When a death was caused by someone else’s carelessness, the law decides who may bring a claim and how long they have. The answers differ in each state.
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At a glance
The general rule in each state. The guide below covers the exceptions.
The surviving spouse or domestic partner, the children, and the children of any child who has died. If the person left no children or grandchildren, those who would inherit under intestate succession. Stepchildren, parents and a putative spouse can also bring a claim if they depended on the person who died.Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 377.60
Claim on behalf of the person who died
The estate can also bring the claim the person had before they died. In a survival action filed on or after January 1, 2026, that claim does not include the person’s own pain and suffering.Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 377.30, 377.34
The surviving spouse, children and parents. Any of them can file for the benefit of all. If none has filed within three calendar months of the death, the executor or administrator of the estate must file unless all of them ask that no claim be brought. Siblings and grandparents are not included.Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 71.004
Claim on behalf of the person who died
The injury claim the person could have brought had they lived continues after death and belongs to their heirs and estate.Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 71.021
The personal representative of the estate files the claim. It is for the benefit of the spouse or state registered domestic partner and the children, including stepchildren. If there are none, it is for the parents or siblings.RCW 4.20.010; RCW 4.20.020
Claim on behalf of the person who died
Separate survival claims let the estate pursue what the person could have claimed had they lived.RCW 4.20.046; RCW 4.20.060
Two different claims
A death caused by someone else's carelessness can give rise to two separate claims, and families are often told about only one.
A wrongful death claim is for the people left behind. It is about what they have lost: the support the person provided, and the relationship itself.
A survival claim belongs to the person who died. It is the claim they could have brought had they lived, for what they went through between the injury and the death, and it passes to their estate.
The two are usually brought together. They have different owners, and sometimes different rules.
A civil claim is also separate from any criminal case. It does not depend on charges being filed or on a conviction, and it is decided on a lower standard of proof.
Who can bring a wrongful death claim
Each state sets its own list, and the lists are not alike.
Who may bring a wrongful death claim
California
Texas
Washington
Who can bring a wrongful death claim
The surviving spouse or domestic partner, the children, and the children of any child who has died. If the person left no children or grandchildren, those who would inherit under intestate succession. Stepchildren, parents and a putative spouse can also bring a claim if they depended on the person who died.Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 377.60
The surviving spouse, children and parents. Any of them can file for the benefit of all. If none has filed within three calendar months of the death, the executor or administrator of the estate must file unless all of them ask that no claim be brought. Siblings and grandparents are not included.Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 71.004
The personal representative of the estate files the claim. It is for the benefit of the spouse or state registered domestic partner and the children, including stepchildren. If there are none, it is for the parents or siblings.RCW 4.20.010; RCW 4.20.020
The differences matter to real families:
In California, the spouse or domestic partner and the children come first. Parents may be able to bring a claim if the person left no children or grandchildren, or if they depended on the person who died.
In Texas, the claim belongs to the spouse, the children and the parents. Brothers and sisters are not included. If none of the three has filed within three calendar months, the executor or administrator of the estate must file unless all of them ask that no claim be brought.
In Washington, the claim is filed by the personal representative of the estate, on behalf of the spouse or registered domestic partner and the children. Parents and siblings can benefit only when there is no spouse, partner or child. A separate Washington statute lets a parent bring a claim for the death of a child, with conditions that depend on whether the child was a minor or an adult.
Because Washington requires a personal representative, a family there usually has to open an estate before the claim can go forward.
The claim that belongs to the estate
The estate’s own claim
California
Texas
Washington
Claim on behalf of the person who died
The estate can also bring the claim the person had before they died. In a survival action filed on or after January 1, 2026, that claim does not include the person’s own pain and suffering.Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 377.30, 377.34
The injury claim the person could have brought had they lived continues after death and belongs to their heirs and estate.Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 71.021
Separate survival claims let the estate pursue what the person could have claimed had they lived.RCW 4.20.046; RCW 4.20.060
California changed this rule and then let the change lapse. From 2022 through 2025, an estate could recover for the pain and suffering the person endured before death. For a survival action filed on or after January 1, 2026, it cannot. Many pages online still describe the old rule.
If the person who died shared fault
The same rules on shared fault apply as in any injury claim. If the person who died was partly responsible for what happened, that share is counted.
Texas reduces your damages by your percentage of responsibility. If you are found more than 50 percent responsible, you recover nothing.Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §§ 33.001, 33.012
Your share of fault reduces your damages by that percentage but does not bar your claim. One exception: an injured person who was under the influence can be barred entirely if that was a cause of the injury and they were more than 50 percent at fault.RCW 4.22.005; RCW 5.40.060
Deadlines
The clocks that can be running
More than one deadline can apply to the same event. The bars share one scale: the full width is 3 years.
Claims against a government agency
California
6 monthsfor a written claim or notice
Texas
6 monthsfor a written claim or notice. A city can set a shorter period.
A written claim must be presented to the city, county, state agency or other public entity within six months. If the entity sends a proper written rejection, a lawsuit generally has to be filed within six months of that notice. A request to file late must be made within a reasonable time, not to exceed one year after the claim arose. The statute leaves a few narrow kinds of time out of that year.Cal. Gov. Code §§ 911.2, 911.4, 945.6
A city, county, school district or state agency must receive notice of the claim within six months of the incident. The notice describes the injury or damage, the time and place, and what happened. A city’s charter can set its own notice period, which may be shorter, so do not assume you have the full six months.Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101
Before suing a city, county or other local government, you must present a tort claim form to its designated agent and then wait 60 calendar days. Claims against the State go to the Office of Risk Management with the same 60 day wait. The form has to be presented within the normal limitation period, and that period is paused during the 60 days.RCW 4.96.020; RCW 4.92.100; RCW 4.92.110
If the injured person was under 18 when the claim arose, the time before their 18th birthday generally does not count. That does not apply to claims against a public entity, where the six month claim rule still runs, and medical negligence claims by children have their own rule.Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 352
If the injured person was under 18 when the claim arose, the time before their 18th birthday is generally not counted against the two years. That rule does not apply the same way to medical malpractice claims, and it should not be assumed to extend the notice deadline for a claim against a government agency.Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.001
If the injured person was under 18 when the claim arose, the time before their 18th birthday generally does not count. This does not extend the deadline in a wrongful death case, because that claim belongs to the personal representative of the estate, not to the child.RCW 4.16.190; Atchison v. Great Western Malting Co., 161 Wn.2d 372 (2007)
Three cautions.
The period for a death claim generally runs from the date of death, not from the date of the injury that led to it. If the person lived for some time after being injured, the two claims described above may be on different clocks.
If a government agency may be responsible, the first deadline is a matter of months.
And the rule that pauses time for children does not always help in a death case. In Washington it does not apply, because the claim belongs to the personal representative and not to the child.
Nobody should have to think about paperwork in the first weeks. These are the few things that are hard to recover later:
Keep every document: the police or incident report, medical records and bills, the death certificate, and anything from an insurance company.
Keep the person's phone, and the vehicle if there was a crash, as they are.
Write down the names of anyone who saw what happened.
Do not sign anything from an insurance company, and do not give a recorded statement, until you understand what it is.
Find out whether there is a will and who is named as executor. In Washington especially, the estate is the starting point.
When you are ready to talk, our intake team answers at any hour. Tell us what happened or call 800-411-9049.
Questions people ask
Who can file a wrongful death lawsuit?
It depends on the state. In California the surviving spouse or domestic partner and the children can bring the claim, and others can in some situations. In Texas it is the surviving spouse, the children and the parents. In Washington the personal representative of the estate files the claim, for the benefit of the spouse or registered domestic partner and the children.
Can siblings or grandparents bring a wrongful death claim?
In Texas, no: siblings and grandparents are not included. In Washington, parents or siblings benefit only when there is no spouse, registered domestic partner or child. In California, if the person left no children or grandchildren, the claim goes to those who would inherit under intestate succession.
How long do I have to file a wrongful death claim?
Generally two years in California and Texas and three years in Washington. In Texas, and generally in Washington, the period is counted from the date of death. If a government agency may be responsible, the first deadline is a matter of months.
What is the difference between a wrongful death claim and a survival action?
A wrongful death claim is for the people left behind, for the support and the relationship they have lost. A survival claim belongs to the person who died: it is the claim they could have brought had they lived, and it passes to their estate. The two are usually brought together.
Do criminal charges have to be filed before a family can bring a claim?
No. A civil claim is separate from any criminal case. It does not depend on charges being filed or on a conviction, and it is decided on a lower standard of proof.
Does the family have to open an estate first?
In Washington, usually yes, because the claim has to be filed by the personal representative of the estate. In Texas the spouse, children or parents can file, and if none has filed within three calendar months of the death, the executor or administrator must file unless all of them ask that no claim be brought. The survival claim belongs to the estate in California and Washington, and to the heirs and the estate in Texas.
Can the estate recover for the pain and suffering of the person who died?
In California, not in a survival action filed on or after January 1, 2026. From 2022 through 2025 an estate could recover for the pain and suffering the person endured before death, and many pages online still describe that rule. This site publishes no rule on that point for Texas or Washington, so ask us.
Sources
Primary sources for the rules on this page. Checked on the dates shown.
This site gives general legal information. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney client relationship. Deadlines depend on the facts. Some are much shorter than the general rule. Do not rely on this page to decide how long you can wait.
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