Motorcycle Accident Lawyer in Los Angeles

Is lane splitting illegal, and does going without a helmet end a claim?

Two assumptions cost riders money in California, and both are wrong.

Lane splitting. California defined and permitted it in 2016 under Vehicle Code section 21658.1, the first state in the country to do so. A rider moving slowly between stopped lines is doing nothing illegal. The real question is whether it was done safely for the conditions: speed relative to traffic, the width of the gap, the weather and visibility. That is a question of fact, argued like any other.

Helmets. California requires a helmet for all riders and passengers of any age under Vehicle Code section 27803. If you were not wearing one, your claim does not disappear. Under comparative fault, the part of the recovery tied to a head injury can be reduced where the missing helmet actually contributed to it. It does not affect injuries to the legs, arms, hip or spine, which are most of the injuries in these crashes.

How is fault decided in a California motorcycle accident?

California follows pure comparative fault, so a share of the blame reduces a recovery rather than ending it, and the percentage an adjuster assigns in the first week is an opening position rather than a finding. Where the other driver broke a traffic law, Evidence Code section 669 can create a presumption of negligence.

A common story in these reports is that the rider “came out of nowhere.” That is almost never true. What is usually behind it is a driver who did not look, and that is proved with sight lines, the position of the vehicles and the damage. This matters most in left-turn collisions, where the driver’s account is often accepted without question. Fault is proved with the police or CHP report, photographs, independent witnesses, video and, in serious cases, accident reconstruction.

Others can share responsibility: an employer when the driver was working, a rideshare company, a public agency for a dangerous road condition under Government Code section 835, or a manufacturer where a defective part caused or worsened the injury.

What insurance pays after a motorcycle accident?

• The at-fault driver’s liability policy. California’s minimum limits rose to $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident on 1 January 2025, which is well short of what a serious rider injury costs.
• Your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which applies when the other driver has no insurance, too little, or drove away.
• Medical payments coverage on your own policy, which can pay bills early regardless of fault.
• Employer and commercial policies, when the other driver was working.
• Health insurance, which pays treatment as it happens and may later claim reimbursement from the settlement.

What compensation can you recover after a motorcycle accident?

• Medical expenses, past and future, including surgery and rehabilitation for open fractures, shoulder and knee damage and spinal injuries.
• Lost earnings and loss of future earning capacity.
• Property damage to your motorcycle, gear and belongings.
• Pain, suffering and emotional distress, and the loss of enjoyment of life, including road rash injuries.
• Punitive damages under Civil Code section 3294 where the driver acted with malice, as can happen in a drunk driving crash.
• Wrongful death damages for the family under Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 when a crash is fatal.

A case’s value cannot be known before the medical picture is clear. It turns on the injury, the care still to come, the available insurance and the strength of the evidence on fault.

How long do you have to file a motorcycle accident claim?

• Two years from the date of injury to file an injury lawsuit, under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1.
• Three years for property damage only, under Code of Civil Procedure section 338.
• Six months to present a written claim if a public entity is involved, under Government Code section 911.2. This shorter deadline governs.

Under Los Angeles Superior Court Local Rule 2.3(a)(1)(A) an unlimited civil injury or wrongful death action is filed in the judicial district where the incident arose, so a collision in Los Angeles County is not filed downtown by default, and the Court’s own filing locator settles which courthouse hears it.

How much does a motorcycle accident lawyer cost?

No fee unless there is a recovery. Broukhim Legal PC takes motorcycle 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 the costs of running the case are explained in that same agreement rather than left to the end. Your first conversation is free, confidential and carries no obligation.

Motorcycle accident lawyers across Los Angeles County

Broukhim Legal PC represents riders throughout Los Angeles County from its office at 550 S Hill Street in downtown Los Angeles. Each city page carries that city’s own figures for this collision type, the courthouse an incident there is filed in, and how a claim against that city is presented:

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

Meet your Los Angeles motorcycle 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