At Chandler Law, we help you and other surviving family members investigate the car accident, medical malpractice incident, or other scenario that led to your loved one’s demise. Then, we determine whether you have sufficient grounds to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the responsible parties or responsible party.

W​hen a victim dies in an auto accident, truck accident, or other type of accident in California, the decedent’s family’s personal injury lawyer may typically bring two distinct claims. One is an action brought on behalf of the personal representative of the deceased, claiming recovery for the injuries suffered by the victim.

California law calls this claim a “survival action,” which is the California statute that allows compensation to the victim’s estate for the pain and suffering and other damages and actual expenses incurred by the victim that were suffered up to the moment of death. The other claim is a “wrongful death action,” also pursuant to California statute, brought by the relatives of the victim and seeking compensation for the victim’s accidental death.

In a survival action in California, damages are measured in terms of harm to the actual victim. The personal representative serves as the posthumous agent of the victim. In a wrongful death action in California, damages are measured in terms of harm to loved ones as a result of the loss of the victim. In this case, the surviving relatives do not serve the agent for the decedent and act on their own behalf for their own loss.

One chief difference between a survival statute and a wrongful death statute is that if death is instantaneous, there can be no cause of action except for medical bills, lost wages before death and funeral expenses under the California Survival Statute.