Los Angeles, CA personal injury attorney Narbeh Shirvanian talks about how fault is determined in California car accident cases. The legal team often receives inquiries about how liability can be proven in car accident cases or motorcycle accidents. The recommended course of action is for individuals involved in an accident to file a police report promptly. In such situations, individuals are advised to contact law enforcement, ensure a report is taken, engage with all parties involved, speak to witnesses, gather their perspectives, and obtain statements. The freshness of these statements is crucial, whether collected on the day of the accident at the scene or two years later during a deposition.

The process of establishing liability typically involves an initial examination of the police report. Although the conclusions reached by the officer are not necessarily binding, the report contains valuable statements and facts from traffic collision reports that aid in establishing liability. In cases where there is no traffic collision report or if responsibility is unclear, witness testimony becomes a crucial factor. Private investigators are often deployed to the scene to identify and interview witnesses, search for video surveillance footage, or obtain footage from devices such as ring cameras owned by homeowners.

In instances where such evidence is unavailable, the case may become a matter of conflicting accounts, and the ultimate determinant of liability is often based on the credibility of the involved parties.