Wildfire Litigation
Wildfire Litigation 101: How Utility Companies Are Held Accountable
When a wildfire tears through a community, the destruction is immediate and overwhelming. Homes are gone. Businesses are lost. Lives are upended in a matter of hours. And in the days and weeks that follow, survivors are left asking the same question: who is responsible?
In many of the major wildfires I have litigated over the past two decades, the answer has been the same — a utility company that failed to maintain its equipment, ignored warnings, or cut corners on safety to protect its bottom line.
How Wildfires Start
The majority of California’s most destructive wildfires in recent years have been traced back to electrical infrastructure — power lines, transformers, and other utility equipment that ignites dry vegetation when it fails or sparks. Utility companies are required by law to maintain their equipment and implement fire safety protocols, particularly in high-risk areas. When they don’t, the consequences can be catastrophic.
What “Liability” Actually Means
Holding a utility company accountable means proving that their negligence — their failure to act as a reasonably careful company should — directly caused the fire that destroyed your property or injured your family. This is not a simple process. Utilities have armies of lawyers and engineers working to minimize their exposure from the moment a fire breaks out. That is exactly why having experienced legal representation matters.
What Victims Can Recover
If a utility company is found liable, fire victims may be entitled to compensation for:
- Property damage and rebuilding costs
- Loss of personal belongings
- Medical expenses
- Lost income
- Emotional distress
- Punitive damages, in some cases
Every case is different, and the size of your recovery depends on the specifics of your loss and the strength of the evidence.
The Importance of Acting Quickly
Evidence in wildfire cases moves fast. Utility companies begin their own investigations immediately after a fire. Vegetation is cleared. Equipment is inspected and sometimes removed. The window to preserve critical evidence is narrow. The sooner you have legal representation, the better positioned you are to protect your claim.
What I Have Learned From Over Two Decades of Fighting These Cases
Utility companies do not settle because they want to do the right thing. They settle because they are forced to. Over the past two decades, my team and I have represented more than 30,000 fire victims across more than 30 wildfires and recovered over $3 billion on their behalf. That did not happen by waiting — it happened by building airtight cases, holding companies accountable in court, and refusing to back down.
If you or your family have been affected by a wildfire, do not wait to understand your rights. The process is complicated, the deadlines are real, and the other side is already preparing. We are here to level the playing field.