Salinas is a city of approximately 163,000 people in Monterey County, California. The city’s name means “the salt flats” in Spanish, which is a name given to the region by the early Spanish colonists due to the proliferation of salt marshes in the area. While the city was originally an agricultural community, it is now an urban center with a predominantly Hispanic population. Salinas is also known as the hometown of famous American author, John Steinbeck.
Considering that Salinas is Monterey County’s most populous city, it should come as no surprise that accidents are quite frequent within its borders. Some of these are incidents where no one is at fault, but others are the result of negligent conduct, either by a city department or one of their employees. When the city of Salinas is responsible for an accident, they can be sued by the victim for monetary damages. However, these lawsuits involve liability by a public entity, which can be very challenging to prove. Furthermore, the procedures for how to sue the government are quite complicated, which is why many people are unsuccessful in their attempts to obtain payment from the city.
The legal team of Normandie Law Firm has decades of experience in claims against government agencies throughout California. For a free case evaluation with one of our attorneys, please contact our office.
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How can I Sue the City of Salinas for an Accident?
Just like you would sue a homeowner or business, you can file a lawsuit for monetary damages that were caused by a city government. The key is to follow the procedures that are set by the California Tort Claims Act, a legislation that pertains to suing government entities in the state of California. Claims can be filed for injuries caused by a city of Salinas agency or one of their workers. Examples of accidents that merit compensation from the city of Salinas include:
- Fall accidents – slip and fall / trip and fall
- Auto and pedestrian accidents with city owned vehicles
- Falling object injuries
- Assault and battery, including sexual assault
- Incidents at public schools
How to Seek Compensation from the City of Salinas
Prior to suing the city through the court system, you must file a claim with the city’s Risk Management Office. You can visit the City Attorney’s Office or click here to obtain a copy of the claim forms. The questions on the form are simple enough at first, but they soon become rather difficult to answer. For example, you will be asked to state why the city has legal liability for your accident, along with the exact amount you are seeking for several categories of damages. You must also have documentation to back up these figures and a legal argument for why you are entitled to these amounts.
Please be aware that all claims against a city, county, or state government must be submitted within
6 months from the date of injury or property damage. This is a very tight deadline with no exceptions, as it’s a legal requirement set forth by the California Tort Claims Act.
Unfortunately, many of the accident claims with the City of Salinas are rejected due to the claimant’s lack of legal knowledge or insufficient evidence. Consulting a city government injury claims lawyer is the best way to avoid this outcome and ensure that the city pays you for the amount you are rightfully entitled to. To discuss your case with a City of Salinas compensation claim lawsuit attorney, don’t hesitate to give us a call.
How will I Know if My Claim is Approved?
Once you have completed the claim form, you must file it with the City Clerk’s Office at 200 Lincoln Avenue, Salinas, California 93901. Just as you have a deadline for when to submit the claim, the city also has a time limit for getting back to you with a written response. This time period is 45 days from the date of receiving your claim, though it’s likely that you will receive something in the mail before then. If you get an approval notice, that means the city has decided to pay you for the harm they caused. If, on the other hand, you are sent a denial notice, the next step is to file a lawsuit against the city.
What happens, though, if the city doesn’t send you any kind of response in 45 days? In this situation, you can move forward as if your claim was denied, meaning you can petition the courts for a lawsuit. Keep in mind that the deadline to sue the city of Salinas is 2 years from the incident date if you don’t hear back from the city within 45 days.
How Much can I Receive from a Lawsuit against the City of Salinas?
Complaints for accidents or assault incidents that can be blamed on the city of Salinas may be settled for anywhere from $10,000 to over $2,000,000. Your injuries are the most significant factor in how much you are entitled to, but there are other issues that must be examined, like whether your accident was caused by gross negligence (exceptionally careless or reckless conduct). This is why we need to speak with you and learn about your accident, the injuries you sustained, and many other factors before we can figure out the amount of compensation you deserve. To schedule a free case evolution with one of our legal experts, contact our law firm.
How Long Does it Take to Reach a Settlement?
The average amount of time to settle a city government accident claim is around 12 to 24 months. We know that this may be longer than you had expected, but lawsuits against government agencies can be extremely complicated. While there are cases that only take a few months to resolve, most city of Salinas compensation claims take quite a bit longer. In the rare event that your case is taken to court, the lawsuit process can take over 3 years from start to finish. But going to trial happens in less than 5% of all personal injury lawsuits, so we stand by the timeframe of 1 to 2 years to settle an accident case with the city of Salinas.
Zero Fee Guarantee
Here at Normandie Law Firm, we believe that victims are entitled to legal representation from an experienced personal injury attorney. That’s why all fees are billed to the negligent party if you decide that we are the right firm to represent you. In addition, we have a Zero Fee Guarantee to ensure that you pay $0 if we don’t bring you compensation from a city of Salinas injury claim.
In essence, you have nothing to lose by seeking advice and guidance from one of our attorneys. For a free consultation to discuss your rights and legal options, contact us today.
Other Pages on Our Website Related to This Topic
How to File an Incident Report with the City of El Monte, CA
How to File a Claim against the City of Artesia
How to File a Claim against the City of Cerritos
