Oakland Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

Our Oakland office is downtown at 475 14th St., Suite 700, Oakland, CA 94612. Visits are by appointment, and a free case review can begin by phone or online any time of day. Hablamos Español. Directions, plus the other case types this office takes, are on our Oakland office page.

An East Bay result and three more from across California:

• $2 million (2026, Emeryville): a driver exiting a store's lot struck a pedestrian in the crosswalk. The injuries included an arm injury and pain in the neck, back, and legs.
• $36 million (2025, Fresno): a delivery van hit a child who was crossing, causing a traumatic brain injury.
• $9.1 million (2025, Pasadena): a company work truck turning left at high speed struck and killed a pedestrian in a crosswalk, and the wrongful death claim settled.
• $8 million (2026, Santa Monica): a city tractor struck a person on foot on the beach at night, causing serious head injuries.

More pedestrian outcomes are listed with our settlements and verdicts. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case is different.

City streets. The Oakland Police Department's Traffic Investigations Unit, at the Eastmont Substation, 2651 73rd Ave., sells its collision reports. A report costs $30 online or $25 in person or by mail, and reports are typically ready 60 to 90 days after the crash. Fatal collision reports aren't sold online. Counter hours are Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and a third party needs an involved party's signed authorization or, if applicable, a death certificate.

Freeways. The CHP has primary jurisdiction for investigating crashes on state freeways (Veh. Code §2400(d)). Its Oakland Area office, at 3601 Telegraph Ave., serves Oakland, Berkeley, Piedmont, Emeryville, and nearby cities. To get the CHP's report, use its online Crash Portal or submit form CHP 190 to the nearest CHP Area office, in person or by mail.

The court. An Oakland pedestrian case can be filed in Alameda County Superior Court, the county where the injury happened (Code Civ. Proc. §395(a)). Parties with lawyers must file electronically, and unlimited civil cases generally go to a single judge within two court days of filing (Local Rules 3.27, 3.120, 3.130). The court's 2026 directory places its civil direct calendar courtrooms at the Administration Building, 1221 Oak St., and the Hayward Hall of Justice.

A claim against a public agency comes before any lawsuit (Gov. Code §945.4), and it must be presented in writing within six months (§911.2); a mailed claim counts as presented on the day it's mailed (§915.2). In and around Oakland, each agency has its own claims office:

• City of Oakland: the City's claim form goes to the City Attorney's Office, 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, 6th Floor, by mail or in person. The office also accepts claims at the email address on its claims page and treats them as personally delivered. Forms come in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese.
• Alameda County: return the signed original of the County's claim form to the Board of Supervisors' clerk, Administration Building, 1221 Oak St., Room 536.
• AC Transit: the signed original Claim for Damages Form, plus one copy, goes by mail or personal delivery to the District Secretary at 1600 Franklin St. AC Transit won't accept claims by fax or email.
• BART: BART's claim form, Form 1020, is mailed to its Insurance Division at P.O. Box 12688, Oakland, CA 94604-2688.
• State highways: Alameda County is in Caltrans District 4, whose claim office in Oakland takes claims up to $12,500. Anything larger goes to the Department of General Services' Government Claims Program, with a $25 filing fee unless waived.

The City Attorney's Office lists AC Transit, BART, Alameda County, the Port of Oakland, and Oakland Unified among the agencies whose claims people often send to the City by mistake. After a written rejection, there are six months from the notice to file suit (Gov. Code §945.6).

In the Office of Traffic Safety's 2023 rankings, Oakland placed 3rd of the 15 California cities with more than 250,000 residents for pedestrian victims, at 255, where 1st is the worst. It placed 2nd for pedestrians 65 and older, and 1st for hit-and-run crashes that killed or injured someone. OTS city counts don't include freeway crashes.

City records show how often walking ends in a death here. Oakland recorded 30 traffic deaths in 2024, and 13 were pedestrians. Through September 2026, pedestrians accounted for 13 of the year's 20 traffic deaths, in a category that also counts some skateboard and mobility-scooter users (City of Oakland).

The City's 2024 High Injury Network maps the 8% of streets responsible for 60% of severe and fatal collisions, using 2017 to 2021 crash data. In its 2024 Safe Oakland Streets report, the City named driver failure to yield, disobeying signs and signals, unsafe turning, and speeding as the most common causes of fatal and severe crashes. When a street itself is dangerous, the agency that owns it may share the blame under Gov. Code §§835 and 835.2.

Our Oakland office also takes cases from the cities next door. Lawsuits over crashes in all three can be filed in Alameda County Superior Court, but each city handles claims its own way.

Berkeley. A claim against the City of Berkeley is mailed to the City Clerk Department, 2180 Milvia St., 1st Floor, and the City won't accept one by email. The Berkeley Police Records Bureau issues collision reports for a $10 fee.

Emeryville. Claims go on the City's injury claim form to the City Attorney's office at 1333 Park Ave. Emeryville Police Department reports are requested at its counter at 2449 Powell St., then picked up or mailed; they aren't emailed.

Alameda. The City of Alameda takes claims through its City Clerk, in person or by mail to 2263 Santa Clara Ave., Suite 380. It doesn't accept claims for AC Transit, Alameda County, the school district, or the CHP. The first three take their own claims, and a claim against the CHP goes to the state's Government Claims Program.

A driver must use due care for the safety of any pedestrian on the roadway (Veh. Code §21954(b)) and must yield to a pedestrian crossing in a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection (§21950(a)). Crosswalk crashes have their own crosswalk accident page, which covers the evidence that tends to decide them.

Others may share responsibility with the driver. A business may be responsible for an employee driving for work. A car's owner who let the driver use it can be liable too, up to dollar limits the statute caps (§§17150, 17151). The City, the County, AC Transit, or Caltrans may share responsibility when its vehicle, signal, or street played a part, though agencies can raise design immunity for an approved plan (Gov. Code §830.6).

We pursue compensation for hospital bills and future care, wages you lost or may lose, and the pain the injury causes. If a pedestrian was killed, our fatal pedestrian accident page explains what the family's wrongful death claim can include. Hit-and-runs are common here, and our hit-and-run page explains what keeps uninsured motorist coverage available. That includes physical contact with the vehicle, a police report within 24 hours, and a sworn statement to the insurer within 30 days (Ins. Code §11580.2).