Personal Injury Lawyer Sacramento
Sacramento Personal Injury Attorney
Getting hurt because someone else was careless changes everything in a moment. The bills start, work stops, and an insurance company is already looking for reasons to pay you less. If you need a personal injury lawyer in Sacramento, Ravan Law represents people seriously hurt by a negligent driver, a trucking company, a dog owner, a property owner, or a public agency.
We represent clients in Sacramento from our Los Angeles office, and consultations are available by phone or video. We can travel for a case when it calls for it.
Our firm’s focus on public entity claims has a personal root. Ted H. Ravan went into injury law after his grandfather was in a near-fatal incident involving a city-operated bus. That is why our firm has put claims against public entities at the center of its work ever since.
Call (424) 465-2500 for a free consultation. Information is available in Spanish.
How We Work With Sacramento Clients
When you hire a Sacramento personal injury lawyer, you should know who is doing the work and what they are doing. Here is what we do. We investigate the crash, present any government claim, negotiate with the insurer, and file the lawsuit if a fair settlement is not offered. You work with us directly, we answer your questions, and we keep you updated at every stage. As your Sacramento personal injury lawyer, we prepare each one as if it will be tried.
Ted H. Ravan, a Los Angeles personal injury attorney, studied political science at UC San Diego and earned his law degree at the University of San Diego School of Law, where he gave more than 100 volunteer hours to the campus free legal clinic. Read more about attorney Ted H. Ravan.
- Contingency fee. No fee unless we win, and no cost for the consultation.
- Client rating. Clients rate our firm 4.9 on Google across 65 reviews.
Our results from cases elsewhere in California:
Recovery | Case type |
$6,000,000 | Premises liability |
$3,500,000 | Motor vehicle accident with a county vehicle |
$1,700,000 | Premises liability |
$275,000 | Bus accident |
Each settlement or verdict depended on its own injuries, evidence, and insurance.
Cases We Handle as Your Sacramento Accident Lawyer
Every claim below rests on Civil Code 1714, which makes each person responsible for injuries caused by a failure to use ordinary care. That is the rule we build your case on.
Car Accidents on I-5, I-80, US-50, SR-99, and the Capital City Freeway
I-5 runs along the river past downtown, I-80 crosses toward the Bay Area and Reno, US-50 carries commuters east toward Rancho Cordova and Folsom, and SR-99 runs south toward Elk Grove. The Capital City Freeway, signed Business 80 and designated State Route 51 for most of its length, crosses the American River northeast of downtown. All are state highways run by Caltrans District 3.
As your Sacramento car accident lawyer, we start with fault. California’s pure comparative fault rule lets an injured driver recover even when partly responsible, with compensation reduced by that share. SB 1107 raised California’s minimum liability limits to $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident on January 1, 2025, still short after a serious crash, so your own uninsured motorist coverage often fills the gap. As your Sacramento car accident attorney, we check every policy before the first settlement offer arrives. Read more about car accident claims. For local detail, see our Sacramento car accident lawyer page.
Truck Accidents on the I-5, SR-99, and I-80 Freight Routes
I-5 and SR-99 carry the valley’s north-south freight, and I-80 carries trucks toward the Sierra. Truck cases add rules a car case lacks: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration hours-of-service limits, electronic logging device data, driver qualification files, and maintenance records. Logs can be overwritten, so we send a preservation letter first. Read more about truck accident claims. For local detail, see our Sacramento truck accident lawyer page.
Uber and Lyft Accidents After SB 371
Under Public Utilities Code 5433, coverage depends on the driver’s app status. SB 371, effective January 1, 2026, cut passenger UM/UIM coverage to $60,000 per person and $300,000 per incident:
Driver status | Coverage |
App off | The driver’s personal auto insurance only |
App on, no ride accepted | $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for bodily injury, $30,000 property damage, plus a $200,000 excess policy |
Ride accepted | $1,000,000 third-party liability when the rideshare driver is at fault |
Passenger in the vehicle | Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage of $60,000 per person and $300,000 per incident |
The UM/UIM reduction matters most if you are a passenger hit by an uninsured driver on a late trip out of Midtown or an airport run on I-5, because it can cap the compensation available to you. We look for every other policy that may apply. Read more about Uber and Lyft accident claims. For local detail, see our Sacramento Uber accident attorney page.
Dog Bites
Civil Code 3342 makes a dog owner strictly liable for a bite in a public place or while the victim is lawfully on private property, regardless of the dog’s history. It does not cover trespassers, Civil Code 3342(b) and (c) exempt police and military dogs in defined situations, and courts generally treat veterinary workers as having assumed the risk. Read more about dog bite claims. For local detail, see our Sacramento dog bite attorney page.
Slip and Fall and Premises Injuries
Premises cases turn on notice: whether the owner knew about the hazard, or would have found it through reasonable inspection. Downtown and Midtown carry heavy foot traffic, including event crowds around Golden 1 Center, and store and garage video is often overwritten within days, so we ask for it early. A fall on a public sidewalk, in a public building, or on transit property follows the government claim rules below. Read more about slip and fall claims. For local detail, see our Sacramento slip and fall lawyer page.
Government Claims
A crash with a city truck, an injury on a SacRT train, or a crash caused by a dangerous state highway follows the separate track below. Read more about government claims. For sidewalk and public property injuries here, see our Sacramento sidewalk accident lawyer page. See every claim type we handle.
Claims Against the City, the County, SacRT, and the State: The Six-Month Rule
In the capital, one crash can involve a city street, a county vehicle, a SacRT bus, and a state employee driving to work. As your Sacramento injury attorney, we identify every public entity early, because each runs on its own deadline under the Government Claims Act, the California law governing claims against public entities.
The six-month claim. Before any lawsuit against a public entity, a written claim must be presented to that entity within six months of the injury, under Government Code 911.2. This is separate from the two-year statute of limitations, which does not extend it. Missing the six-month window can permanently bar an otherwise strong claim.
Each agency takes its own claim, on its own form:
- City of Sacramento. Claims are filed only with the Office of the City Clerk. The City states that claims against SacRT, the County, SMUD, and the school district are separate and go to those agencies directly.
- County of Sacramento. The County uses its own claim form, submitted to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors.
- SacRT. The transit agency, which runs the region’s buses and light rail, takes claims on its own form and does not accept them by fax or email.
- School districts. Your school district (for example, Sacramento City Unified) takes claims through its own risk management office.
- Caltrans and the State of California. For an injury caused by a dangerous condition on a state highway, Caltrans accepts claims of $12,500 or less directly. Larger claims, and claims against any other state department, go to the Department of General Services Government Claims Program.
What happens next. The agency generally has 45 days to act under Government Code 912.4, and silence counts as a rejection. The lawsuit deadlines that follow a rejection, and the narrow late-claim option, are in the deadlines table below.
Rules that apply only to public entities. A public entity is liable for the negligent operation of its vehicles by employees on the job (Vehicle Code 17001) and for dangerous conditions of its property (Government Code 835). SacRT owes passengers the utmost care as a common carrier under Civil Code 2100. Punitive damages are not available against a public entity (Government Code 818). A child’s two-year deadline is generally tolled until age 18 under Code of Civil Procedure 352, but that does not pause the six-month government claim. A late-claim application may be available for a child under Government Code 911.4 and 911.6, but it has its own one-year limit.
Claims against Caltrans and the State of California after a highway crash · What to do if you have been injured due to a government entity
Catastrophic Injury Cases a Sacramento Injury Lawyer Values for Lifetime Care
A traumatic brain injury (TBI), a spinal cord injury with paralysis, an amputation, or severe burns creates costs that continue for decades, and a freeway-speed crash on I-80 or US-50 is the kind of event that causes them. We build these cases on a life-care plan projecting future medical care, equipment, and in-home help over your life expectancy, an analysis of lost earning capacity over a full career, and treating specialists who can explain the prognosis to a jury.
An early settlement offer, made before the long-term prognosis is known, rarely accounts for any of this. As your Sacramento personal injury attorney, we wait until the medical picture supports a full valuation. When a death results, certain family members may bring a wrongful death claim under Code of Civil Procedure 377.60, generally within two years under Code of Civil Procedure 335.1. If a public entity was involved, a government claim must be presented within six months first.
Compensation in a California Personal Injury Claim
Compensation in a personal injury claim falls into two categories of compensatory damages. We build every case to account for both.
Economic damages are measurable financial losses: past and future medical care, rehabilitation, in-home care, lost wages, lost earning capacity, and property damage.
Non-economic damages cover physical pain, emotional distress, disfigurement, and the loss of a normal life.
Punitive damages are a separate category, not compensation for a loss. Under Civil Code 3294, they require clear and convincing evidence of malice, oppression, or fraud, and they are not available against a public entity. Read more about economic and non-economic damages.
As your Sacramento personal injury lawyer, we explain Proposition 51 (Civil Code 1431.2) early: each defendant pays non-economic damages only in proportion to its share of fault. That is why we look for every responsible party before a settlement is valued.
Sacramento Personal Injury Lawsuit Filing Deadlines
Claim | Deadline | Authority |
Personal injury lawsuit | Generally 2 years from the date of injury | Code of Civil Procedure 335.1 |
Wrongful death lawsuit | Generally 2 years from the date of death | Code of Civil Procedure 335.1 |
Claim against a city, county, transit agency, school district, Caltrans, or the State | 6 months from the date of injury, before any lawsuit | Government Code 911.2 |
Lawsuit after a written claim rejection | 6 months from the date the notice is mailed or delivered (2 years from the injury if no written notice is sent) | Government Code 945.6 |
Application to present a late claim | Within a reasonable time, not to exceed 1 year from the injury (relief not automatic) | Government Code 911.4 |
Injured minor | Generally tolled until age 18; does not pause the six-month claim | Code of Civil Procedure 352 |
Injury lawsuits arising in the county are generally filed in Sacramento County Superior Court. See the full guide to California personal injury time limits.
Sacramento Accident Attorney: What to Do First
- Get medical care, even if you feel fine.
- Report the crash to the police department for the city where it happened, or the CHP on freeways and unincorporated county roads. After a crash involving an injury, a death, or more than $1,000 in property damage, an SR-1 report must be filed with the DMV within 10 days.
- Photograph the scene and your injuries, and get witness contacts.
- Decline a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer until you have spoken with a lawyer.
- Write down the date. If a public entity may be involved, the six-month clock started on the day of the injury.
Talk to a Sacramento Personal Injury Lawyer
If you or someone in your family has been seriously hurt, the first weeks decide what evidence survives, which deadlines are still open, and what any settlement will be measured against. If a city vehicle, a SacRT bus, a county facility, or a state highway is involved, the six-month claim under Government Code 911.2 started on the day of the injury. You do not have to sort that out alone.
Call Ravan Law at (424) 465-2500 for a free consultation by phone or video. Tell us what happened, and we will explain where your claim stands and which deadlines apply. No fee unless we win. Learn more about Ravan Law.
6310 San Vicente Blvd., Suite 401, Los Angeles, CA 90048
Attorney Advertising. Ted H. Ravan, Esq., Ravan Law, Los Angeles, CA. This content is general information, not legal advice. Every case depends on its specific facts.
Every result depended on the facts of that case, and results will differ based on different facts. Past results do not guarantee, warrant, or predict the outcome of your matter.
