Questions

Experience, results, track record, honesty, responsiveness. Howard Craig Kornberg has over 30 years of excellent results in settlement and jury trials in his cases. He has been successful in over 98% of the cases he has handled. He is internationally recognized by Martindale Hubble for achieving the highest rating given to attorneys, “AV,” for trial skills and ethics. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, “ABOTA,” which recognizes Mr. Kornberg’s jury trial experience and success.

Mr. Kornberg has never been disciplined by any State Bar in the United States, and in fact, Mr. Kornberg was appointed by the California State Bar to serve as a Commissioner on the Commission to Revise the Rules of Professional Conduct for all California Lawyers and participated in drafting over 60 new or revised Rules of Professional Conduct that were officially adopted by the California Supreme Court in 2018. I suggest these are the types of qualities and qualifications you should require in selecting an attorney.

In many areas throughout the country, Uber and other rideshare drivers use video and audio to record what happens in their vehicles. However, in California, all parties to a conversation must consent to be recorded (audio or video), or the recording will be unlawful. If an Uber driver lets their passengers know did they are being recorded, and the passenger’s consent, then audio and the video recording can be used.

Audio and video recordings are used by Uber drivers to protect themselves in the event they have an unruly passenger. However, these recordings could also be used to the benefit of the passenger if an uber accident or some other type of event occurs inside the vehicle.

If you or somebody you care about has been injured in an accident caused by the actions of another driver, you will have a limited amount of time to file a lawsuit. The California statute of limitations is two years from the date the incident occurs. This means that victims have a two-year window with which to file a lawsuit against the alleged negligent driver. Failing to file a claim within the required time frame will result in the victim being unable to recover the compensation they are entitled to.

However, this statutory time limit does not include deadlines put in place by insurance carriers. Most insurance carriers require that victims report the car accident within a very short amount of time after the incident occurs. Failing to promptly report an accident to the insurance carrier could result in a claim delay or denial.

In the event you or somebody you love have been injured in an accident caused by roadway debris, there may be various parties liable for the incident. In some cases, accidents caused by roadway debris are inevitable and unavoidable. However, the following parties could be held liable in certain circumstances:

• Government entities responsible for roadway inspection and maintenance (state, county, municipal)
• Construction companies, contractors, and subcontractors performing roadway maintenance
• Companies and individuals whose gross negligence allows for debris to spill onto the roadway

Determining liability in the aftermath of a roadway debris accident is crucial. An attorney will work to uncover the evidence necessary to determine what happened and help you secure full compensation.

If a dog is not threatening or injuring you, another person, or your livestock, you are not going to be legally allowed to shoot it. In most situations, this is going to be considered animal abuse and punishable by up to one year in County jail. Felony animal abuse is punishable by up to three years in state prison. Just because a dog is on your property does not mean that you have the right to shoot it. The same concept can be applied to a person that is trespassing on your property. Just because someone has crossed your property line does not mean you can open fire.

Dogs that are not properly restrained on leashes can cause significant injuries. In most municipalities throughout California, dog owners are required to keep their pets on a leash. There is no statewide universal leash law, but most counties and municipalities have written leash laws into their codes.

Most car accident claims are resolved out of court through settlements with insurance carriers. However, if the insurance carriers or at-fault party refuses to offer a fair settlement, it may be necessary for an injury victim to file a personal injury lawsuit against the alleged negligent driver. Even after a lawsuit is filed, it is still very likely that the case will be settled before it goes in front of a jury.

Most car accident claims are resolved out of court through settlements with insurance carriers. However, if the insurance carriers or at-fault party refuses to offer a fair settlement, it may be necessary for an injury victim to file a personal injury lawsuit against the alleged negligent driver. Even after a lawsuit is filed, it is still very likely that the case will be settled before it goes in front of a jury.

If you or somebody you care about has been injured on another person’s property, there may be various parties that can be held liable. In order for a premises liability case to be successful, an investigation will need to uncover that the property owner or operator was careless or negligent in some way and violated the duty of care they owed to the person on their property. In some cases, the injury victims themselves will share some of the blame for the incident, and this could result in them receiving less compensation than they would otherwise receive.

Lane splitting refers to riding a motorcycle or bicycle between two lanes or two rows of moving or stopped traffic. This is also called white lining or stripe-writing. This practice allows riders to save time by bypassing traffic congestion, and studies have also indicated that this is safer for motorcyclists than stopping behind stationary vehicles. The practice of lane splitting is allowed under California law, and the California Highway Patrol has instructed motorcyclists who lane split to travel no more than 10 mph faster than other traffic and not to lane split when traffic is moving at 30 mph or faster.

California is the only state that lane splitting is legal. If you plan on riding your motorcycle into another state, please keep this in mind, as lane splitting will result in a citation from law enforcement officials in other states.

While we never recommend operating a vehicle without a valid driver’s license, this should not have any direct bearing on proving liability for the crash. If another person causes a crash with your vehicle and you are not a licensed driver, you may very well be cited for operating a vehicle without a license, but the other party should still be responsible for causing the collision and for paying for your damages. However, it is feasible that the other parties involved will argue that you are an inexperienced driver because you do not have a valid driver’s license, and therefore, your inexperience caused the crash. However, the case is clear that not having a driver’s license is not relevant or admission evidence to prove negligence.

There may be various types of economic and non-economic damage is recoverable by family members who have lost a loved one due to the careless or negligent actions of another person. These can include the following:

• Coverage of medical and funeral expenses connected to the death
• Loss of the expected earnings of the victim
• Post and future loss of benefits such as medical care or a pension plan
• Damages for survivors’ loss of loved one
• Loss of care, guidance, advice, protection, nurturing, and training from the deceased

The total amount of compensation paid to family members will vary depending on the circumstances related to each particular situation. A skilled California wrongful death attorney will be able to help you with this process by working with economic and financial experts to help calculate maximize and prove all your losses.

Only certain parties are allowed to file a wrongful death lawsuit in California. State law specifically allows the following to bring these claims:

• The spouse of the deceased
• The domestic partner of the deceased
• The surviving children of the deceased
• The surviving parents of the deceased
• If there is no surviving person in the deceased’s line of descent, the wrongful death claim may be brought by anyone “who would be entitled to the property of the decedent by intestate succession.” This can include siblings of the deceased or other legal heirs.

Additionally, if there are any others who can show they were financially dependent on the deceased, they can also file a wrongful death suit. This includes a person’s putative spouse or stepchildren.

The types of damages that can be recovered by someone who is permanently injured will be much more extensive and could include various other aspects as well. For example, the following types of compensation are generally recoverable in these scenarios:

• Past and future complete coverage of medical bills
• Past and future lost income if a victim is unable to work while they recover
• Past and future general household out-of-pocket expenses
• Past and future pain and suffering damages
• Loss of job-related benefits such as health insurance and retirement

However, when a victim suffers from a permanent injury, there will likely be more significant expenses involved. For example, when the victim is unable to return to work or has to change their career, they will likely be entitled to significant compensation for loss of future expected earnings or a loss of earning potential. For victims who have limited mobility due to their injury, they could receive compensation for coverage of home or vehicle modifications to aid in mobility. Lastly, permanent injury victims may require compensation for permanent in-home care.

Generally, the total amount of compensation paid out to those who sustain permanent injuries caused by another party will be more than the compensation awarded in typical personal injury cases. However, you need to work with a skilled personal injury lawyer who can enlist the assistance of economic and medical experts to help calculate the total expected losses caused by a permanent injury.

If you or somebody you care about is injured due to the careless or negligent actions of another individual, there are various things that you must do at the scene of the accident or incident to help investigate and prove your claim. First, your number one priority is to secure medical attention for yourself or any other person injured. If you fail to seek medical assistance quickly, this delay could be used against you by insurance carriers or at-fault parties when trying to secure compensation. Some other crucial steps that you need to take at the scene of an accident include:

• Calling 911 if the ambulance is required
• Using a phone or another type of camera to take photographs of everything at the scene, including injuries, car damages, causes of the incident, debris lying around the scene, etc.
• Gathering the names and contact information of any witnesses to the incident.
• Exchanging relevant insurance information with all parties involved (vehicle accidents).
• Asking law enforcement officials or property owners on how to obtain official accident reports.
• Calling a family member or roadside assistance for advice or transportation assistance.

Generally, friends and acquaintances may not file a wrongful death claim for the death of a person who was not biologically or legally related to them. The limitations imposed on claimants depends upon the specific circumstances of each case. Typically, claimants include the surviving spouse and children of the person who died but may include other relatives. Recent laws have expanded the right to sue for wrongful death to unmarried but established same-sex couples and putative spouses.

Wrongful death is the result of a person’s negligent act. The different types of negligent acts in our society are virtually limitless and include events such as car accidents, slip, and fall accidents, elder abuse, and neglect cases, and product defect cases. If a person makes a mistake that causes another person’s death, then generally the person who committed that mistake will be responsible for any consequences, including the death of other people. In some instances, a person has a duty to prevent an injury from occurring, and that person does not take reasonable precautions to prevent injuries. In that scenario, a person would be responsible for a death that could have been prevented through reasonable precautions.

In many circumstances, the law specifies what actions a person or entity must carry out. For example, the law requires automobile manufacturers to install certain safety mechanisms (like seatbelts) in their vehicles and the failure to do so would create liability for any injuries and damages, which could have been prevented. In this manner, causes of wrongful death may not be immediately apparent upon the first impression. For example, if an automobile manufacturer installs seatbelts in its vehicles, and the manufacturer knows that 5% of those seatbelts will fail in an accident, then the manufacturer would likely be liable for failure to make a safe product. The family of an automobile accident victim whose seatbelt was defective may not become immediately aware that the manufacturer could have prevented the victim’s death.

Like any claim, these cases are fact-specific and no two cases are the same. In some circumstances, a defendant will admit responsibility for death. In other circumstances, a defendant may aggressively dispute responsibility. Where there are multiple persons who may be responsible for a person’s death, responsibility may be very difficult or even impossible to determine.

An attorney is experienced in the investigation and proof of a wrongful death claim and will maximize a claimant’s compensation. Without an attorney, even the most convincing claim may be rejected or denied for reasons entirely separate from the facts. There are many laws, which govern the process of making a claim, and the failure to follow those laws could result in the termination of a claim without any justice. In nearly every claim, an insurance company will respond to any allegations of wrongful death, and these insurance companies will try to mitigate liability at all costs. For example, an insurance company will commonly admit that their insured caused an automobile accident but was not responsible for the injuries resulting from that accident. These companies are aware that the average person is not sophisticated enough to jump through all of the legal hoops successfully. Insurance companies are concerned with profits, and they look for opportunities to pay little or nothing on any given claim. If you are negotiating a claim with an insurance company, then you are fighting with one hand, maybe even two hands, tied behind your back.

Our law firm has represented hundreds of people in wrongful death claims. We manage several of these types of claims at any given time, and we take them to trial if necessary. We are experienced and familiar with the process through which the insurance companies tend to evaluate these claims. Our goal is to understand the suffering of our clients from losing a loved one and to maximize our clients’ compensation in an attempt to repair that hole that was created in their life and to bring some form of closure.

If you or somebody you care about has been injured in a car accident caused by the careless or negligent actions of somebody else, contact the team at the Law Offices of Howard Kornberg for help with your case today. We pledged to investigate every aspect of your claim so we can obtain full compensation for your losses. When you need a Los Angeles Carson attorney, you can contact us for a free consultation of your case by clicking here or calling 310-997-0904.

First, seek emergency medical treatment for yourself and anyone else on the scene requiring medical attention. Then make sure to follow up with your regular doctor soon after the accident. The full extent of some injuries cannot be immediately determined and may require further diagnostic tests. This is especially true of head injuries.

At the scene of the accident, obtain contact information for all witnesses, take photos of the scene, vehicle damage, license plates, injuries, and documents identifying all parties and insurance information. Trade personal information with the other driver, including names, addresses, driver’s license information, license plate, registration, and insurance information. You can use your cellphone to video record statements from witnesses and other drivers involved.

In most cases, police will arrive at the scene and make a report of the accident based on observations and interviews with both drivers and witnesses. Motorcycle, scooter, or bicycle collisions with a larger vehicle often render the victim unconscious and unable to report to the police at the scene. This can lead to a police report that is very one-sided, based only on the statement of the other party involved in the accident.

A similar risk arises where the biker or cyclist was forced off the road and into an accident by another vehicle or road hazard, but no actual collision occurred. In these cases, there may be little external evidence, aside from the victim’s own account, to prove that the accident was another person’s fault. We will work hard to locate witnesses through our investigation.

That is one reason why retaining a skilled attorney is so important. Having the services of a top-rated Los Angeles motorcycle accident law firm can make all the difference for you. A skilled and experienced trial attorney can employ accident reconstructionists or expert witnesses to help demonstrate how the accident was caused by the negligence of another vehicle or unsafe road conditions.

Yes, but the procedure you must follow is different from a lawsuit involving a private party. The state’s Tort Claims Act controls how a city, county, or state government authority can be sued. This law provides for a civil lawsuit against the government for injury or wrongful death caused by the negligent acts of its employees.

Before you can sue a government entity, you must first file a claim with the appropriate government agency within six months of the injury. The government has 45 days to either accept or reject your claim. If the claim is rejected, or if the governing board fails to act, you may then file a lawsuit. However, this lawsuit must be filed within two years of the accident, or else your claim will be forever barred; this is a much shorter time frame than the usual two-year statute of limitations in a personal injury case against a private party.

If your claim potentially involves a city, county, or other public authority, seek the advice of an attorney with experience handling claims against the government as soon as possible. Do not wait to contact a lawyer-any delay can jeopardize your rights and your ability to obtain a recovery. Contact our Los Angeles motorcycle accident law firm today to take prompt action.

No. In a motorcycle accident, a motorist may not see you, may turn in front of you, may cut you off in your lane, or may strike you when passing another car. Most motorcycle accidents are of these types, and liability should be assessed by the other driver in these cases. Failure to follow road rules for all motor vehicles may cause or contribute to the accident, and this may also indicate partial liability for the other driver. Additionally, liability can be assessed if the other driver does something that a prudent driver would not do in similar circumstances. In that case, regardless of whether a road rule or statute was violated, comparative liability may be assessed, dividing responsibility among all negligent parties.

California is a comparative fault state, which means that each person pays only for their own fault. If a driver causes an accident and the motorcyclist did nothing to contribute to the accident, then the driver must pay 100 percent of the damages to the motorcycle rider. If the motorcycle rider was partially at fault, then the driver must pay only their portion of the fault.

First, we talk to you about the facts of your case. Then we investigate the scene, photos, and all evidence that is obtained. We examine the police report of the accident and try to determine a clear sense of who was at fault. We contact and interview witnesses and establish a claim with the available insurance companies. We look into such factors as:

• Intoxication
• Vehicle maintenance
• Locate video cameras near the scene
• Driver error
• Traffic controls and signs
• Road defects
• Defective joint sealant
• Uneven pavement
• Debris and obstructions
• Road repair and construction
• Right of way

With thorough analysis, we gather the facts and present our best estimate of the validity of your claim. We talk with the insurance companies involved to see the approach they are taking. And, when there is an opportunity for a settlement in your favor, we handle all the details of that settlement. When a settlement is not possible, we are prepared to litigate on your behalf. Mr. Kornberg has a strong track record in litigation of winning judgments on behalf of our motorcycle accident clients.

Look for experience, honesty, and a lawyer who will fight for you. You want a trial attorney that has litigated and won complex motorcycle accident cases and has achieved judgments or settlements on behalf of clients. The Law Offices of Howard Kornberg is AV-rated* by Martindale-Hubbell, belongs to ABOTA, and represents people in Los Angeles and throughout Southern California who have been seriously injured in motorcycle accidents due to the negligence of others. Our firm has represented people injured on motorcycles, bicycles, scooters, golf carts, ATVs, Segways, and other motorized vehicles in a variety of accidents on the roads and highways, including those involving lane splitting, HOV lanes, and blind spots. Call us today for a free consultation about your claim. You can reach us toll-free at 310-997-0904 or contact us online.

AV®, BV®, AV Preeminent®, and BV Distinguished® are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards, and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer-review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings fall into two categories – legal ability and general practice standards.

Typically, the main cause of a brain injury is trauma to the head. So, anytime someone has hit their head as a result of a car accident or a slip and fall accident, or any accident that causes brain injury those are going to be the most common causes of brain injuries.

Because our law firm handles these types of cases all the time, we are very familiar with many of the pre-eminent experts in the field. We have a wide network of highly qualified individuals whom we can contact. We are also able to obtain referrals, reliable peer-approved referrals, for any specialist that a client may require. Our attorneys are always very involved with our client’s medical care to make sure that they are receiving the best possible care and that they are comfortable making their healthcare decisions. We want to ensure that our clients have all of the information they need to make an informed decision regarding their healthcare.

Medical expenses are often paid by a client’s health insurance. If health insurance is unavailable, many clients, such as clients who are over the age of 65, maybe covered by government funding. If you are over the age of 65, you would be covered typically by Medicare. If there is no other funding source available and a client is unable to pay out of pocket, which is obviously very uncommon because medical expenses can accumulate so quickly, then we do have referrals to doctors who work on liens. These doctors often do so to help people in a specific situation where the clients would not be able to obtain medical care if they could not find medical care in a lien situation.

Our law firm is very familiar with handling brain injury cases and we understand the pain, stress, and confusion of our clients in these situations. We have 35 years of experience and expertise in this area. Even though the medical terminology has changed recently, these are still the same types of injuries our attorneys have been dealing with for over three decades. Our firm becomes very involved in our client’s healthcare because we want to make sure that they get the proper medical help they need, and that they understand the issues they face in order to make the right decisions for themselves. We are going to be there for our clients, available within 24 hours certainly, to help guide them through the legal aspects as well as assist with the medical aspects of these situations.