Comparative Fault – California Car Accidents

It is very common for injury victims to avoid speaking with an attorney in the wake of an injurious car accident because they are either concerned that they were at fault for what happened to them or they are convinced that they have no legal options available to them. It is important to understand that, especially in California, car accident injury victims generally have opportunities for legal and financial recourse available even if these victims were partially to blame for what happened to them.

As a result, it is important to not make any assumptions about whether you have grounds to pursue legal action until you’ve spoken with a lawyer. Once you have told a lawyer your story, asked any questions that are on your mind, and received personalized legal guidance, you can make informed decisions about any next steps that you may be interested in taking.

Why Is California Law Different?

As an experienced San Francisco, CA car accident lawyer – including those who practice at The Morales Law Firm – can explain in detail, California law doesn’t operate in the ways that every other state law operates when it comes to car accident injury victims. Unlike many other states, California honors a legal theory known as pure comparative negligence.

A small fraction of states don’t allow injury victims to pursue compensation from others who are also responsible for their harm if those victims also contributed to the causes of their accidents. A larger fraction of states only allows injury victims to pursue compensation if they are 50% or less responsible for their own harm. By contrast, California allows injury victims to pursue compensation from others whose negligence, recklessness, or intentionally dangerous conduct directly contributed to the cause of their harm to any degree whatsoever.

Effectively, this means that if you were injured in a car accident in California and any other party was partially responsible for the causes of your harm, you may be in a strong position to pursue significant compensation even if you were also partially to blame. You may or may not know whether you have any grounds to hold anyone else responsible for your harm. That is a common position for car accident injury victims to be in, as it is often difficult to identify all the causes of a car accident in its immediate aftermath. Speaking with an attorney who can investigate your car accident can help you to clarify your position and make informed decisions about your situation.

Connect With an Experienced California Car Accident Attorney Today

If you have not already scheduled a confidential consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer, please do so now. You have nothing to lose by speaking with an attorney except for an hour or two of your time. Making this effort will help to ensure that if you are owed compensation that you can make informed decisions about pursuing that compensation or letting that opportunity pass you by.