Folsom Wrongful Death Lawyer

Lost a loved one due to negligence in Folsom, CA? Discover how a Folsom wrongful death lawyer can help your family seek justice.

Losing someone you love is painful under any circumstances. When that loss happens because another person was careless or reckless, families in Folsom and across Sacramento County are left with grief, anger, and a long list of questions no family should have to answer alone. Medical bills and funeral costs arrive. Income stops. And the people responsible, along with their insurance company, start making decisions about your family’s future before you have even had time to breathe.

At Adams & Corzine Injury & Car Accident Lawyers, our personal injury attorneys specialize in wrongful death claims and understand how to represent and support local Folsom families during such a difficult time. We are an AV-rated firm that is strategically small by design, so when you call our office, you speak directly with an experienced partner who will listen to what happened, explain your family’s rights in plain language, and help you decide what to do next. Our attorneys have represented individuals, insurance carriers, and public entities, so we know how the other side values these claims. There is no fee unless we win, and you pay nothing upfront.

Get started with a free consultation and discover how our wrongful death attorneys in Folsom, CA, can help you seek the justice and compensation your family deserves.

What Is a Wrongful Death Case in California?

A wrongful death claim is a civil lawsuit filed by surviving family members when a person is killed because of another party’s negligence, recklessness, or intentional conduct. In California, this right is established under Code of Civil Procedure § 377.60.

This type of lawsuit is entirely separate from any criminal case arising from the same incident. Your family can pursue full compensation through the civil court system even if the at-fault party is never criminally charged or convicted.

Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in California?

California law specifies who has legal standing, meaning the right to file a claim. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 377.60, the following people may file:

• The surviving spouse or domestic partner
• The deceased’s children, whether adult or minor
• The deceased’s grandchildren, whose parent (the deceased’s child) has died
• If there is no surviving spouse, domestic partner, or descendant, the people entitled to inherit under California’s intestate succession laws, such as parents or siblings
• A putative spouse, the putative spouse’s children, stepchildren, or parents, if they depended on the deceased for financial support
• A minor who lived in the deceased’s home for the previous 180 days and depended on the deceased for half or more of their support

Your family may also be entitled to file a “survival action” alongside the wrongful death lawsuit. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 377.30, a survival action is a separate claim brought by the estate’s personal representative, or by the deceased’s successor in interest if there is none, for losses the deceased suffered before dying, such as medical expenses and lost wages. It is typically filed at the same time. Damages for the deceased’s own pain and suffering were allowed only in survival actions filed from January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2025. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 377.34, cases filed on or after January 1, 2026, generally cannot recover those damages, with limited exceptions such as certain elder abuse claims.

What Compensation Can a Folsom Family Recover?

California law allows surviving family members to pursue two categories of damages.

Economic damages address the direct financial losses your family now faces:

• Funeral and burial expenses
• The income and financial support your loved one would have provided over their lifetime
• The value of household services, such as childcare or home maintenance

Non-economic damages cover the profound personal losses that are harder to put a number on:

• Loss of love, companionship, and affection
• Loss of moral support and guidance, particularly for surviving children
• Loss of consortium for a surviving spouse or domestic partner

Punitive damages, designed to punish especially egregious conduct, are not available in a wrongful death claim itself. However, they may be recoverable through a parallel survival action if the at-fault party acted with malice, oppression, or fraud, such as in some DUI-related deaths or an intentional act.

“When my husband was hit and not able to work for months, I didn’t know who to turn to.  A friend told me to see Doug Adams.  that was a huge turning point for me, he took the weight off my shoulders.  He took care of everything.  He cared about us, he listened, and guided us through this terrible time.  He is honest and trustworthy.  I completely recommend him.” – Elaine W.

How Long Does Your Family Have to File?

In California, most families have two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit under Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1. This window is known as the statute of limitations. Miss it, and your family’s right to sue is almost certainly closed permanently.

One critical exception applies when a government entity is at fault. If the death involved a government employee, a public vehicle, or a dangerous condition on public property, your family must file a formal government claim with the responsible agency within six months of the date of death. That step must happen before any lawsuit can be filed.

Surveillance footage gets overwritten. Vehicles are repaired or scrapped. Witnesses become harder to locate as time passes. The sooner you reach out to a Folsom wrongful death attorney, the more evidence we can preserve and the stronger your family’s position will be.

A recurring issue we see in Sacramento County wrongful death cases is the six-month government claim deadline catching families off guard. Fatal crashes on roads like Highway 50, Green Valley Road, or Blue Ravine Road can involve a public entity when a dangerous road condition, a signal problem, or a public vehicle played a role. Families often learn about this deadline only after months of grieving have passed. We review every case for possible public entity involvement at the start, so a claim can be presented on time if one is needed.

What to Do After a Fatal Accident in Folsom

The decisions your family makes in the days immediately following the accident will directly shape what you are able to recover. Here is where to focus your energy.

Request the official reports. Obtain the crash or incident report from the Folsom Police Department or the California Highway Patrol, along with the Sacramento County Coroner’s report, which formally documents the cause of death.

Preserve all physical evidence. Do not allow any vehicle involved in the accident to be repaired or sent to a salvage yard. The vehicle’s internal event data recorder, its “black box,” and its physical condition can be decisive proof of what happened and who was responsible.

Decline to give the opposing insurer a recorded statement. The at-fault party’s adjuster will likely contact your family quickly. You are not legally required to speak with them, and doing so before consulting an attorney can seriously damage your family’s claim.

Do not accept any early settlement offer. Quick offers are extended before your family understands the full, long-term financial and personal impact of your loss. Once you sign a release, that settlement is final. There is no going back.

In our experience handling Folsom wrongful death cases, the official reports rarely arrive all at once. Fatal crashes on Highway 50 are generally investigated by the California Highway Patrol, while crashes on city streets such as East Bidwell Street or Natoma Street are typically handled by the Folsom Police Department. The cause of death findings from the Sacramento County Coroner can come separately. We request and track each of these records for families, so no detail is missed while they focus on each other.

Common Causes of Wrongful Death We Handle

Wrongful death cases in Folsom and throughout Sacramento County arise from many types of fatal accidents. We represent families in cases involving:

• Car accidents on Highway 50, East Bidwell Street, and Folsom Boulevard
• Commercial truck and big rig collisions
• Motorcycle and bicycle fatalities
• Pedestrian deaths at crosswalks and intersections
• Medical malpractice at local hospitals and clinics
• Nursing home neglect and elder abuse
• Defective or dangerous products
• Unsafe property conditions
• DUI and reckless driving crashes

How Insurance Companies Approach Wrongful Death Claims

The adjuster for the at-fault party’s insurer may sound sympathetic when they call. Their actual objective is to resolve your family’s claim for as little money as possible.

They rely on two predictable tactics:

• Requesting a recorded statement early. Adjusters use your own words to find inconsistencies and shift more fault onto your loved one than the evidence actually supports.
• Extending a fast, lowball offer. Early offers come before your family has had time to calculate the full lifetime financial and personal impact of your loss, and signing a release at that stage is permanent.

Because our attorneys have represented insurance carriers as well as injured plaintiffs, we know exactly how insurers build their defense and assign value to wrongful death claims. We use that inside knowledge to protect your family from the very first contact.

What we see across the wrongful death claims we handle in Folsom and Sacramento County is that adjusters comb through the hospital records, whether the care took place at Mercy Hospital of Folsom or at UC Davis Medical Center, a Level I trauma center in Sacramento. They look for any note they can use to argue that a preexisting condition, not the incident, caused the death. We work with medical professionals to review those records in full and answer that argument before it takes hold.

What If My Loved One Was Partially at Fault?

California follows a “pure comparative negligence” rule. Under this standard, your family can still recover damages even if your loved one bore some responsibility for the accident. The total award is simply reduced by their percentage of fault.

If your family’s total damages are assessed at $800,000 and your loved one is found to be 25% at fault, your family recovers $600,000. Insurers routinely try to inflate the deceased’s share of blame to minimize what they pay, and we challenge those numbers with independent accident reconstruction and expert testimony.

What Happens After You Call Us?

Every wrongful death case at Adams & Corzine Injury & Car Accident Lawyers follows a clear process built to give your family the strongest possible position. You will never wonder where your case stands, because we communicate openly at every stage.

1. Free case review. You speak directly with a partner, at no charge, to discuss what happened and explore your family’s legal options.
2. Investigation. We collect police and coroner reports, interview witnesses, and bring in accident reconstruction specialists where needed.
3. Full damages assessment. We work with financial and medical professionals to calculate the complete scope of your family’s economic and non-economic losses.
4. Demand and negotiation. We present a comprehensive settlement demand and negotiate aggressively on your behalf.
5. Trial if necessary. We file a lawsuit and take your case to court without hesitation when an insurer refuses a fair resolution.

Why Adams & Corzine Injury & Car Accident Lawyers for Your Wrongful Death Case

There is no shortage of personal injury firms in the Sacramento area. What sets Adams & Corzine Injury & Car Accident Lawyers apart is not size. We are strategically small by design, and that means direct, experienced attention for your family from start to finish.

When you hire us, you work directly with a highly experienced partner, either Founding Partner Douglas P. Adams or Law Partner Michael K. Pazdernik. You will not be passed off to a junior associate or a case manager, which is standard practice at many larger, high-volume firms in the region.

We are an AV-rated civil litigation firm. That Martindale-Hubbell rating reflects the highest level of legal ability and ethical standards, and our partners bring decades of combined experience in courtrooms and settlement rooms. We prepare every wrongful death case as if it will be decided by a jury, because that discipline is exactly what compels insurance companies to take your family’s claim seriously long before trial.

We represent wrongful death clients on a contingency fee basis. There is no fee unless we win. You pay nothing upfront, and we only get paid if we win your case.

“Doug Adams handled my complicated personal injury case with excellent results. His staff is responsive and competent. Doug is a professional and straight forward lawyer who I would be happy to hire again or recommend.” – Timothy

Where We Serve Families in the Sacramento Region

Our office is located at 740 Oak Avenue Parkway, Suite 120, in Folsom. We serve families throughout Sacramento County and the surrounding region, including El Dorado Hills, Rancho Cordova, Fair Oaks, Orangevale, Citrus Heights, Rocklin, Roseville, Cameron Park, Shingle Springs, Placerville, and Granite Bay. Both of our partners also serve as judges pro tem in Sacramento County.

Call (916) 983-3900 or contact us online for a free consultation and discover how our wrongful death attorneys can help with your family’s case.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Adult Siblings File a Wrongful Death Claim in California?

Siblings may be eligible to file only when there are no surviving higher-priority heirs, such as a spouse, children, grandchildren, or parents, and the sibling would be entitled to inherit from the deceased under California’s intestate succession laws.

What Is the Difference Between a Wrongful Death Claim and a Survival Action?

A wrongful death claim compensates surviving family members for their own losses, such as lost financial support and companionship. A survival action is filed by the estate for losses the deceased experienced before dying, such as pre-death medical bills and lost wages. Damages for the deceased’s pain and suffering are generally not available in survival actions filed on or after January 1, 2026. Both claims are typically filed at the same time.

Can a Family File a Wrongful Death Claim Against a Government Agency in California?

Yes, but a government claim must be submitted to the responsible public agency within six months of the date of death before any lawsuit can be filed. Missing this deadline can bar your family’s right to sue that agency, and relief for a late claim is available only in limited situations.

How Are Wrongful Death Settlement Funds Divided Among Family Members?

California does not set a fixed formula. Distribution is based on each family member’s individual relationship with and financial dependency on the deceased. We help families reach a fair arrangement or, if needed, petition the court to decide.

Does an Active Criminal Case Affect a Civil Wrongful Death Lawsuit?

No. A civil wrongful death lawsuit and a criminal prosecution are entirely separate proceedings with different standards of proof. Your family can pursue full compensation in civil court regardless of whether a criminal case is pending or how it ultimately resolves.

How Long Does a Folsom Wrongful Death Case Typically Take to Resolve?

Cases with clear liability and well-defined damages may settle within several months, while disputed fault or complex expert evidence can extend the timeline considerably. We will give you an honest, case-specific assessment during your free consultation.