By Joshua H. Haffner, Founder, Haffner Law, Los Angeles, CA | Updated October 2026 · 9 min read
Nothing prepares you for the call. One minute your husband is driving home on the 101, or your daughter is crossing a street in Reseda, and the next you are sitting in a hospital hallway trying to understand words that make no sense. In the weeks that follow, grief comes in waves, and so do the bills, the forms and the calls from insurance adjusters.
No lawsuit can bring your loved one back. But when a careless driver, a trucking company or a property owner caused the loss, a wrongful death claim lets your family hold them responsible and protect its financial future. This article explains how that works in California, in plain language, so you can make decisions when you are ready.
What to know first. In California, a wrongful death claim belongs to specific family members, and most have two years from the date of death to file. A claim against a city, county or state agency can require a written claim within six months, and medical negligence has its own shorter clock. A second claim, the survival action, belongs to the estate, and for cases filed on or after January 1, 2026 it no longer includes the loved one’s own pain and suffering before death.
What a wrongful death claim is, and what it is not
A wrongful death claim is a civil case brought by close family members when a person dies because of someone else’s wrongful act or carelessness. It is separate from any criminal case. A driver can avoid jail and still be held financially responsible to your family in civil court.
In most of these cases the money comes from an insurance policy rather than from the person who caused the death. An adjuster works for the insurer, and it is common to hear from one within days, often with a request for a recorded statement or a quick release. You are generally not required to give the other side’s insurer a recorded statement, and a signed release usually ends your family’s claim, so it is worth understanding both before you sign or say anything.
Who can bring a wrongful death claim in California
Code of Civil Procedure § 377.60 spells out who may file, either directly or through the decedent’s personal representative. The first group is the surviving spouse or registered domestic partner, the children, and the issue of any child who has died. If there is no surviving issue, the people who would inherit under California’s intestate succession rules (the rules that apply when someone dies without a will), such as parents or siblings, may bring the claim.
Some people can also file if they depended on the decedent, even if they are not in the first group. That includes a putative spouse (someone who believed in good faith that they were legally married), the putative spouse’s children, stepchildren and parents. A minor who lived in the decedent’s household for the 180 days before the death and relied on the decedent for at least half of their support can also file.
A partner who was not married to the decedent or in a registered domestic partnership is generally not on the list, which surprises many families. Because these rules turn on family structure, it helps to sort out early who belongs in the case.
What the claim can cover
The wrongful death claim compensates your family for what the death has taken from you. California’s standard jury instruction on the death of an adult, CACI No. 3921, lists the categories. The economic losses are the financial support your loved one would have provided, the value of the household services they gave, gifts or benefits you would have expected to receive, and funeral and burial costs.
The claim also covers the loss of the relationship itself: your loved one’s love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society and moral support. Jurors are told not to consider your grief, sorrow or mental anguish as such. Instead, they measure what your loved one gave to your life, which is why the stories, photos and memories you share with your lawyer carry weight.
The survival action: what the estate can recover
A separate claim, the survival action, belongs to the estate and is brought by the decedent’s personal representative or successor in interest under Code of Civil Procedure § 377.30. It recovers losses your loved one suffered before death, such as medical bills and lost earnings, and punitive damages where the conduct was malicious, oppressive or fraudulent under Civil Code § 3294. Punitive damages are generally pursued through the survival action rather than the family’s wrongful death claim.
The rules for pain and suffering changed this year. Under Section 377.34, a survival action filed on or after January 1, 2026 cannot recover damages for the decedent’s own pain, suffering or disfigurement before death. A temporary exception created by SB 447 (2021) allowed those damages in actions filed between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2025, and it ended without an extension. The date that matters is when the case is filed, not when the death occurred, so this rule can apply to a death that happened in 2025.
The deadlines that matter
| Situation | Deadline | Authority |
| Most wrongful death lawsuits | Two years from the date of death | Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1 |
| A city, county or state agency may share responsibility | Written claim within six months (generally counted from the death) | Gov. Code § 911.2 |
| After the agency rejects the claim | Generally six months from the rejection notice to sue | Gov. Code § 945.6 |
| Death caused by a health care provider’s negligence | One year from discovery, and no more than three years from the injury, with limited exceptions | Code Civ. Proc. § 340.5 |
The two-year rule is in Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1 and the six-month claim rule is in Government Code § 911.2; the other sections are listed in the table. Medical negligence cases also carry a cap on noneconomic damages under Civil Code § 3333.2. Under the schedule set by AB 35, the cap for wrongful death claims is $650,000 in 2026 and rises each year, and caps can stack when several providers or institutions are responsible.
Six months goes quickly when you are grieving. Evidence also fades: vehicle data gets overwritten, video gets erased and witnesses move. Speaking with a lawyer early protects options your family may want later, even if you are not ready to decide anything yet.
When more than one party, or the loved one, shares the blame
California applies comparative fault, so if the decedent is found partly responsible, such as for speeding or crossing outside a crosswalk, the family’s recovery can be reduced by that share. When several defendants are at fault, Civil Code § 1431.2 generally makes each one responsible only for its own percentage of the noneconomic damages. Both rules are reasons to identify every possible defendant early, including the ones people overlook, such as a property owner, a contractor, a manufacturer or an employer.
The first weeks: what helps a claim later
- Get the police or incident report, the death certificate and any coroner’s report.
- Keep medical bills, funeral invoices and pay records for your loved one.
- Photograph the scene, the vehicles or the property if you can, and save texts, voicemails and social media posts that show the circumstances.
- Do not sign releases or discuss fault with an insurer until you understand what the document does.
- Write down what your loved one did for the household and for each family member, in your own words, while it is fresh.
How settlements are approved and divided
Most wrongful death claims settle before trial. When the family includes a minor child, the settlement generally needs a judge’s approval under Code of Civil Procedure § 372, and the court can direct how the child’s share is held. When several relatives share the claim, how the money is divided can itself take agreement or a court’s decision, which is another reason to settle questions of who is entitled before negotiations start.
Who can be responsible: five published wrongful death settlements
Wrongful death cases arise from very different events, and the responsible party is not always the person behind the wheel. Haffner Law lists wrongful death settlements on its representative cases page, and five of them show the range. The page notes that the cases were handled by Joshua Haffner at the firm or at his prior firm.
| Date | What happened (as the firm describes it) | Settlement |
| Jun 2024 | A person fell from the roof of a building under construction | $3,800,000 |
| Jul 2023 | A death caused by a defective product | $7,000,000 |
| Oct 2023 | A shooting at an apartment complex, handled as a premises liability case | $2,150,000 |
| Dec 2024 | The death of a baby after delivery, a medical malpractice case | $1,150,000 |
| Aug 2019 | A truck accident | $1,000,000 |
A construction site, a manufacturer, a landlord, a hospital and a trucking company are five different defendants with different insurers, different evidence and, in the hospital case, a different deadline and damages cap. Premises liability claims, for example, turn on what a property owner knew and did to keep people safe. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome in another case, because every claim depends on its own facts, the available insurance and the law that applies.
Frequently asked questions
Is a wrongful death case separate from a criminal case?
Yes. The criminal case is brought by the government and punishes the offender. The wrongful death case is brought by your family for financial and personal losses, and it can proceed whatever happens in criminal court.
Can an unmarried partner file?
Generally not, unless the partner is a registered domestic partner or fits another category in Section 377.60, such as a dependent putative spouse. Parents, children and other relatives may have their own claims.
Can the estate recover my loved one’s pain and suffering?
Not in a survival action filed on or after January 1, 2026. The estate can recover economic losses before death and, where the facts support it, punitive damages.
How do wrongful death lawyers get paid?
Many work on contingency, which means the fee comes from the recovery. California requires a contingency fee agreement to be in writing under Business and Professions Code § 6147, so ask to see the percentage and how costs are handled before you sign.
What if my loved one died more than two years ago?
The two-year deadline is strict, though a few situations change the timing, such as claims against a public agency or against a health care provider. Speak with a lawyer promptly to learn whether any exception could apply.
Disclaimer. This article gives general information about wrongful death claims under California law as of October 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Deadlines, damages rules and caps change, and your family’s rights depend on the facts and on who is entitled to file. Speak with a licensed California attorney about your situation as soon as you can. Case results are described for illustration and do not predict the outcome of any other matter.
