California Personal Injury Lawyer

California personal injury representation that actually fits California law

Serious injury cases happen on I-5, I-10, US-101, I-405, I-80, I-15, and crowded local corridors from San Diego County to the Bay Area and the Central Valley, and the mix of freeway collisions, truck traffic, premises claims, rideshare incidents, and pedestrian injuries varies across the state.

If you were hurt in a car crash, truck wreck, slip and fall, or wrongful death event anywhere in California, California deadlines, comparative fault, and damages rules shape your claim from the start.

Conduit Law handles serious injury claims with a simple rule: move early and build the case while the evidence is fresh. Our managing attorney, Elliot Singer, is a former Assistant Attorney General licensed in California who brings over a decade of injury law experience to every case.

California injury laws that matter early

Statute of limitations: CCP § 335.1

Most California personal injury claims must be filed within two years of the injury date under Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1. That usually covers car accidents, truck crashes, premises liability, and many other negligence claims. There are exceptions for minors, delayed discovery, and certain government claims, but it is safest not to rely on an exception and to act early.

Pure comparative negligence

California follows pure comparative negligence (Li v. Yellow Cab Co., 1975). If you were partly at fault, you can still recover damages — the award is simply reduced by your percentage of fault. Even at 80% or 90% fault, you can recover the remaining percentage. Fault shares are often disputed, especially in multi-vehicle, pedestrian, and intersection cases.

Government claims: Cal. Gov. Code § 911.2

If your claim involves a government entity in California — a city bus, state highway defect, county facility, or public employee — you generally must file a formal government claim within six months of the incident under Government Code § 911.2. This is shorter than the general statute of limitations and catches many people off guard. Missing this deadline can end an otherwise strong claim on procedure alone.

No general damages cap (with exceptions)

California generally does not impose a blanket cap on compensatory damages in ordinary personal injury cases. That matters in catastrophic harm and wrongful death cases where damages can be enormous. The major exception is medical malpractice, where MICRA (Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act) caps non-economic damages at $470,000 for injury cases and $650,000 for death cases in 2026, rising each January 1 until they reach $750,000 and $1,000,000. For most car accident, truck crash, and premises liability cases, no cap applies.

California minimum insurance requirements

California requires drivers to carry minimum liability coverage of $30,000 per person / $60,000 per accident for bodily injury and $15,000 for property damage (Vehicle Code § 16056, for policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025). Those limits are low for any serious crash. Uninsured motorist coverage is included in California auto policies unless you decline it in a written agreement, so your own UM/UIM policy can matter a great deal.

Cases we handle across California

Car accidents

Freeway crashes, intersection collisions, rideshare wrecks, uninsured driver claims, and serious multi-vehicle pileups. California's freeway system, including I-5, I-10, I-405, US-101, I-80, and I-15, carries heavy traffic every day.

Truck accidents

Commercial vehicle claims involving hours-of-service issues, maintenance failures, unsafe loading, and corporate negligence. California's ports (Long Beach, Oakland, LA) feed heavy freight traffic onto I-5, I-10, and I-15. Multiple liable parties are common.

Slip and fall / premises liability

Dangerous retail stores, apartment complexes, hotels, parking lots, and commercial properties. California premises liability requires proving the property owner knew or should have known about the hazard. Resort and hotel injuries are also common given California's tourism industry.

Wrongful death

Fatal crash and negligence cases involving the loss of a spouse, parent, or child. California's wrongful death statute (CCP § 377.60) specifies who can bring the claim — generally the surviving spouse, domestic partner, children, or those who would be entitled to the decedent's property by intestate succession. California does not cap wrongful death damages in most cases.

Mold and habitability injuries

Landlord neglect and unsafe housing conditions, especially where toxic mold exposure causes significant physical harm. Visible mold can make a rental substandard under Health & Safety Code § 17920.3, and a landlord's duty to repair mold generally arises once the landlord has notice (Civil Code § 1941.7). For mold-specific cases, see the dedicated California mold injury lawyer page.

Serious and catastrophic injuries

Traumatic brain injury, spinal damage, fractures requiring surgery, chronic pain, and diminished earning capacity. California's high cost of living means future medical costs and lost earnings can be enormous, making thorough documentation through life care plans and vocational experts even more critical.

California's most dangerous roads and corridors

• I-5 (full state): California's primary north-south corridor from San Diego to Oregon. Heavy truck traffic, agricultural areas with fog, and high-speed rural sections create serious crash risk.
• I-10 (LA to Arizona): Major east-west corridor through Los Angeles and the Inland Empire with extreme traffic volumes and commercial truck congestion.
• I-405 (LA metro): Chronic congestion and frequent rear-end crashes.
• US-101 (coast and Bay Area): Mixed urban and rural sections with varied speed limits and dangerous curves along the coast.
• I-15 (San Diego to Barstow): The Las Vegas corridor with high-speed desert driving, holiday surges, and truck traffic.
• SR-99 (Central Valley): Fog-related pileups, agricultural truck traffic, and high-speed rural crashes make this a dangerous corridor.

Where we help clients in California

We help injury victims in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, San Jose, Oakland, Long Beach, Fresno, Riverside, Bakersfield, and surrounding communities across the state. Treatment often runs through major systems such as UCLA Health, Cedars-Sinai, UC San Diego Health, UCSF Health, Kaiser Permanente, and Stanford Health Care, and those records become central to proving damages.

If your issue is specifically toxic mold or landlord habitability, the site has a dedicated California mold injury lawyer page. This page covers the California personal injury law that applies statewide.

How Conduit Law works California injury cases

1. Get medical care immediately. Your health comes first, and the records start the damages case.
2. Preserve evidence quickly. Photos, dash cam footage, witness names, incident reports, video, and vehicle damage matter enormously. We send preservation letters so key evidence is kept.
3. Be careful with recorded statements. The other driver's adjuster works for their insurer, and under California's pure comparative fault system, every percentage point of fault assigned to you reduces the recovery.
4. Watch the deadlines. Two years goes faster than people think, and government claims require a formal filing within six months. If a government entity may be involved, that clock is already running.
5. Build the full medical narrative. We work with your treatment team to document not just immediate injuries but future treatment needs, chronic conditions, and long-term functional limitations. California's high cost of living means future medical costs and lost earnings can be significant.
6. Send the demand when the file is complete. By the time we send a demand, we have medical records, bills, liability documentation, and expert opinions lined up.

Why hire a statewide California injury firm

California attorneys admitted to the State Bar of California can practice statewide — in any county, any superior court, anywhere in the state. What matters is whether your lawyer knows California personal injury law, has the litigation resources to handle complex cases, and has a real track record. Elliot Singer has recovered more than $50 million for clients over his career. He is a former Assistant Attorney General with bar admissions in California, Colorado, Arizona, and Kansas. We handle cases across California, from Los Angeles and San Diego to the Bay Area, Sacramento, and the Central Valley. Multi-state licensing also means we can handle cases involving interstate commerce, cross-border truck accidents, and claims where the injury and the responsible parties span state lines.

Free consultation for California injury cases

If you were injured anywhere in California, Conduit Law can review the facts, explain the deadlines, and give you a straight read on liability, damages, and next steps. The evaluation comes from a former Assistant Attorney General licensed in California. Call (720) 432-7032 or contact us online for a free consultation.