Who Can File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in California?
Losing a loved one is devastating on its own. When that loss results from someone else’s negligence or wrongdoing, the pain is compounded by a sense of injustice. Understanding your legal rights can help you take meaningful action during one of life’s most difficult moments.
What Is a Wrongful Death Claim?
A wrongful death claim arises when one person dies as a result of another party’s act or failure to act. California law recognizes this under Civil Code section 377.60, which provides a formal cause of action for wrongful death.
The law covers a wide range of circumstances, including deaths caused by negligence, recklessness, fraud, intentional misconduct, and criminal conduct. Common examples include fatal car accidents, medical malpractice, and deliberate acts of violence.
How Is Wrongful Death Different from a Criminal Case?
Many people confuse wrongful death lawsuits with criminal homicide cases. While both involve a death caused by another party, they serve very different purposes.
A criminal case seeks to punish the offender through jail time, probation, or other sanctions. A wrongful death lawsuit, by contrast, is a civil action designed to compensate surviving family members for their losses. The two proceedings are separate and can even run simultaneously.
Who Can File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in California?
The question of who can file a wrongful death lawsuit is one of the first issues an attorney will address. California law defines a specific group of people who are eligible to bring such a claim.
Primary Eligible Parties
The following individuals are automatically entitled to file a wrongful death claim:
The deceased’s surviving spouse or domestic partner is the first in line to bring a claim. Surviving children of the deceased are also eligible, as are the grandchildren of any deceased child of the victim.
If none of these individuals survive the decedent, the right to file may pass to anyone entitled to the decedent’s property under California’s laws of intestate succession. This can include parents or siblings, depending on the circumstances.
Additional Parties with Financial Dependency
California also allows certain individuals outside the immediate family to file, provided they can demonstrate a direct financial dependency on the deceased. This group includes the decedent’s parents, stepchildren, and legal guardians, in cases where the decedent’s parents had previously passed away.
A “putative spouse” may also be eligible. This refers to someone who entered a marriage in good faith but was unaware that it was not legally valid. The children of a putative spouse may also qualify under this provision.
What Types of Wrongful Death Cases Exist?
Once eligibility is established, it is important to understand the two distinct legal pathways available to surviving family members.
Survival Action Lawsuits
A survival action is filed on behalf of the deceased’s estate. It seeks to recover compensation that the decedent would have been entitled to had they survived, such as lost wages and medical expenses incurred before death.
This type of lawsuit effectively steps into the shoes of the deceased and pursues the damages they would have claimed. It is distinct from the wrongful death claim itself, though both are often pursued together.
Wrongful Death Suits
A wrongful death suit focuses on the losses suffered by the surviving family members themselves. It does not require proving that the victim would have survived, only that they were alive at the time of the incident and that another party’s conduct caused their death.
The goal is to compensate survivors for both the financial and emotional impact of losing their loved one.
What Damages Can Survivors Recover?
Compensation in a wrongful death case is divided into two main categories: economic and non-economic damages.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are intended to replace the measurable financial contributions the deceased would have made. These typically include the financial support the decedent would have provided over their lifetime, gifts and benefits survivors expected to receive, funeral and burial expenses, and the monetary value of household services the decedent would have provided.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages address the intangible losses that survivors experience. These include loss of companionship, emotional distress, and pain and suffering.
In cases where the defendant acted with malice or fraud, punitive damages may also be available. These are designed not to compensate the family, but to punish particularly egregious conduct.
Key Facts to Know Before Filing
The Statute of Limitations
California imposes a two-year statute of limitations on wrongful death claims, beginning from the date of the decedent’s death. Missing this deadline can permanently bar survivors from pursuing compensation, which is why acting promptly is critical.
Filing Even If the Death Occurred Outside California
California residents can file a wrongful death lawsuit in California regardless of where the death took place. This flexibility ensures that families are not left without legal recourse based on geography.
Do You Need an Attorney?
Yes. Wrongful death cases are legally complex. An experienced legal team will have the knowledge and expertise to guide eligible survivors through every step of the process, from eligibility determination to pursuing the full compensation available under California law.
If you believe you have a wrongful death claim, consulting with a qualified wrongful death attorney as soon as possible is the best step you can take.