Published: October, 2020 | Updated: May 2026
Losing someone you love is devastating under any circumstances. When that loss is caused by another person’s or entity’s negligence — a preventable accident, a dangerous product, someone’s failure to act reasonably — grief is often accompanied by anger, confusion, and urgent practical questions. One of the most common: do we have legal options?
A wrongful death lawsuit is one of those options. Here’s what it means under California law, who can file, and what the process generally looks like.
Key Takeaways
- Wrongful death defined — a wrongful death occurs when someone is killed due to another party’s negligence or intent to cause harm.
- Who can file — California limits wrongful death claims to spouses, domestic partners, children, and certain other dependents and relatives.
- Two types of damages — families may recover both economic damages (lost income, medical bills, funeral costs) and noneconomic damages (grief, loss of companionship).
- Civil, not criminal — a wrongful death lawsuit is a civil proceeding and is separate from any criminal case against the defendant.
- Lower burden of proof — unlike a criminal trial, a wrongful death claim only requires a preponderance of evidence, meaning it’s more likely than not that the defendant is responsible.
- Deadlines apply — California has a statute of limitations for wrongful death claims. Acting promptly protects your options.
What Qualifies as a Wrongful Death in California?
In straightforward terms, a wrongful death occurs when an individual is killed due to another person’s or entity’s negligence or intentional act. California law is broad about the types of incidents that can give rise to a claim — there is no single type of fatal accident that qualifies or disqualifies a case.
Wrongful death claims have been brought following car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, slip and fall injuries, electrocution, boating accidents, train accidents, defective products, and criminal activity. What matters in every case is not the type of incident but whether the defendant’s negligence caused the death.
How California Wrongful Death Cases Work
To bring a successful wrongful death claim in California, a plaintiff must generally prove four things:
- Someone has died.
- The death was caused by another party’s negligence or intent to cause harm.
- Surviving family members have suffered measurable losses — financial and otherwise.
- A personal representative for the decedent’s estate has been appointed.
California is a comparative negligence state, which means fault can be shared. Even if the deceased was partially responsible for the incident that caused their death, a claim may still be viable — damages would simply be apportioned accordingly.
Who Can File a Wrongful Death Lawsuit in California
California law limits who can bring a wrongful death claim to relatives and dependents of the deceased. Eligible parties include:
- Spouse or registered domestic partner
- Children
- Grandchildren (if the decedent’s child — the claimant’s parent — is no longer living)
- Stepchildren
- Parents (depending on the circumstances)
- Dependents who resided with and relied on the decedent for at least 180 days prior to their death
Filing a Wrongful Death Claim in California: What Families Can Recover
If a wrongful death claim is successful, the family may recover both economic and noneconomic damages.
Economic damages include:
- Medical expenses related to the fatal injury
- Funeral and burial costs
- The income the deceased would reasonably have earned over their lifetime
- Financial support the deceased provided to family members
Noneconomic damages cover losses that are harder to quantify but no less real — grief, sorrow, loss of companionship, and loss of affection.
In some cases, noneconomic damages can far exceed economic ones. Worth noting: in most California wrongful death cases, punitive damages — awards designed to punish the defendant rather than compensate the family — are not available. Courts do occasionally allow them, but it is not the norm.
One area where wrongful death cases can extend into unexpected territory involves sports teams and athletic organizations. When a death occurs in a sporting context and negligence can be established, families have pursued wrongful death claims against organizations well beyond individual defendants.
The Difference Between a Wrongful Death Lawsuit and a Criminal Case
A wrongful death lawsuit is a civil proceeding, not a criminal one. The two can run parallel — a defendant may face both a criminal prosecution and a civil wrongful death claim arising from the same incident — but they are entirely separate processes and the outcome of one generally has no bearing on the other.
A Classic Example: The O.J. Simpson Trials
The mid-1990s O.J. Simpson cases remain the most well-known illustration of this distinction. Simpson was acquitted of the criminal murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, but he subsequently lost a civil wrongful death trial brought by the victims’ families, which resulted in millions of dollars in damages award.
Why the Same Case Can Have Two Different Results
The reason comes down to the burden of proof. A criminal case requires the prosecution to establish guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt” — a high bar deliberately set to protect the accused. A wrongful death lawsuit, like other civil claims, only requires a preponderance of evidence: that it is more likely than not — greater than a 50% probability — that the defendant is responsible. That lower threshold means a civil claim can succeed even when a criminal prosecution does not.
Frequently Asked Questions About Wrongful Death Lawsuits in California
What’s the difference between a wrongful death lawsuit and a criminal case?
A wrongful death lawsuit is a civil claim brought by the family of the deceased — it’s separate from any criminal charges the state may bring against the defendant. The outcomes are independent of each other, and the burden of proof is lower in a civil case. A defendant can be acquitted criminally and still be found liable in a wrongful death suit.
Can we still file if the deceased was partly at fault?
Yes. California’s comparative negligence rules mean fault can be shared. If the deceased bears some responsibility for the incident that caused their death, it doesn’t automatically bar a claim — it may simply reduce the damages recovered. An attorney can help assess how fault is likely to be apportioned in your specific situation.
What’s the difference between economic and noneconomic damages in a wrongful death case?
Economic damages cover calculable financial losses — medical bills, funeral costs, lost income, and the financial support the deceased provided to the family. Noneconomic damages cover losses that are harder to put a number on: grief, sorrow, loss of companionship, and loss of affection. In some cases, noneconomic damages significantly exceed economic ones.
Can a wrongful death claim be filed even if there is no criminal case?
Yes. A wrongful death lawsuit does not require a parallel criminal prosecution. The two are independent, and families can pursue a civil claim regardless of whether criminal charges are filed or how a criminal case resolves.
What if the deceased had no income — can the family still recover damages?
Yes. While lost income is one category of economic damages, it is not the only one. Families may also recover for funeral and burial costs, medical expenses related to the fatal injury, the value of household services the deceased provided, and noneconomic losses including grief and loss of companionship. Every case is different and an attorney can help identify what damages may apply.
Talk to a California Wrongful Death Attorney
The personal injury attorneys at Penney & Associates have spent decades representing families across California locations — including Sacramento, Santa Clara, Irvine, Roseville, and more — who have lost loved ones due to someone else’s negligence. If you believe you may have a wrongful death claim, the sooner you speak with an attorney the better. Contact us for free consultation. Our bilingual, compassionate team is here to help you seek justice and secure the compensation you deserve.
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