News & Articles

No. California law prohibits evidence of a person’s immigration status from being admitted in a civil action for personal injury or wrongful death, and it bars any discovery that probes that status. The rule is codified in Evidence Code section 351.2, which took effect on January 1, 2017. A companion body of law: Civil Code […]

When Medi-Cal or Medicare pays for medical treatment that resulted from someone else’s negligence, California law and federal law give those programs the right to recover their costs from any money you receive in a personal injury settlement, judgment, or award. Neither program simply keeps everything it paid. California Welfare and Institutions Code section 14124.72 […]

So here’s the deal. If you’ve got a personal injury claim going in California, the defense actually has a right to send you to their own doctor for a physical exam. It comes from Chapter 15 of the Civil Discovery Act. People call it a defense medical exam, or a DME for short. And honestly, […]

Legal Snapshot Legal Topic: Personal injury demand packages in California Case Stage: Pre-litigation; insurance negotiation Primary Legal Issue: Documenting and presenting a compensable injury claim to a liability insurer Primary Authority: Cal. Civil Code § 3281 (right to compensatory damages); Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1 (two-year statute of limitations for personal injury) Jurisdiction: California […]

If you were injured in a California car accident and have no health insurance, you can still receive medical treatment through a process called lien-based care. Under this arrangement, a provider treats you now and agrees to defer payment until your personal injury claim resolves. If the claim settles or results in a judgment, the […]

Under California law, when more than one defendant contributed to an injury, the answer to “who pays what” depends entirely on the type of damage at issue. For economic damages, every defendant found liable can be held responsible for the full amount, regardless of how small that defendant’s share of fault was. For non-economic damages, […]

California Code of Civil Procedure section 998 gives any party to a civil lawsuit a formal mechanism to make a written offer of judgment before trial. If the party who received the offer fails to accept it and then fails to achieve a more favorable outcome at trial, that party loses the right to recover […]

A person injured by an uninsured driver in Illinois may be able to pursue uninsured motorist benefits under their own auto policy, the policy covering the occupied vehicle, or another policy under which they qualify as an insured. A direct lawsuit against the uninsured driver may also be possible, although collecting a judgment can be […]

A settlement and a trial are two different ways of resolving a personal injury claim. A settlement is a negotiated agreement that resolves some or all claims without a trial, while a trial is a formal court proceeding in which a judge or jury decides disputed issues based on the evidence presented. A settlement provides […]

Legal Snapshot Legal Topic: California Hospital Lien Act – Civil Code §§ 3045.1–3045.6 Case Stage: Pre-settlement / Settlement Disbursement Primary Legal Issue: Hospital lien perfection, notice requirements, and the 50% collection cap Primary Authority: California Civil Code §§ 3045.1, 3045.3, 3045.4 [1] Date Legal Authority Last Reviewed: July 2025 Under California law, a licensed hospital […]