There may come a time when you find yourself with the need to file a lawsuit against the government or any of its agencies. You may have been in a traffic accident while going down a public roadway, or gotten hurt while at a public beach, or been harmed when admitted at a public hospital. In each of these cases, it is a government entity that is responsible for compensating you. When you file a claim against such an entity in California, said claim would be subject to the California Claims Act, which requires a number of things from your side.
The first of these things is a written claim submitted to the entity that caused the personal injury and consequent harm. This claim forms a mandatory precursor to any lawsuit, and needs to be filed inside a period of six months following accrual of the claim. It should contain specific information such as your name and address, the date, time, and place of the accident along with a general description, and an overview of the damages that it caused. If you have the names of any employees who contributed, then those can be included as well.
What or Who Caused your Injury?
- If a public employee’s carelessness is what injured you, then generally, it holds that they would be just as liable as if they had been a private person. You need to show that the injury happened during the scope and course of said employee’s work, and then it would be proven that the employer (public entity) carries what is called vicarious liability.
- If, while in California, you are injured by a dangerous condition in which public property was arranged, then you would need to prove that this condition posed a substantial injury risk at the time, despite you using it in a manner that included reasonable and due care.
When trying to prove a dangerous condition, you would also be required to prove that the property was either owned or controlled by the public entity, and that it was maintained in a dangerous condition. Furthermore, you would have to prove that this dangerous condition could have been reasonably foreseen, and it was either caused by one of the employees of the government, or had been around for enough time that the entity had constructive notice of it.
A bus accident attorney can help you prove this conclusively as long as evidence supports your case. You may talk to a school bus accident lawyer at the soonest to make sure that you are awarded ample compensation by the court.