Bus Accident Lawyer in Los Angeles

Who is liable for a bus accident in California?

A bus claim is not simply a car claim with a larger vehicle. California holds a common carrier to the utmost care and diligence for its passengers, under Civil Code section 2100. That is a higher standard than the ordinary care one driver owes another, and it is why none of the following needs a collision to be actionable: a stop hard enough to throw a standing passenger, a start before you had finished sitting down, a door closed on someone boarding, a fall on a wet or broken step. More than one party can be responsible:

• The operator of the bus. Metro, LADOT, the school districts, Big Blue Bus, Culver CityBus and Foothill Transit are public entities. Private charter, tour, company and contracted school transport operators are private companies.
• The driver, whose negligence may be the cause, such as speeding, distraction or an unsafe turn.
• Another driver, when a car or truck caused the crash that hurt the passengers.
• A public agency, for a dangerous condition of public property such as a road defect or stop, under Government Code section 835.
• A manufacturer or maintenance contractor, when a defective part such as brakes or a door caused or worsened the injury.

It is not always obvious from the outside who owns a bus, and the answer decides the deadline, so it is worth confirming early rather than assuming there is time.

What pays after a Los Angeles bus accident?

Which policy pays depends on who is responsible. Where a private company operates the bus, its commercial liability coverage is the starting point. Where a public entity operates it, the claim goes through the written claim process before any lawsuit. If another driver caused the crash, that driver’s liability policy is also in play, along with:

• Your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, if you were in a private vehicle that a bus or another driver struck.
• Medical payments coverage on your own auto policy, which can pay bills early regardless of fault.
• Health insurance, which pays treatment as it happens and may later claim reimbursement from the settlement. That reimbursement is negotiated before you receive a net figure.

California’s minimum auto liability limits are $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident since 1 January 2025, which is well short of what a serious injury costs, so finding every layer of coverage matters.

What compensation can you recover after a bus accident?

• Medical expenses, past and future, including surgery, therapy and long term care.
• Lost earnings and loss of future earning capacity.
• Property damage to belongings or a vehicle.
• Pain, suffering and emotional distress, and the loss of enjoyment of life.
• Wrongful death damages for the family under Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 when an accident is fatal.

California follows pure comparative fault, so a passenger who is partly responsible has the recovery reduced by that share rather than ended. What a case is worth cannot be known before the medical picture is clear. It turns on the injury, the treatment still to come and the strength of the evidence, including the video.

How long do you have to file a bus accident claim in California?

• Six months to present a written claim if the bus is run by a public entity, under Government Code section 911.2. This shorter deadline governs, and missing it usually ends the claim, however serious the injury or clear the driver’s fault. A procedure exists to ask permission to file late, but it is limited and discretionary and should not be relied on.
• Two years from the date of injury to file an injury lawsuit against a private operator, under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. Private charter and tour operators may also answer to federal carrier rules.
• Three years for property damage only, under Code of Civil Procedure section 338.

The confusion is understandable, because other traffic accidents in California do have two years. That is why many people wait to recover, call at month eight and find that the deadline that mattered has passed. Under Los Angeles Superior Court Local Rule 2.3(a)(1)(A), a case is filed in the judicial district where the incident arose, which the Court’s filing locator identifies.

How much does a bus accident lawyer cost in Los Angeles?

No fee unless there is a recovery. Broukhim Legal PC takes bus accident cases on a contingency fee, so there is nothing to pay up front and the fee is paid out of what is recovered. If nothing is recovered, no fee is owed. The fee agreement is put in writing and signed before any work starts, as California law requires, and it also explains how the costs of running the case are handled. Your first conversation is free, confidential and carries no obligation.

Personal injury lawyers across Los Angeles County

Broukhim Legal PC represents people hurt on and by buses throughout Los Angeles County from its office at 550 S Hill Street in downtown Los Angeles. Each city page sets out the courthouse an incident in that city is filed in, how a claim against that city is presented and the deadlines that apply:

See all locations we serve, or tell us about the bus accident for a free case review.

Meet your Los Angeles bus accident lawyer

Bejan Broukhim, Founder and Lead Attorney
State Bar of California, license number 183036

Bejan Broukhim brings years of California legal experience to injury and mass tort cases and personally reviews each one. He earned his J.D. at the University of West Los Angeles School of Law, served as a judicial extern in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court and the Van Nuys Superior Court, and appeared in preliminary hearings as a certified law clerk with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. Every case is prepared from day one as though it will go to trial.

Office: 550 S Hill Street, Suite 1390, Los Angeles, CA 90013, serving all of Los Angeles County and California. Get directions