Do You Have a Dog Bite Claim in Encino?

If you were bitten or attacked by a dog in Encino, the San Fernando Valley, or anywhere in Los Angeles County, you very likely have a claim, and California law is on your side. This state holds dog owners to one of the strictest standards in the country. At Big Joe Law, we represent people who have been seriously hurt by dogs, from deep puncture wounds and nerve damage to permanent facial scarring and the loss of a loved one, and we build every case as if it will be decided by a jury. This page explains your rights under California law, who can be held responsible, what your claim may be worth, and the deadlines you cannot afford to miss.

What Does California Law Say About Dog Bite Liability?

California is a strict liability state for dog bites. The controlling statute is California Civil Code section 3342, which provides that “the owner of any dog is liable for the damages suffered by any person who is bitten by the dog while in a public place or lawfully in a private place, including the property of the owner of the dog, regardless of the former viciousness of the dog or the owner’s knowledge of such viciousness.”

Read that last part again. The owner is liable regardless of the dog’s former viciousness or the owner’s knowledge of it. That single phrase is what makes California so protective of bite victims. You do not have to prove the owner was careless or that the dog had ever shown aggression before. You generally only need to show two things:

• The dog bit you
• You were in a public place or lawfully on private property, including the dog owner’s own home, when it happened

Is a Dog Owner Liable if the Dog Never Bit Anyone Before?

Yes. Many states follow a “one bite rule,” which effectively gives every dog one free bite before the owner can be held responsible. California rejects that approach for bite injuries. Under section 3342, the fact that a dog was friendly its whole life and had never bitten anyone is not a defense. The first bite counts.

This matters because insurance companies still try to argue the owner “had no idea” the dog would bite. Under California’s strict liability rule, that argument does not defeat your claim. It is one of the reasons a dog bite case in Encino can be stronger than victims expect.

What if a Dog Injured You Without Biting You?

You can still recover, but the legal path is different. Civil Code section 3342 applies specifically to bites. If a dog knocked you off your bike, chased you into traffic, or jumped on you and caused a fall, your claim is based on the owner’s negligence rather than strict liability.

Negligence claims often rely on the owner breaking a safety law. Under the Los Angeles Municipal Code, dogs generally must be kept on a leash in public places, and Los Angeles County has its own leash requirement as well. When an owner lets a dog run loose in violation of a leash law and someone is hurt, that violation can establish negligence, sometimes as negligence per se, meaning the broken law is treated as evidence of carelessness in itself.

Who Can Be Held Responsible for a Dog Attack Besides the Owner?

The dog’s owner is the most common defendant, but they are not always the only one. Depending on the facts, responsibility may also fall on:

• A person who was keeping or in control of the dog at the time, even if they did not own it
• A landlord or property owner who knew a dangerous dog was on the property and had the ability to remove it but did nothing
• A business where the attack happened, if it failed to keep the premises reasonably safe
• The owner of a dog already declared dangerous or vicious who failed to follow the law’s restrictions

California’s Food and Agricultural Code sections 31602 and 31603 define a “potentially dangerous dog” and a “vicious dog,” and impose special control and confinement duties on their owners. When an owner ignores those duties and someone is hurt, it strengthens the case against them. Identifying every responsible party and every insurance policy is often what separates a full recovery from a capped one.

What Compensation Can You Recover for a Dog Bite in Encino?

A California dog bite claim is meant to make you whole for everything the attack cost you. Economic damages are the measurable losses:

• Emergency room, hospital, and surgical bills
• Reconstructive and scar revision surgery
• Antibiotics, wound care, and follow-up treatment
• Physical therapy and rehabilitation
• Mental health treatment for trauma and anxiety
• Future medical care you will still need after the case resolves
• Lost wages and lost future earning capacity

Non-economic damages compensate the harm that has no receipt:

• Physical pain from the attack and the recovery
• Emotional distress and lasting fear of dogs, including post-traumatic stress
• Permanent scarring and disfigurement
• Loss of enjoyment of life

In cases where the owner acted with extreme recklessness, such as knowingly keeping a dog already declared vicious and letting it run loose, punitive damages may also be available to punish that conduct.

Who Pays a Dog Bite Settlement in California?

A claim is only worth what can actually be collected, so the available insurance often matters as much as the injury. Most dog bite settlements are paid not by the owner personally but by an insurance policy, usually:

• The dog owner’s homeowner’s insurance
• The owner’s renter’s insurance if they lease their home
• An umbrella policy stacked above those limits
• A landlord’s or business’s policy where that party shares responsibility

The limits on those policies frequently set the practical ceiling on a settlement, which is why we work early to find every policy and every party that can be held accountable.

How Long Do You Have to File a Dog Bite Lawsuit in California?

Deadlines in these cases are strict, and missing one can end your claim before it starts. The general rule comes from Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1, which sets a two-year deadline for “an action for assault, battery, or injury to, or for the death of, an individual caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another.” A few situations change that:

• Child victims. Under Code of Civil Procedure section 352, the deadline is generally paused while the injured person is under eighteen, so a child’s time to sue does not start running until they reach the age of majority.
• Government-owned dogs. If a public agency is responsible, such as a bite by a police K-9, Government Code section 911.2 requires a formal claim to be presented to the entity “not later than six months after the accrual of the cause of action” before a lawsuit is even allowed.

Because the government-claim window is only six months, and because evidence disappears quickly, it is worth speaking with a dog bite lawyer as soon as possible.

Can Your Compensation Be Reduced if You Were Partly at Fault?

It can. California follows pure comparative fault, a rule the California Supreme Court adopted in Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) 13 Cal.3d 804. Under it, your recovery is reduced by your own percentage of fault, but you are not barred from recovering even if you were partly to blame. Insurers use this rule to try to shift blame onto victims, commonly arguing that you:

• Provoked, teased, or startled the dog
• Ignored a posted warning sign
• Were trespassing rather than lawfully present, which can remove strict liability under section 3342 entirely

These arguments are often exaggerated, and how well they are anticipated and answered has a direct effect on your final recovery. When you hire us, we close those doors before the insurer can use them.

What Should You Do After a Dog Bite in Encino?

What you do in the hours and days after an attack can make or break your claim. If you are bitten:

• Get medical care right away, because dog bites carry a high risk of infection even when they look minor
• Report the bite to Los Angeles County animal control or the Department of Public Health, which creates an official record
• Get the owner’s name, address, and insurance information
• Identify the dog and, if possible, confirm its vaccination history
• Photograph your injuries and the location of the attack
• Collect names and numbers of any witnesses
• Do not give a recorded statement to the owner’s insurance company before speaking with a dog bite lawyer

What Happens to a Dog That Bites Someone in Los Angeles County?

In Los Angeles County, a dog bite is typically reported to animal control or public health, and the dog is usually placed under a rabies observation quarantine, commonly for ten days, to confirm it was not rabid. In more serious cases, the county can begin proceedings to have the dog formally declared potentially dangerous or vicious under the Food and Agricultural Code, which imposes strict confinement rules on the owner or can lead to removal of the animal. Reporting the bite not only protects the public, it also creates the official record that helps prove your claim.

Can You File a Claim if a Family Member Was Killed by a Dog?

Yes. When a dog attack is fatal, California law allows the family to bring a wrongful death claim. Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 identifies who has the right to sue, including the person’s surviving spouse, domestic partner, and children, and in some cases other close relatives who were financially dependent on them. A wrongful death claim can seek compensation for the family’s loss of financial support, the loss of the loved one’s care and companionship, and funeral and burial expenses. These are the most devastating cases we handle, and we treat them with the seriousness they demand.

What Types of Dog Bite Cases Do We Handle in Encino?

Dog bite claims are not all the same. The law that applies, the parties who can be held responsible, and the insurance available all shift depending on who was hurt and where it happened. We have in-depth guides on the situations we see most often across Encino and Los Angeles County:

• What determines the value of a dog bite settlement
• Dog bite injuries to children
• Apartment complex dog attacks
• Landlord liability for dog attacks
• Dog bites to Amazon delivery drivers
• Dog bites to delivery drivers
• Dog bites to postal workers

If your situation is not on this list, we still want to hear about it. Every dog bite case we take is built the same way, from the first day, as if it will be decided by a jury. 

How Can an Encino Dog Bite Lawyer Help Maximize My Compensation?

The value of a dog bite claim is not fixed. It rises or falls based on how the case is investigated, documented, and pushed. Our dog bite lawyers maximize your compensation by:

• Investigating the attack and preserving evidence before it disappears, including the dog’s history and any prior complaints or bite reports
• Identifying every responsible party and every insurance policy, so your case is not capped by the first small policy we find
• Building the full medical picture, including the cost of future care, so nothing is left out of the demand
• Documenting your scarring and psychological harm the way a Los Angeles County jury needs to see it
• Shutting down comparative fault and provocation arguments before an insurer can use them to cut your offer
• Preparing your file for trial from the first day, which is what makes an insurer pay full value instead of a lowball

At Big Joe Law, our personal injury lawyers treat settlement and trial as two paths to the same goal. Settlement on the right number is welcome. Settlement on a number that shortchanges you is not, and we build every case ready to prove it in court.

Injured by a Dog in Encino? Get a Free Case Review Today.

If you or someone you love was bitten or attacked by a dog in Encino, the San Fernando Valley, or anywhere in Los Angeles County, do not let an insurance company decide what your injury is worth. At Big Joe Law, we will investigate the attack, deal with the insurer for you, and fight for the full value of your claim under California law, building your case from day one as if a jury will hear it. Contact us now for a free, no-obligation consultation. You pay no attorney’s fees unless we win your case.