California Wrongful Death Lawyer

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Losing a loved one is not easy. This is particularly true if a person you love lost their life far too early. Unfortunately, there are times when individuals lose their life due to the negligent or intentional actions of others. At Abdi & Associates, we are here to help if you need a Los Angeles wrongful death attorney. Our compassionate team will listen to your story and help you understand the best steps moving forward for your situation. Let us help you pursue closure and compensation for the loss of your loved one.

Choose Abdi & Associates for Your Los Angeles Wrongful Death Claim

At Abdi & Associates, we understand the importance of having a compassionate and experienced legal advocate by your side during this incredibly difficult time.

Every client will receive personalized attention for their case, which means we take the time to listen to your goals and needs as we move forward with the claim.
Attorney Shawn Abdi takes the time to explain everything he does to grieving family members and is available to answer questions or concerns as the case goes on.
Abdi & Associates helps families with wrongful death claims throughout California and, where a case calls for it, works with experienced wrongful death trial counsel we trust while staying involved in your case.

Do You Need a Lawyer for a Wrongful Death Claim?

Wrongful death claims in Los Angeles can become incredibly challenging. The reality is that family members and estates of the deceased struggle to handle these claims on their own. A skilled attorney will be able to conduct a complete investigation into the incident in order to determine exactly what happened. A lawyer will also handle the process of enlisting economic and financial experts to adequately calculate the family and estate’s total expected losses. This information will be used as the attorney engages in vigorous negotiations with insurance carriers and other lawyers involved. Ultimately, an attorney will fully prepare the claim for a trial by jury if that is what it takes to pursue complete compensation for their client.

Paying for a Wrongful Death Attorney in Los Angeles

We know that grieving families often steer away from working with an attorney for their claim because they think there is no way that the estate can afford the legal assistance. However, that is not the case. Wrongful death claims are handled on a contingency fee basis. This means there is no attorney fee unless there is a recovery for the family, and how case costs are handled is explained in the written fee agreement before anything is signed. If there is no recovery, there is no attorney fee.

Common Causes of Wrongful Death Accidents in Los Angeles

When we examine California law, we can see that wrongful death lawsuits allow certain surviving family members (or the personal representative of the estate on their behalf) to file a claim for damages if a person loses their life as a result of the wrongful act of someone else (Code of Civil Procedure 377.60). This can include deaths caused by negligent, reckless, or intentional actions of another individual, company, or entity. Wrongful death claims arise in various ways throughout Los Angeles and California. Some of the most common causes of wrongful deaths that we help clients with include the following:

Car accidents

Data published by the California Office of Traffic Safety show that California has recorded more than 4,000 traffic deaths a year in recent years. Not every vehicle accident fatality will be considered a wrongful death claim, but there are certainly circumstances that arise where another party could and should be held accountable for a traffic fatality. Impaired driving is involved in a large share of fatal crashes, and drivers can also be held responsible for a death if they cause an accident due to distracted driving, failing to follow traffic laws, speeding, road rage, or another type of reckless driving behavior.

Truck accidents

Accidents involving larger commercial trucks often result in devastating injuries or fatalities. These trucks are substantially larger and weigh much more than traditional passenger vehicles on the roadway, so any impact with a larger commercial truck is more likely to lead to disastrous results. Truck drivers and trucking companies could be held responsible if their negligent actions lead to a roadway death. When a loved one survives a crash like this with a permanent injury, the case is a catastrophic injury claim rather than a wrongful death claim; see our Los Angeles catastrophic injury lawyer page.

Motorcycle accidents

Motorcyclist deaths in California have exceeded 500 a year in recent years. Just like other types of vehicle accidents, motorcyclists are at risk from negligent and careless drivers. Due to the nature of operating a motorcycle, motorcyclists face even more risks than those inside traditional passenger vehicles. A motorcyclist does not have the protection of a heavy metal frame, seatbelts, and airbags.

Bus accidents

Accidents involving buses in Los Angeles and the surrounding area can lead to significant injuries and fatalities. This includes bus passengers as well as other parties involved in accidents, such as drivers and passengers in other vehicles, pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists.

Pedestrian and bicycle accidents

Bicyclists and pedestrians are considered vulnerable roadway users in Los Angeles. Even though this city has taken steps to eliminate pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities, that goal has simply not been met. The negligent and careless actions of other drivers on the roadway are a common cause of pedestrian and bicyclist deaths, and these other parties should be held accountable.

Premises liability incidents

Property owners owe a duty to anyone who has a right to be on their premises. This includes private homeowners who invite guests onto their property as well as business owners and government property operators. If a property owner or operator fails to take the steps necessary to inspect and maintain their premises, and if they do not remedy known hazards on their property, individuals can sustain injuries. If these injuries lead to a fatality, the property owner could face a wrongful death claim.

Defective product incidents

Manufacturers, suppliers, and retailers all have a duty to ensure that the products they release to the public are safe for use and consumption. However, if a product is defective, whether due to a design flaw, manufacturing defect, or inadequate warnings, individuals can sustain severe injuries. If a person loses their life as a result of a defective product, then the companies responsible can be held liable.

Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in California?

Examining California’s wrongful death law, we can see that only certain individuals are allowed to file wrongful death claims in civil court. This includes the following individuals (or their personal representatives):

Surviving spouse or registered domestic partner of the deceased
Children of the deceased
Grandchildren of the deceased, but only if the deceased individual’s children are also deceased
Other minor children, including stepchildren, who lived with the deceased and depended on the deceased for at least half of their financial support
Parents of the deceased and a putative spouse, if they were financially dependent on the deceased
Any other party that would be entitled to the deceased’s property through California intestate succession, if the deceased left no surviving children or grandchildren

Compensation Available for a Los Angeles Wrongful Death Claim

There may be various types of compensation available to family members and the estate of the deceased if a wrongful death claim in Los Angeles is successful. These damages are intended to compensate the heirs for the value of the support they would likely have received if the deceased had survived. Compensation for a wrongful death claim will either be paid out as a lump sum (all at once) or as part of a structured settlement with payments made monthly or annually over a period of time. There is a range of economic and non-economic damages available in these circumstances. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Economic damages. We can also refer to these as “special damages,” and they refer to the various types of compensation that are relatively calculable after a wrongful death occurs. These are calculable expenses because families and attorneys can gather bills or receipts to otherwise document the loss. Some of the most common economic damages awarded for a Los Angeles wrongful death claim include:

Funeral and burial expenses
The reasonable value of any household services the deceased would have provided
The loss of any benefits or gifts the heirs would have received from the deceased
The loss of income and other financial support the deceased would have provided during their lifetime

Non-economic damages. We can also refer to these as “general damages,” and they refer to the types of losses that are not as easy to calculate in the aftermath of a wrongful death claim in LA. These are harder to measure because they revolve around losses that are not documented by bills or receipts. Some of the most common non-economic damages in these cases include:

The loss of companionship, society, protection, affection, and moral support of the deceased
Loss of consortium damages for a spouse or domestic partner
In a survival action brought by the estate, damages for the pain and suffering the deceased experienced before death may also be available under rules that have changed in recent years; ask us whether they apply to your case

How Much is Your Wrongful Death Claim Worth?

There is no set amount of compensation paid to surviving family members or the estate if a wrongful death claim is successful in Los Angeles. Rather, the total amount of compensation will revolve around the facts and circumstances surrounding each particular case. Some of the factors that can affect compensation amounts include:

The age of the deceased at the time they passed
The deceased’s earnings, education, and work history
The number of dependents and the support the deceased provided
The relationship between the deceased and each heir

Calculating economic damages involves gathering those bills and records that we discussed above and projecting the support the deceased would have provided over a lifetime. Calculating non-economic losses is more challenging, and there is no fixed formula: a jury decides what amount is reasonable based on the evidence about the relationship. An attorney will often work with economic and financial experts to document the economic losses and will build the evidence of companionship and support that drives the non-economic award.

Who Can be Held Liable for a Los Angeles Wrongful Death?

There may be various parties who can be held liable in the aftermath of a wrongful death. Ultimately, the at-fault party will depend on the type of circumstance that led to the death. For example, for a car accident claim, an at-fault driver will ultimately be responsible for the incident, though compensation may come through their insurance carrier. If a wrongful death occurs as a result of a premises liability incident, there could be various liable parties, and there will likely need to be an extensive investigation into the incident. The property owner could be held liable, but it is not uncommon for other individuals to lease a property from a property owner, and these other parties could ultimately be liable if they had control over the premises. Determining liability can be challenging, and this is where an investigation will take place. An attorney will thoroughly examine the situation to uncover any and all liable parties who could face claims for the wrongful death.

What is a Survival Action in California?

Individuals involved in wrongful death claims may also hear the term “survival action.” A survival action in California is another type of civil claim that does bear similarities to wrongful death claims. In general, wrongful death claims and survival actions arise in the same way. Often, both wrongful death and survival action civil court claims are filed together.

A wrongful death lawsuit is designed to compensate a deceased person’s surviving family members for the losses they sustained as a result of the death. However, a survival action allows the estate’s representative or successor in interest to file a lawsuit on behalf of the deceased individual’s estate. Survival actions in Los Angeles and throughout California can provide compensation to a deceased individual’s estate for two types of losses:

Claims unrelated to the actual death that the deceased had the right to bring as of the date of their death.
Claims related to the injury that caused the death, if the individual survived those injuries for some period of time after they occurred (no matter how short the period of time was).

Survival action claims are relatively complicated, and it is crucial to work with a skilled wrongful death attorney who can help you understand the process moving forward. Another major difference between wrongful death claims and survival actions is that a survival action can include awards for punitive damages.

Time Limit to File Your Los Angeles Wrongful Death Lawsuit

In the state of California, the time limit for filing a wrongful death claim in civil court is generally two years from the date of death (Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1). If the plaintiffs (surviving family members) fail to file a lawsuit within this two-year timeframe, they will likely lose the ability to recover any compensation at all.

There is a caveat to this for survival actions. For these claims, the estate of the deceased has until the later of (1) the deadline that would have applied to the deceased’s own claim or (2) six months after the death occurs (Code of Civil Procedure section 366.1).

If a government entity may be responsible, such as a city bus, a public employee’s vehicle, or a dangerous condition on public property, a written government claim generally must be presented within six months of the death (Government Code section 911.2) before any lawsuit can be filed. Missing that deadline can end the claim regardless of the two-year statute.

There are various reasons why the statute of limitations may be paused or tolled. We strongly encourage you to reach out to a skilled wrongful death attorney in Los Angeles who can help you determine the correct timeframes for filing your claim. Additionally, if there are any insurance carriers involved in the case, they will also have their own deadlines that are far shorter than the statute of limitations that you need to be aware of.

The Four Elements of Negligence and a Wrongful Death Claim

As with other personal injury claims, there are various elements that must be in place in order for a wrongful death claim to be successful in court. Without the presence of the following four elements, it will be nearly impossible for surviving family members or the estate of the deceased to recover any compensation.

Duty. The first step in putting together a successful wrongful death claim in court is establishing that there was a duty of care owed to the deceased by the defendant (the person alleged to have caused the death). There will be no way to cover all of the possible ways a duty of care can be established for a wrongful death claim because this is entirely dependent on the type of claim. For example, every driver on Los Angeles roadways owes a duty of care to others around them. This includes operating a vehicle safely and within the confines of the law. Property owners also owe a duty of care to any person who comes onto their premises legally. This duty extends to ensuring the premises are safe and free from known hazards.
Breach. After establishing that there was indeed a duty of care between the defendant and the deceased, it will need to be shown that the defendant somehow breached the duty of care. This breach can occur in a wide variety of ways, again depending on the type of claim before the court. A driver can breach their duty of care in a number of ways, including distracted driving, impaired driving, speeding, failing to yield the right of way, and more. Property owners can breach their duty by allowing unsafe conditions on their property even after they know about them and know that they could cause harm to patrons.
Causation. After establishing that a breach of duty occurred between the defendant and the deceased, it must be shown that the breach of duty is what actually caused the death. For example, it is not enough to show that a person was impaired while driving. It must be shown that their impairment led to the accident and the fatality. If a property owner has an unsafe condition on the premises, it will need to be established in court that this unsafe condition led to the injuries that caused the death.
Damages. The last element in a successful wrongful death claim is establishing that the family members and the estate suffered some sort of loss as a result of the death. This can include funeral and burial expenses, loss of financial support, loss of companionship, and more.

Call a Los Angeles Wrongful Death Lawyer Today

If you have lost a loved one due to the negligent, intentional, or careless actions of another individual or entity in the Los Angeles area, you need to reach out to an attorney as soon as possible. At Abdi & Associates, we will not back down from aggressive insurance carriers and at-fault parties as we pursue closure and compensation for your family. We know what it takes to investigate these claims in order to determine liability. We will work with trusted financial and economic experts to properly calculate your total expected losses. When you need a Los Angeles wrongful death lawyer, you can contact us for a free consultation by filling out the contact form at the bottom of this page, or you can call us at (888) 772-2529.

Wrongful death is one of several injury claims we help families and individuals with. See our personal injury overview.

Sources: Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 335.1, 366.1, 377.30, 377.34, 377.60, 377.61; Cal. Gov. Code §§ 911.2, 945.6; Cal. Civ. Code § 3294.

Reviewed by Shawn Abdi, Esq., Abdi & Associates, Inc. Last reviewed: September 4, 2026. Attorney advertising. This page is general information, not legal advice about your specific situation. Legal deadlines have exceptions; confirm the deadlines that apply to your case with a lawyer.