Guides
16 guides on what actually happens in a California injury claim. Every legal statement names the code section it relies on, so you can check it rather than trust it.
Straight after an injury
Evidence, insurers, reports, and the things that expire on their own schedule.
Evidence that disappears
A timetable of what is gone in days, weeks and months — and what to do about each.
Read moreDealing with adjusters
What a recorded statement is for, what the friendly questions are doing, and what you owe whom.
Read morePolice reports
What a collision report is, what it is worth, and what to do when it is wrong.
Read morePre-existing conditions
The eggshell plaintiff rule, and why hiding an old injury is the worst available option.
Read moreThe money
Who pays, what comes out of a settlement, and what a policy limit means.
Medical liens
Why the settlement figure is not the check, and who has a claim on it before you do.
Read moreLost wages
Proving income loss when you are salaried, hourly, tipped, or work for yourself.
Read moreProperty damage
The vehicle claim, the trap in the release, and the loss almost nobody claims.
Read morePolicy limits
What happens when the insurance is not enough, and when an insurer becomes liable beyond it.
Read moreHow a case works
Timelines, demands, depositions, examinations and mediation.
How long it takes
Honest ranges for each stage, and the things that actually make a case slow.
Read moreDemands and negotiation
What a demand package contains, and how the back-and-forth actually goes.
Read moreDepositions
The single most anxiety-producing day in a case, and the one most improved by preparation.
Read moreDefense medical exams
It is not independent, the doctor is not your doctor, and there is no confidentiality.
Read moreMediation
Where most filed cases actually end, and how the day is structured.
Read moreParticular situations
Government defendants, children, and living with a claim running.
Government claims
Six months, not two years — the deadline that ends more good claims than any other.
Read moreClaims for children
Tolling, court approval, blocked accounts, and why rushing a child's settlement is the worst mistake.
Read moreSocial media
What they look at, what they are allowed to do, and the one photograph that causes the damage.
Read moreFind out where you stand.
Tell us what happened and we will tell you honestly whether you have a claim worth bringing, what it is likely to involve, and how long it tends to take. The review is free and there is no fee unless there is a recovery.