Wrongful Death Claims Against Kaiser in California

Who can bring a wrongful death claim in California

California law lets the surviving spouse or registered domestic partner, the children, and the children of a child who has died bring a wrongful death claim. If the person who died left no surviving children or other descendants, the claim can be brought by the relatives who would inherit under California’s inheritance rules when there is no will (Code of Civil Procedure 377.60). Families are often unsure who should be named, and that is one of the first things a lawyer sorts out.

Certain dependents can also bring the claim. These include a putative spouse and that spouse’s children, stepchildren, and parents, when they depended on the person who died. A minor who lived in the household for the prior 180 days and received at least half of their support from the person who died may also qualify. Our wrongful death page explains these family claims in more detail.

How long the family has to act

When a death results from medical negligence, the claim is a medical malpractice claim, and the deadline in Code of Civil Procedure 340.5 applies. In a wrongful death malpractice case, the three-year period runs from the date of death. The one-year period runs from when the family discovered, or should have discovered, the negligent cause of the death (Larcher v. Wanless (1976) 18 Cal.3d 646).

For a Kaiser member, Kaiser applies the same deadlines that would apply in court, measured by the date the Demand for Arbitration is served (OIA Rules). The demand has to be served inside that window.

Grief makes it hard to think about dates. Even so, the one-year period may start soon after the death, so a call to a lawyer early on protects the family’s options. See our malpractice deadline guide.

How Kaiser arbitration affects a death claim

California requires a health plan that uses binding arbitration to disclose it clearly in its contract and enrollment form, including whether members are giving up a jury trial (Health and Safety Code 1363.1). Kaiser members in California generally agree at enrollment that malpractice claims against Kaiser and its contracted providers will be decided by binding arbitration (Kaiser’s 2026 enrollment form). How that agreement applies to the family’s claim depends on the plan documents, which a lawyer reviews at the start.

Kaiser member arbitrations are administered by a neutral Office of the Independent Administrator, which has run the system since 1999 (Office of the Independent Administrator). The system is designed to resolve most cases within 18 months of the demand, and in 2025 cases closed in an average of 405 days (OIA system description; OIA annual report for 2025). When the demand seeks more than $200,000, each side may appoint a party arbitrator to sit with the neutral arbitrator, unless both sides waive and use a single neutral. Our Kaiser malpractice overview has more on the process.

Deaths after an emergency room visit and EMTALA

Sometimes a loved one is seen in an emergency room and sent home, or dies while waiting for care. Under the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, a Medicare-participating hospital with an emergency department must give anyone who comes to it an appropriate medical screening exam. If an emergency medical condition exists, the hospital must stabilize the patient or arrange an appropriate transfer, regardless of ability to pay (42 U.S.C. 1395dd).

A patient harmed by a hospital’s EMTALA violation can sue the hospital, but not the individual doctor under EMTALA, for personal injury damages available under state law. That lawsuit must be filed within two years of the violation, and the California Supreme Court has held that the MICRA cap applies to those damages (Barris v. County of Los Angeles (1999) 20 Cal.4th 101). Whether EMTALA fits a particular death depends on the facts. Our emergency room malpractice page covers ER claims.

How the family proves the case

California treats medical negligence as a form of negligence (CACI No. 500). A health care professional is negligent if they fail to use the skill, knowledge and care in diagnosis and treatment that other reasonably careful practitioners would use in the same or similar circumstances (CACI No. 501). The family has to show that the care fell below that standard and that the failure caused the death.

Expert testimony is generally required to prove the standard of care, the breach and causation, except for matters within common knowledge, such as a sponge left inside a patient after surgery. In a death case, a reviewing doctor looks at the full chart, the timing of each decision and the cause of death. That is why the records and an early timeline from the family matter so much, especially in fast-moving conditions like sepsis.

The 2026 MICRA cap and what the case costs

In a wrongful death malpractice case, California’s MICRA law caps non-economic damages. The cap in effect when the judgment, award or settlement is reached controls, and in 2026 it is $650,000 per category (Civil Code 3333.2). Up to three separate caps can apply in one case: one for health care providers such as doctors as a group, one for institutions such as hospitals as a group, and one for unaffiliated providers whose separate negligence happened at an unaffiliated facility.

Lawyer fees in malpractice cases are limited by law to 25 percent if the case settles before a lawsuit or arbitration demand is filed, and 33 percent after filing (Business and Professions Code 6146). At Beverly Law the consultation is free, and you owe no fees or costs unless we win. We meet families at our Los Angeles office or by phone, in English or Spanish.

What to do now

Request the medical records in writing. California patients and their representatives can inspect records within 5 working days of a written request and receive copies within 15 days (Health and Safety Code 123110). A lawyer can help confirm who may request the records of a family member who has died. Write down the dates of each visit and call, what the family was told, and the names of the doctors and nurses involved.

Do not sign anything from Kaiser or an insurer about the death before you get advice. Keep discharge papers, text messages and any notes from the hospital stay. Then talk to a lawyer about the deadline, because it can run sooner than families expect. Call Beverly Law at (310) 552-6959 for a free consultation, in English or Spanish.

• Send a written request for the complete medical records.
• Write a timeline of visits, calls and what the family was told.
• Keep discharge papers, messages and the death certificate.
• Do not sign anything from Kaiser or an insurer before talking to a lawyer.
• Call a lawyer early so the demand can be served on time.

Michael Shemtoub founded Beverly Law in 2008 and has been licensed to practice law in California since 2007. He earned his law degree at UC Hastings, is admitted to practice in the U.S. District Courts for the Central and Northern Districts of California, and has tried cases to verdict. As the firm’s managing attorney, he oversees its cases.

Common questions

Related pages

How to File a Kaiser Arbitration Demand in California · Wrongful Death from Medical Malpractice in California · Kaiser malpractice claims · Sent Home From the ER and Got Worse

Important: This page is general information about California law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Deadlines and damage limits depend on the facts of each case; talk to a lawyer about yours. MICRA amounts are for judgments, awards and settlements in 2026. Last reviewed: November 5, 2026.