Suing a Corporation in Santa Monica: Personal Injury Information
A serious injury sometimes involves more than an individual person. A collision may involve a company-owned vehicle, an accident may happen at a business property, or an employee may allegedly cause an injury while performing work-related duties.
People researching suing a corporation in Santa Monica may be trying to understand when a company can become part of a personal injury case, how the correct business entity is identified, what evidence may matter, and how claims involving businesses can differ from claims involving only individual people.
This page focuses specifically on personal injury matters involving corporations and other businesses. It is not intended as guidance about contract disputes, shareholder disagreements, employment litigation, or general corporate lawsuits.
DAG Law Firm, APC represents people injured in serious accidents in Santa Monica and throughout California. Our practice includes vehicle accidents, commercial truck crashes, rideshare collisions, dangerous-property injuries, construction accidents, and other personal injury matters in which a business may potentially be involved depending on the circumstances.
You do not pay attorney fees unless we win your case. Qualifying personal injury matters are handled on a contingency-fee basis with no upfront attorney fees.
If you or a loved one suffered a serious injury involving a business or commercial entity, call (323) 930-2020 or contact DAG Law Firm today to discuss the circumstances.
When a Personal Injury Claim May Involve a Corporation
A corporation or other business entity may become relevant to a personal injury matter in several different ways.
For example, an accident could involve a company-owned vehicle, a driver performing work for a business, a commercial truck, a rideshare operation, or an injury occurring on property owned or controlled by a business. The fact that a corporation exists does not automatically make it responsible for an injury. The relationship between the company, the people involved, the property or vehicle, and the conduct that allegedly caused the injury all matter.
California Courts explains that identifying the correct defendant in a personal injury case is not always straightforward. Depending on the circumstances, potentially responsible parties may include the person who caused the injury, the owner of a vehicle or property, or an employer when the person involved was working at the time.
That means some cases may involve both an individual and a company, while others may involve only one of them. Responsibility remains case-specific.
Identifying the Correct Business Entity Can Matter
A storefront name, logo, trade name, or brand is not always the same thing as the legal entity operating the business.
California maintains public records for corporations, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, and certain other entities through the Secretary of State. Its Business Search allows users to locate entity records and recent filings, although the database does not include every type of business organization.
The Secretary of State also explains that corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, and limited liability partnerships generally designate an agent for service of process. The listed agent and address may be available through state business records.
Santa Monica separately requires people and entities engaging in business in the city to obtain appropriate local business licensing and approvals. That local licensing system covers commercial businesses, property lessors, delivery businesses, vehicle-for-hire operations, and other activities.
Local licensing and state corporate records serve different purposes, so the name appearing on a storefront or business license should not automatically be assumed to answer every question about the proper legal entity.
Vehicle Accidents Involving Company Drivers or Commercial Vehicles
Some personal injury claims involving businesses arise from motor vehicle collisions.
A crash may involve a delivery vehicle, commercial truck, employer-owned car, rideshare vehicle, service vehicle, or another automobile being used in connection with business activity.
Depending on the circumstances, questions may arise about who owned the vehicle, who employed or contracted with the driver, what the driver was doing at the time of the collision, and which insurance policies may apply.
California Courts notes that an employer can potentially become relevant when the person who caused an injury was working at the time, although whether an employer is legally responsible depends on the specific facts.
Commercial truck collisions can involve particularly complex relationships among drivers, trucking companies, vehicle owners, employers, and insurers. Readers can learn more through DAG Law Firm’s California truck accident practice.
For passenger-vehicle collisions generally, visit our California car accident practice. Accidents involving Uber or Lyft vehicles are discussed through our California Uber and Lyft accident practice.
Injuries on Business or Commercial Property
A corporation or other business may also become relevant when an injury occurs on commercial property.
Someone may be injured at a store, restaurant, hotel, shopping area, parking facility, office building, apartment complex, recreational property, or another location operated or controlled by a business.
Potential issues may include who owned the property, who operated the location, whether a management company was involved, who controlled the area where the accident occurred, and what condition allegedly contributed to the injury.
California Courts explains that property ownership can matter when identifying potentially responsible defendants in a personal injury case.
These claims should not be reduced simply to the fact that an accident occurred at a business. The condition involved, the company’s relationship to the property, available evidence, and other circumstances may all require consideration.
People injured in falls can learn more through DAG Law Firm’s California slip and fall practice. For dangerous-property injuries more broadly, visit our California premises liability practice.
Employer and Business Relationships May Affect Responsibility
When an employee, contractor, driver, manager, property owner, or another individual is connected with a company, understanding the relationship between them may become important.
A business is not necessarily responsible for every act committed by someone associated with it. Conversely, an injury claim does not necessarily involve only the individual person whose actions immediately preceded the accident.
California Courts specifically advises plaintiffs to determine whether the person they are suing was acting for a business or employer because that relationship can affect whom the case may properly involve.
Depending on the circumstances, relevant information could include vehicle ownership, employment records, delivery or work activity, business contracts, property management relationships, insurance policies, or other documents showing how the people and entities were connected.
These questions can be especially relevant in commercial trucking, delivery-vehicle, rideshare, construction, and business-property accidents.
DAG Law Firm’s California construction accident practice provides additional information for people injured in serious construction-related accidents.
Evidence May Matter More When a Business Is Involved
Claims involving corporations or other businesses may include evidence that would not necessarily exist in an ordinary accident between two individuals.
Depending on the circumstances, potentially relevant information may include photographs, surveillance video, incident reports, vehicle records, company documents, insurance information, witness statements, employee information, communications, maintenance records, or other materials.
After a vehicle collision, evidence may include dash-camera recordings, commercial vehicle information, photographs of the vehicles, collision reports, and records concerning who owned or operated the vehicle.
After an injury on commercial property, evidence may include surveillance footage, incident reports, photographs of the condition involved, maintenance information, witness observations, or documentation concerning who managed or controlled the location.
California Courts advises injured people to preserve evidence relating to their personal injury matter and emphasizes the importance of correctly identifying the people or businesses involved.
Some evidence may become more difficult to obtain as time passes. Video may not be retained indefinitely, physical conditions can change, vehicles may be repaired, and witnesses can become harder to locate.
Which records actually matter depends on the particular accident and the issues being disputed.
Insurance Can Affect a Claim Against a Corporation
Insurance can become especially important when a business is involved in an accident.
A company vehicle may be covered under a commercial automobile policy rather than an ordinary personal policy. A trucking company may maintain commercial liability coverage. A retail or property-related accident may involve different forms of business insurance.
Rideshare collisions can present still another set of coverage issues depending on the driver’s activity when the accident occurred. Readers can learn more through DAG Law Firm’s California Uber and Lyft accident practice.
Insurance questions can involve policy limits, covered vehicles, covered individuals or entities, exclusions, multiple policies, and disagreements about responsibility or the extent of claimed losses.
The presence of corporate insurance does not determine whether a company is legally responsible, and the size of a company does not establish the value of an individual injury case. Liability, damages, available coverage, and evidence remain fact-specific.
If a dispute arises concerning insurer conduct, separate issues may sometimes become relevant. DAG Law Firm’s resource about California insurance bad faith provides broader educational information about insurance disputes.
Serving a Corporation Is Different From Serving an Individual
If a civil lawsuit is filed against a corporation, California has specific rules concerning formal notice of the lawsuit.
California Courts explains that after filing a lawsuit, the defendant must be formally served with the filed papers. For a corporation, LLC, or partnership, service may involve the company’s designated agent for service of process. California Courts also notes that corporations may, under applicable procedures, be served through certain corporate officers or a general manager.
The California Secretary of State maintains information about designated agents for many business entities and explains that its Business Search contains current filings on record, including agent information when available.
The Secretary of State also makes clear that serving the designated agent is not the only possible method of serving every business entity and that different procedures can apply depending on the entity and circumstances.
This is one reason why correctly identifying the legal entity matters. Serving a brand name, storefront, or unrelated business may not be the same as serving the proper corporation.
This section is general educational information rather than instructions for serving a particular defendant.
Personal Injury Deadlines Still Depend on the Circumstances
The fact that a defendant is a corporation does not create one universal deadline for every injury claim.
California Courts currently identifies a general two-year period from the date of injury for many personal injury lawsuits. The court also cautions that statutes of limitation are fact-specific and can be difficult to calculate.
The type of claim can matter. For example, California Courts lists different time periods for personal injury, property damage, contracts, and other kinds of civil disputes.
Government entities are also legally different from private corporations. A claim involving a city, county, state agency, or other public entity may require an administrative government claim on a substantially shorter timetable before a lawsuit can proceed. California Courts currently states that an injury-related government claim generally must be presented within six months, subject to exceptions and additional deadlines.
That distinction is important. A private company operating in Santa Monica should not automatically be treated as though it were a government agency, and a public entity should not be treated as though it were an ordinary corporation.
Someone concerned about a deadline should have the specific circumstances evaluated rather than relying on a generalized period found online.
Santa Monica Corporate Injury Resources and How DAG Law Firm Can Help
Santa Monica has a large commercial environment that includes retailers, restaurants, hotels, property businesses, delivery operations, transportation services, and other businesses. The City requires entities engaging in business locally to obtain applicable business licensing and approvals.
A personal injury involving a corporation could potentially arise from a commercial vehicle collision, dangerous property condition, rideshare accident, construction incident, or another circumstance. The presence of a business does not automatically establish liability, but the business relationship can affect which people or entities need to be evaluated.
DAG Law Firm, APC handles serious injury matters involving car accidents, truck accidents, Uber and Lyft accidents, slip and fall accidents, premises liability claims, construction accidents, brain injuries, and other qualifying personal injury matters.
Depending on the circumstances, our team can review accident or incident reports, photographs, available video, witness information, vehicle ownership, insurance coverage, medical treatment, employment losses, property information, and other evidence connected with an accident.
You can explore additional matters handled by DAG Law Firm, APC.
You do not pay attorney fees unless we win your case. Qualifying personal injury matters are handled on a contingency-fee basis with no upfront attorney fees.
If you or a loved one suffered a serious injury involving a corporation or other business in Santa Monica, call (323) 930-2020 or contact DAG Law Firm today to discuss the specific circumstances.
