San Jose Dog Bite Lawyers
We’ll tell you if you have a case or not, call (888) 488-1391 — We’re here 24 hours a day.
Our Compassionate San Jose Dog Bite Lawyers Are Personally Committed To Securing Your Justice
If you or a loved one has suffered injuries from a dog bite, medical bills, lost wages, and emotional trauma can take a serious toll. You don’t have to go through this challenging time alone; our San Jose dog bite lawyers are ready to fight for you. At Arash Law, we have helped countless victims recover the money they deserve. Call (888) 488-1391 today for a free consultation, and let us help you take the first step toward justice.
Dog bite incidents are complex. While many believe only strays or untrained dogs are capable of biting, the reality is that various factors can contribute to such incidents. Our lawyers understand these complexities and advocate for victims, pursuing the compensation they need while emphasizing the importance of responsible pet ownership.
With more than $750 million won for accident victims, we are able to win difficult cases and secure life-changing settlements. We don’t just take on cases; we fight to win. Our skilled attorneys know how to leverage California’s strict dog bite laws to ensure you receive every dollar you’re entitled to.
Why Work With Our Experienced San Jose Dog Bite Lawyers
Those injured can recover damages from negligent parties without having to hire a lawyer. However, you might miss out on securing full compensation for your injuries and other losses. You need one of the biggest personal injury law firms in California on your side to improve your chances of getting the maximum settlement amount.
Dog bite claims can quickly become complex, especially if there is a dispute over liability or if the victim has suffered severe injuries. Some cases require tough negotiations, while others demand an aggressive courtroom battle. While we strive to resolve cases efficiently so you can move forward, we also know that high-value cases should never be rushed or undervalued. If insurers refuse to pay proper restitution, our trial-tested lawyers won’t hesitate to take your case to court.
We understand that dog bite cases can be especially difficult when the dog owner is someone you know, like a relative or friend. However, it’s important to remember that you deserve fair compensation for the physical, emotional, and financial burdens you’ve experienced. In most cases, this compensation comes from the dog owner’s insurance policy, not directly from them.
Choosing our top-notch injury law firm in San Jose means working with a team of compassionate San Jose dog bite lawyers who are aggressive in fighting for your rights. Our decades of combined experience show we always put up a determined fight to ensure the most favorable outcomes. We offer free initial consultations and work on contingency so clients don’t have to deal with additional stress while they recover.
Our Dog Bite Injury Lawyers Deliver Real Results
At Arash Law, we have a long-standing history of success built on extensive experience, strategic case preparation, and relentless advocacy. Our industry-recognized San Jose lawyers secured life-changing settlements and verdicts for victims of dog attacks. Here’s one example:
- $2,300,000 — A dog attacked our client while he was on his daily walk and his head struck the asphalt when he fell violently to the ground, causing a traumatic brain injury. Thanks to the treatment, he is on the road to recovery. We took pride in securing the maximum policy limits from the homeowner’s insurance policy of the dog owner.
Our commitment to justice doesn’t stop at dog bite cases. Whether it’s a serious car crash, workplace incident, or wrongful death claim, our personal injury lawyers in San Jose fight aggressively for the best possible outcome. Here are just a few of our outstanding case results:
- $6,500,000 — Our client fell off a roof and suffered minor traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord damage. The employer first denied liability, claiming that our client was not acting in the course and scope of his employment and had been doing the roof as a favor to him. Justice was served, though, once we brought the case to trial. We secured a $610,000 third-party settlement and a $5.89 million workers’ compensation award, providing him with the resources to continue on his path to recovery.
- $6,000,000 — Our client was on a two-lane highway with his wife and son when a drunk motorist veered into the double yellow lines, resulting in a head-on catastrophe that sadly killed his wife. Defense lawyers made an unsuccessful attempt to contest their insured’s coverage and liability. For our client, we were able to secure the maximum policy limits.
largest animal attack settlement in 2020 for California; client suffered Traumatic Brain Injury– JUDD ROSS ALLEN
How Our Dog Bite Injury Attorneys Can Help You Recover Compensation
To start, our San Jose dog bite lawyers will assess how strong your case is. Once you choose to work with us, we will build a compelling case and gather evidence to bolster your claim. From handling complex paperwork to negotiating aggressively with insurance companies, we manage every legal aspect on your behalf.
With a relentless commitment to justice, we take every step necessary to maximize your recovery. Here’s how we make it happen:
- Client-Centered Approach — We prioritize our clients and offer clear communication and exceptional legal services. Our dog bite attorneys will keep you updated every step of the way, ensuring you make well-informed decisions during the whole process.
- Investigative Skills — A strong dog bite case requires solid evidence. Our lawyers can conduct thorough investigations to prove the extent of your injuries and establish the dog owner’s liability.
- Negotiation Expertise — Once we have built a powerful case, we determine the true value of your claim, taking into account the full extent of your losses. Our dog bite attorneys are skilled negotiators who fight to ensure you receive every dollar you are entitled to.
Secure just compensation by working with some of the best San Jose dog bite lawyers in California. Call us today for a free case evaluation at (888) 408-1391.
Why Dog Bite Incidents Happen
San Jose has numerous parks for dog owners and their pets to enjoy. Waterford Park allows dogs but they must be on leash at all times. At Hellyer County Park, dogs can run freely in designated, fenced areas, separated for small and large breeds. Meanwhile, Butcher Dog Park and Hart’s Dog Park are entirely off-leash. Areas that give dogs the freedom to run around and socialize are beneficial for pets but also increase the risk of dog bites. Our San Jose dog bite victim attorneys have seen how quickly such incidents can happen, destroying a person’s life and scarring them psychologically.
Dogs bring joy to many lives, but responsible pet ownership is essential for everyone’s safety. Even with proper training, unforeseen circumstances can lead to a dog bite. San Jose leash laws, requiring dogs to be leashed on sidewalks and trails, are in place to help prevent such incidents. Open communication about a dog’s behavioral history is also vital for ensuring community safety.
While some dog bites may be instinctive reactions, many are preventable through responsible pet ownership. Understanding canine behavior and recognizing potential triggers is key to preventing such incidents. Here are some of those reasons:
Communication
Dogs communicate their feelings through various signals. Growling, snapping, raised fur, and a rigid posture can indicate frustration or discomfort. It’s important to understand these cues and respect a dog’s space. Tail wagging, while often associated with happiness, can sometimes indicate anxiety, so it’s crucial to consider the whole body language.
Resource Guarding
Dogs may sometimes feel the need to protect valuable resources, such as food, toys, or their resting area. Understanding this behavior can help owners create a safe environment for everyone.
Discomfort Or Pain
A dog experiencing pain or discomfort may be more likely to react defensively, even to gentle touch. It’s essential to be gentle and observant and to consult a veterinarian if you suspect your dog is in pain.
Startle Response
Like humans, dogs can be startled. Cautiously approaching a sleeping or visually/hearing-impaired dog can help prevent a startled reaction.
Fear
Fear is a powerful motivator for all animals, including dogs. A dog that feels threatened or afraid may react defensively. Creating a safe and secure environment can help reduce fear-related behaviors.
Play
Playful nipping is a common behavior in dogs, but it’s important to teach them appropriate boundaries. Supervising play and providing clear guidance can help prevent accidental injuries.
Dog Bite?
Potential Long-Term Outcomes Of Dog Bite Incidents
Dogs of any breed can bite and leave lifelong physical and emotional injuries. Even if the skin is not broken, any contact between a dog’s teeth and a person’s body that results in an injury is considered a “bite” under California law. Dog bites can lead to detrimental long-term effects, including the following:
- Rabies
- Infections
- Scarring
- Disfigurement
In addition, victims of dog bite incidents may experience:
- Physical pain
- Emotional trauma
- Fear of outdoors
- Fear of dogs (Cynophobia)
Establishing Liability In A Dog Bite Incident
California’s strict liability law holds dog owners responsible for injuries caused by bites, regardless of the dog’s history of aggression. Unlike states with a “one-bite rule,” California law generally does not require victims to prove that the owner was careless. It’s important to note that this law does not cover injuries from non-bite incidents, such as a dog knocking someone over.
If you’re dealing with a military or police dog doing its job, strict liability usually doesn’t apply. You also can’t sue if the dog was just protecting itself from someone bothering it or if it was helping an officer with any of the following duties:
- Arresting or holding a suspect based on reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.
- Investigating a real or possible crime.
- Executing a warrant.
- Defending a peace officer or another person.
Homeowners and renters insurance often covers dog bites, but there might be limits on how much they’ll pay. Coverage may not include dog bites by some breeds. Our San Jose dog bite lawyers will assess available insurance options to maximize your compensation.
Exceptions To Strict Liability In Dog Bite Cases
California law generally holds dog owners strictly liable for bite injuries. However, exceptions exist. A dog owner might avoid strict liability if:
- The injured person was trespassing.
- The injured person provoked the dog.
- Something else caused the injuries.
Owners may falsely claim these defenses, but evidence like phone records, witness statements, and medical records can prove otherwise.
Even if strict liability doesn’t apply, a dog owner can still be liable under negligence. This focuses on the owner’s actions, not just the dog’s nature. Negligence examples include:
- Failure To Leash — Violating leash laws is negligent, even if the dog is friendly.
- Failure To Control — Owners must control their dogs, even on leash. An owner’s inability to do so can be negligence.
- Knowledge of Vicious Tendencies — Owners aware of their dog’s aggression must take extra precautions. Failure to do so is negligence.
- Creating A Dangerous Condition — Allowing a dog to roam freely in a children’s play area is negligent.
To establish strict liability, you must generally prove:
- The defendant owned the dog.
- The dog bit you.
- You were legally on the premises.
- The bite directly caused your injuries.
In negligence cases, you must prove the owner’s negligence caused your injuries. This requires showing that the owner breached their duty of care. Even a single bite can establish strict liability if conditions show it. Negligence cases require demonstrating the owner’s actions were a direct cause of the harm. It’s crucial to consult with our San Jose dog bite lawyers to determine the best legal strategy for your specific situation. They can help gather evidence, assess liability, and pursue the compensation you deserve.
Other Potentially Liable Parties In Dog Bite Incidents
In some cases, it’s not the dog owners who are liable. Our dog bite lawyers in San Jose will investigate your case thoroughly to determine whether other parties can be held liable, such as the following:
- Dog Handlers — A person or business, such as a dog walker, daycare worker, or kennel staff, may be accountable if they are watching over the dog at the time of the incident.
- Property Owners — A property owner has the duty to provide secure spaces for their clients, visitors, or renters. They may be held accountable under certain conditions, such as when a dog is not kept contained.
In this situation, strict liability doesn’t apply. You’ll have to prove that the dog walker, doggy daycare, kennel, or property owner was negligent, meaning they failed to act with reasonable care, and that this failure caused your injuries.
With the help of experienced dog bite injury lawyers in San Jose, you can prove, for instance, that the handler neglected to secure the dog on their property or keep it on a leash. Another example is when the handler knew the dog had a history of violence or viciousness but still allowed it to run freely in an off-leash location.
Damages Victims Can Recover In A Dog Bite Claim
Children, especially young ones who can’t read a dog’s signals, are sadly the most common victims of serious dog bites and attacks. While adults can also be hurt or, in rare cases, even killed by dogs, the younger the child, the greater the risk of catastrophic or fatal injuries. Other frequent victims include pedestrians, joggers, delivery workers, and older children at play.
Dog bites can lead to devastating injuries. Deep puncture wounds can cause infections, nerve damage, and even flesh-eating bacteria. Lacerations often result in disfigurement and scarring. Regardless of the physical injury, any animal attack can cause lasting emotional trauma.
The dog bite attorneys San Jose turns to can assess the effects a dog bite incident has on a victim’s life. They will negotiate to obtain an amount that fully accounts for all your losses when negotiating with insurance companies or arguing your case in court.
After a dog bite accident, you may be entitled to recover compensatory damages, which are intended to make up for a victim’s losses. Despite being divided into economic and non-economic damages and calculated differently, these two categories are equally significant.
Economic Damages
Any losses with monetary value that can be measured financially fall under economic damages. These damages include ongoing and future medical bills, such as doctor visits, hospitalization, medication, and even chiropractic care, missed income, the cost of services the victim can perform on their own before the incident, property damage costs, and other out-of-pocket expenses. Trusted dog bite lawyers in San Jose will also pursue damages for any anticipated future losses and expenses, including continuing medical treatment and the injury’s long-term effects.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages cover the intangible consequences of a dog bite or attack. They include pain and suffering, mental agony, emotional distress, permanent disfigurement, post-traumatic stress disorder, loss of quality of life, and more.
Your San Jose dog bite lawyer can use various methods to evaluate your damages properly. This way, they can justify the intangible effects of your dog bite injuries to the insurance provider or a judge and jury.
Recommended Steps To Take After Sustaining A Dog Bite Injury
It’s critical to take immediate action after a dog bite to protect your health and safety. Promptly filing a claim can also help you get the most money possible from the negligent party. Our San Jose dog bite injury lawyers suggest you take the following steps:
- Seek Medical Help Right Away — Following a dog bite, your health and safety come first. Even if you don’t think you may be seriously harmed, you should get medical help as soon as possible to protect your health and avoid unexpected problems later.
- Determine The Dog’s Owner — Get as much information as you can about the dog and its owner, including their contact details.
- Keep A Record of The Incident — Maintaining a record of relevant evidence is essential to bolster your case in and out of court. Take pictures or videos of the injuries, the scene of the incident, and any other obvious evidence of negligence, including broken fences.
- Obtain Witness Information — To strengthen your case in court, it would be helpful to get the contact information of any witnesses who were there at the scene of the incident.
- Report The Incident — Make sure to report the dog bite incident to the local law enforcement or animal control agency.
- Contact Arash Law — Our dog bite lawyers serving San Jose and the rest of California leverage their years of experience to pursue the compensation you are due.
An attack that took place when a homeless man used an unsecured baseball bat in the Walmart store to attack a husband and wife who were shopping nearby. The jury found that Walmart was 50 percent liable for the attack, and the amount of the judgment against the company exceeded $30,000,000.– BRIAN BEECHER
The Time Limit To File A Dog Bite Injury Claim In California
If you sustained a dog bite injury, you have a limited time to take legal action. The statute of limitations in California for filing a claim is two years from the date of the attack. Failing to file within this timeframe means you forfeit your right to seek compensation. However, certain exceptions may extend or shorten this deadline.
Waiting too long may result in lost evidence, fading memories, or untraceable witnesses. Furthermore, insurance companies often use delays against victims, arguing that their injuries weren’t severe or that their claims lack merit. Consult with experienced dog bite attorneys in San Jose as soon as possible to protect your rights.
Dog Bite Facts And Figures
Between 2005 and 2018, roughly 1,000 people were treated daily in emergency rooms for nonfatal dog bite injuries in the United States. Meanwhile, the Insurance Information Institute reported that in 2023, homeowners’ insurance settled $1.12 billion in liability claims involving dog bites and related injuries. In addition, due to rising medical expenses as well as the magnitude of settlements, verdicts, and jury awards granted to plaintiffs, the average cost per claim nationwide grew by 82.5% between 2014 and 2023.
While some dog breeds are more often involved in biting incidents, any dog can bite. Information from sources like the National Institutes of Health can show us trends, but it’s important not to judge all dogs of a breed by these numbers. The following information reflects these trends, but doesn’t mean any individual dog will bite:
- Pit Bulls
- German Shepherds
- Labrador Retrievers
- Boxers
- Rottweilers
- Beagle
- Jack Russell
- Bulldog
- Chihuahuas
- Husky
- Golden Retriever
- Dachshund
- Mastiffs
- Shih-Tzu
This list doesn’t mean some breeds are naturally more dangerous. A dog’s behavior depends on many things, like how they are trained and treated. Regardless of the breed, it’s crucial to treat all dogs with respect and caution.
If you or a loved one suffered injuries from a dog bite, get in touch with us today. Our dog bite lawyers in San Jose can hold the dog owner or other liable parties accountable.
Questions Victims Frequently Ask Our San Jose Dog Bite Lawyers (FAQs)
Dog bites can be a distressing experience, often resulting in both physical and emotional harm. If a dog bites you, you likely have many questions about your legal rights and how to proceed. The following section answers common concerns our San Jose dog bite lawyers hear from clients, providing clear and straightforward answers to help you understand your options.
How Can I Afford To Hire Dog Bite Injury Lawyers?
You might be thinking, “I need a personal injury lawyer, but can I afford to hire one?” Arash Law’s accident attorneys in San Jose take cases on a contingency fee basis. That means our payment is a portion of your final settlement or verdict amount. When you work with us, the representation agreement you sign will specify that proportion in detail. There are no upfront or out-of-pocket costs. Furthermore, you owe us nothing if we are unable to obtain any compensation on your behalf. We hold on to our promise of “no win, no fee.”
What If My Injury Was Not A Dog Bite?
California law holds dog owners strictly liable for bite injuries in most cases, even if the skin isn’t broken. However, strict liability doesn’t cover all dog-related injuries. For example, injuries from a dog attacking someone without biting them are typically handled under negligence laws, not strict liability.
What Is The Timeframe For Resolving A Dog Bite Claim?
If you want to get the full value of your claim for a dog bite, you can expect that the settlement process may take a while. Settlement payouts typically take a few weeks to several months, depending on insurance processing times, case complexity, and any outstanding medical liens.
If the insurance company puts off finishing the last steps in the settlement procedure, it can take even longer. They can take too long to order the check, need too much clearance before they would pay you, or only issue checks on specific days of the month. Before accepting the insurance company’s offer, however, you should speak with experienced dog bite lawyers in San Jose.
Call The Dog Bite Lawyers San Jose Relies On
Dog bites are among the most painful and traumatic injuries one can experience. Some victims need major reconstructive plastic surgery; most of them experience debilitating emotional pain and an intense fear of dogs, which can take years to heal. Arash Law, led by the esteemed Arash Khorsandi, Esq., will work hard to win your dog bite claim and get full compensation for your losses.
Arash Law is best known for its award-winning car accident lawyers. However, we also handle other injury claims. From DUI crashes and hit-and-runs to pedestrian accidents, truck incidents, and Uber or Lyft collisions, we have helped injured victims and their families across California recover more than $750 million to date.
Call (888) 488-1391 or fill out our “Do I Have A Case?” form to speak to our San Jose dog bite lawyers. We also serve nearby cities and communities throughout the Golden State, including Santa Clara, Campbell, East Foothills, Milpitas, Cupertino, Los Gatos, Sunnyvale, Saratoga, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Fremont, Newark, Palo Alto, and Stanford.
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