetime
- The value of household services they provided
- Funeral and burial expenses
- Loss of the person’s love, companionship, comfort, care, and moral support
- Through a survival action, certain losses the person incurred before death, such as medical expenses
Deadlines, and Why They Can Be Shorter Than Two Years
A California wrongful death action generally must be filed within two years of the death. Two circumstances shorten that materially.
Where a public entity may be responsible, whether through a government vehicle, a public road, or a public hospital, a written claim generally has to be presented within six months. And where the death resulted from medical negligence, a different and shorter limitations framework applies. If either might be in play, the timeline should be confirmed straight away.
6 months
To present a claim against a public entity
2 years
To file suit in most other cases
What Tends to Happen Early
Insurers sometimes approach families quickly, before the full circumstances are established, and an early release signed at that stage is generally final. There is no obligation to engage with an insurer before you are ready or before you have advice.
Where a criminal investigation is running in parallel, it proceeds separately from any civil claim. A prosecution is not required for a civil claim to succeed, and a decision not to prosecute does not prevent one.