Juvenile Liability

What You Should Know About Juvenile Torts

Generally, an individual who is injured must file a claim against the person who has caused the injury.  However, in the case of harm that is caused by a juvenile, there exists the possibility to hold the juvenile and the parents of the juvenile liable.  In California, with the enactment of recent statutes, under certain circumstances, parents may also be held liable for the harm committed by their minor child. If the parent knew or should have known of the harm committed, even if the parent was not present at the time the injury occurred. For example, liability can be shown if the injury caused by the child had previously been committed and the parents failed or still allowed it to happen again.

Some of the statutes that apply to parent liability in the State of California are Civil Code section 1714.1 (related to minor’s willful misconduct), section 1714.3 (relating to minor’s discharge of a firearm), or Education Code section 48904(a)(1) (related to minor’s willful misconduct).

This area of law is extremely fact-sensitive, requiring a thorough analysis of the circumstances. As it relates to this area of law, we provide a confidential, no-obligation, no time limit consultation so that our potential clients have the necessary opportunity to fully discuss the incident that resulted in their harm, as well as the background that may lead to the finding of malicious or reckless conduct.