Different from criminal law, California civil law permits an individual to seek damages and justice for the physical and emotional injuries suffered from all kinds of assault. All assault victims are entitled to pursue a claim or lawsuit against the perpetrators to recover compensation. If you were or have been assaulted or battered, ensure you are somewhere safe and call the police. Once you are at a safe place, you can reach out to a civil law lawyer who can help you recover damages for your injuries.
Defining Assault
Assault is a threat or an attempt to inflict an injury upon another person. Put otherwise, assault is the wrongful and willful attempt to use force. Foundationally, assault is an aggressor's expression of intent to inflict offensive or harmful contact to someone else. If you actually use force, it will not be considered assault anymore— it will be a battery. Assault is mostly, although not always, demonstrated by threatening conduct or words.
For a defendant to be found civilly liable for assault in California:
- They must have intended to cause offensive or harmful contact with the victim (or third party) or meant for the complainant to believe they would be subject to offensive or harmful contact.
- The complainant believed they would be subjected to offensive or harmful contact.
The respondent also needs to have known that any reasonable individual would have presumed the threat was genuine, and they had the present capability to use force upon the victim. Put otherwise, it should have been a credible threat.
Closely-related to assault is a battery offense. Although these terms are often used together, they do not mean the same thing. A battery is the unlawful and willful use of violence or force on someone else. The force need not be significant to constitute a battery offense. Just like a person can be civilly liable for assault, they can also be liable for battery.
Examples of actions that can warrant a civil suit for assault or battery are, without limitation, simple assault, sexual assault, simple battery, sexual battery, assault with a deadly weapon, battery causing significant bodily injury, domestic violence, and vehicular assault.
How to Know You Have Been Assaulted
For someone's words or actions to be considered assault, courts in California usually scrutinize what was reasonable for the victim to believe. For instance, an individual waving their arms in the air threatening to knock you down with a bat is likely to be considered civilly liable only if you can prove you reasonably feared the individual had the bat or could access it. Here, the key thing is how reasonable the plaintiff's fear was and the defendant's intentions.
Intention In Assault Cases
Battery and assault are categorized under intentional tort lawsuits/claims. No negligence is involved, and thus the usual negligence rule for establishing fault does not apply. Showing intent becomes the key to succeeding in injury suits involving willful acts like assault. If you are an assault victim, you must prove that the aggressor intended to inflict offensive or harmful contact or meant for you to believe that you would suffer offensive or harmful contact.
More importantly, you need not prove that the respondent's intention was directed to you specifically for them to be civilly responsible for the assault. It could be, for instance, that the respondent's intentions were directed at an individual standing next to the complainant, but that the complainant's proximity made them believe they would consequently suffer offensive or harmful contact.
Anyone Can File a Lawsuit for Assault
Anybody who is a victim of unprovoked threats or application of force could sue for compensation. The only exception is if the contact was consensual. For example, striking a person during martial arts lessons would not be considered an assault/battery act except if the force applied was more than anticipated and reasonable.
Liability in Assault Lawsuits
In most cases, the perpetrator of the assault act is the one to be held responsible for damages incurred. However, sometimes, a third party could also be held liable. The determining factor here is whether the third party had the legal duty of care towards the complaint and they were negligent in upholding that duty (or failed to uphold it). For instance:
- Companies providing security guards must ensure guards are sufficiently supervised and trained
- Employers must ensure they have provided a safe working space
- A building owner owes visitors the duty of care to maintain the safety of their premises
- The law also requires commercial property owners to take various steps towards protecting their customers from both the premises and other clientele on the premises
If these parties fail to exercise their duties and someone is assaulted or battered under their care, they can also be held responsible for damages. Additionally, third parties might have insurance covering a specific situation. Your lawyer can advise whether you can hold one or several third parties legally responsible for the injuries inflicted upon you. They will review all the aspects of your case to find every available source of compensation.
Criminal Charges vs. a Civil Lawsuit
Criminal and civil law are independent of each other as far as holding an assault/battery perpetrator liable for damages is concerned. That said, a defendant need not be criminally convicted for you to bring a civil suit for battery or assault against them. You can sue for damages even if criminal charges are not filed, or the court pronounces a ‘’not guilty’’ verdict against the defendant after the case goes to trial. For example, a man is pronounced innocent of the murder charges against him. But regardless of being exonerated, the dead victim's family can file a civil suit, which they win a significant amount in compensation.
The Burden of Proof in Civil Assault Lawsuits
Civil suits are different from criminal trials. Under civil law, the respondent need not be guilty beyond any reasonable doubt to be liable for damages. Rather, the jurors have to simply establish that it is more likely than not that the respondent was legally liable for your injuries. This standard of proof is also referred to as a preponderance of the evidence. Per this standard of proof, the jury needs to be only 51 percent convinced that the respondent is responsible for your injuries. If that is the case, you will recover compensation.
Damages You Can Recover for Assault Suit
When you suffer injuries because of an assault, you may be entitled to sue your aggressor. If your lawsuit or claim is successful, you may recover the following damages:
- Non-economic compensation— these damages include recovery for the mental anguish, pain & suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, insomnia, scarring, trauma, or anxiety associated with your injuries.
- Economic compensation— like any other personal injury case, you can recover all reasonably calculable and quantifiable losses such as personal property damage, lost wages, medical bills, lost earning capacity, psychological counseling, and out-of-pocket expenses.
You Could Also Obtain Punitive Damages
You might recover punitive damages in your battery or assault case if the respondent acted maliciously, fraudulently, or oppressively. These terms generally mean the respondent either hurt you deliberately or acted with a conscious disregard of your rights. The standard of proof required to recover punitive damages is clear, convincing evidence. The state's law usually does not categorically define what clear, convincing evidence means. However, it is a higher standard of proof compared to a preponderance of the evidence. Generally, it means the jury has to establish with a higher degree of possibility that the respondent acted in a particularly blameworthy manner.
Unlike economic and non-economic damages awarded to compensate the victim, punitive damages are awarded to punish the defendant and deter other people from acting similarly to the respondent.
Your Family Could Also Sue the Assault Perpetrator for Compensation
In a few cases, the assaulted victim’s family can seek compensation for the injuries resulting from battery or assault in California state. The primary legal basis under which a family member may sue are:
- A survival action or wrongful death lawsuit if the battery/assault led to the victim's death
- Loss of consortium— if the battery/assault led to the loss of intimacy, moral support, or companionship to a domestic partner/spouse.
- Negligent causing of mental anguish and emotional distress— where they witnessed the battery/assault
The Statute of Limitations for Civil Assault Lawsuits
A statute of limitations is a law that sets the timeframe within which a victim must file a personal injury lawsuit. This timeframe starts running from the day the injury occurred. However, the period the statute of limitations permits a victim to pursue legal action against the alleged perpetrator varies across jurisdictions and depends on the type of the wrongdoing.
Generally, the state's statute of limitations to pursue legal action against assault or battery perpetrators is only two years, counted from the day the injury occurred. But particularly in cases where the degree of your injuries is apparent, it is usually advantageous to bring a lawsuit earlier when memories are still fresh. If you do not file your claim or lawsuit within the two-year time limit, you will forever be barred from seeking compensation for your assault/battery-related injuries.
An exception to this statute of limitations is for cases involving public entities. If you wish to sue a public entity for assault/battery injuries, for instance, a police department, school district, state, or city, you must do so within six months from the date of the harm. Consequently, for any case where a public entity is a defendant, you want to consult a lawyer before the end of six months.
Defenses to Assault or Battery Civil Cases
When you sue your aggressor for compensation, they may defend themselves against the lawsuit by arguing various points. The primary defenses to assault civil charges are, without limitation:
Self-Defense or Defense of Someone Else
Everyone has the right to defend themselves or others from danger, but they have to use reasonable force when doing so. Self-defense is a valid defense to an assault or battery lawsuit if the respondent can show their acts were reasonably dependent on their belief that you would inflict harm upon them or damage their property. The defendant can also raise the 'self-defense' defense if they only acted that way to protect a guest, employee, employer, friend, family member, or any other person from harm. Whether the defendant used reasonable force and whether you were about to cause actual harm, which led the defendant to act to defend themselves or another person, is a matter that depends significantly on the facts of the case.
Defense of Property
An individual has the right to act to prevent damage or destruction to their own property or property of someone else (typically a friend, guest, or relative). Again, the respondent must have used reasonable force. But the standard for reasonable force when it comes to the defense of property is stricter than self-defense. However, the respondent may apply deadly force if need be to safeguard the property or those of others if they exercise the force depending on the reasonable belief it is necessary to do so to protect their life (or that of their family member).
To win the self-defense or defense-of-other argument, the force the defendant used must have been more than what is reasonably required to protect the property or an individual. It is up to the jury to determine whether or not the respondent's force was justifiable based on the facts of the case. The respondent has the burden of proof to admit factual proof in support of their self-defense or defense of others.
Consent to Offensive/Harmfulness Contact
If you had agreed to the supposed offensive or harmful contact, the respondent would not be civilly liable for assault. Consent is usually an assault/battery defense in cases that involve sports injuries since players give their implied or explicit consent to the natural consequences of participating in the sports (which could include deliberate contact that is reasonably likely to cause harm.
Other defenses could include:
- The defendant did not have the present capability to execute their threat
- You were not scared (or a reasonable individual would not have been scared)
- You escalated or started the incident
- The respondent did not use any force against or threaten you
What You Should Do After an Assault
The steps you take after a person has assaulted you will significantly influence whether or not you will receive compensation if you file a lawsuit or claim. To increase your chances of recovering damages, you should do the following:
Call Law Enforcement Officers to Report the Assault
Once you have been assaulted, you should first ensure you are at a safe place. Once you are sure of your safety, call the police and file a report. Although filing a police report is not a must if you are a victim of battery and assault, there are valid reasons why you would want to do so. They include:
- If the accused is found guilty, you can usually use their conviction to prove liability in your civil lawsuit
- The accused cannot use your failure to file a police report to attack your credibility
- Witnesses are at times highly likely to cooperate with law enforcement
Seek the Required Medical Treatment
You should seek medical attention and receive treatment if you were injured during the assault. Even if the injuries are not visible, you should still see a doctor for a check-up as you might have sustained internal injuries, which take longer to manifest. Take pictures of any related body marks and injuries and document a medical report for your treatment. You will need these when claiming compensation for medical bills.
Call a Skilled Personal Injury Lawyer
You also ought to contact an attorney to learn about your rights and establish your legal options. You should move as fast as possible so you can have ample time to collect proof and make statements. Also, the faster you move, the sooner you will obtain justice and compensation to pay for things such as medical bills. Your lawyer can help you gather proof, file the lawsuit within the statute of limitations, and defend your rights so you can recover the damages you deserve.
Collect Available Witness Details
If there was anyone who witnessed the assault, you want to take their details so you can easily track them down when you need them to testify. Ensure you record their name, address, phone number, or email address. An eyewitness's testimony can significantly increase your chances of recovering compensation since it makes your story more credible.
Contact an Assault Civil Lawsuit Attorney Near Me
Nobody has the right to assault you. If you are a victim of assault, you should know where to turn. At Orange County Personal Injury Attorney, we help victims who have been assaulted in Orange County, CA, to obtain justice and compensation for any injuries they suffered. We will first review your case to determine your legal options. If you qualify, we will help you file a civil lawsuit and fight to protect your rights, and help you recover the damages you deserve. Call us at 714-876-1959 for a consultation and share the details about your case.