Wildfire Representation from Our San Francisco Office
Wildfires have destroyed homes, businesses, and livelihoods across Northern California. Many of the people affected live and work in the Bay Area, and much of the litigation arising from these fires has been handled in San Francisco.
Coopers LLP represents individuals, families, and businesses in wildfire claims from our San Francisco office. Our attorneys work to investigate what caused the fire, identify the parties who may be legally responsible, and pursue compensation for losses that insurance often does not fully cover.
Why Wildfire Cases Are Often Handled in San Francisco
Many of California’s most destructive wildfires occur in Northern California, including the North Bay, Sierra Nevada, and other inland regions where dry conditions, high winds, and electrical infrastructure can increase fire risk. Even when a wildfire starts hundreds of miles away, the resulting lawsuits are often handled in San Francisco because of California’s court system and the location of major utility companies.
California has a process for keeping large groups of related wildfire lawsuits together. When a single wildfire leads to hundreds or thousands of claims, the state’s Judicial Council can assign those cases to one judge in what is called a Judicial Council Coordination Proceeding (JCCP). This helps the courts handle common legal and factual issues more efficiently.
Northern California Fires and Claims We Handle
Coopers LLP represents clients in wildfire matters arising throughout Northern California, including fires in the North Bay and Wine Country, Butte County and the northern Sierra, Lake and Mendocino counties, and the Sierra foothills. Claims we may take on include:
- Utility-caused fires: Fires alleged to have started from power lines, transformers, or other equipment, often involving questions about inspection, maintenance, and vegetation management.
- Fires caused by other acts of negligence: Fires traced to contractors, equipment operators, landowners, or other careless activity.
- Total loss and partial loss of structures: Homes, businesses, outbuildings, and rental property.
- Smoke, soot, and ash damage: Damage to structures and contents that survived the flames but were contaminated.
- Business interruption and lost income: Losses sustained by businesses forced to close, and by employees displaced from work.
- Agricultural and land losses: Crops, vineyards, timber, landscaping, mature trees, and diminished property value.
- Personal injury and wrongful death: Burns, smoke inhalation and respiratory injury, and fatalities.
If You Live in the Bay Area and Your Property Burned Elsewhere
Wildfire losses do not always happen close to home. Someone who lives in San Francisco or elsewhere in the Bay Area may own a second home, rental property, vineyard, family property, or undeveloped land in another part of California that is damaged or destroyed by a wildfire.
When the property is hours away, dealing with the loss can be more difficult. Documenting the damage, arranging inspections, communicating with insurance companies, and managing cleanup or repairs can all require additional coordination.
Living in the Bay Area does not necessarily mean you have to pursue a wildfire case where you live, just as owning property elsewhere does not necessarily mean the case will be handled where the fire occurred. Large wildfire cases involving many property owners are sometimes brought together in one court so shared issues, such as the cause of the fire and potential utility responsibility, can be addressed in one proceeding.
What Wildfire Victims May Be Able to Recover
Property insurance frequently does not cover the full extent of the harm suffered by people and businesses affected by a fire. Depending on the facts, a claim may seek compensation for:
- Home and personal property repair and replacement costs
- Loss of personal belongings, including items that cannot be replaced
- Land or property depreciation
- Crop, landscaping, or tree damage
- Business-related losses and lost income
- Costs of displacement, temporary housing, and relocation
- Medical expenses related to treatment and recovery
- Burns, smoke inhalation, and respiratory injury
- Pain and suffering and emotional distress
- Injury to pets or livestock
For investor-owned utilities, California courts have applied the doctrine of inverse condemnation, which can allow recovery for property damage caused by utility infrastructure without requiring proof that the utility was negligent.
Can I Still Bring a Claim If My Insurer Already Paid?
Often, yes. An insurance payment does not necessarily cover every loss caused by a wildfire. A policy may have coverage limits that fall short of rebuilding costs or leave other losses uncovered, particularly when construction costs increase after a major fire.
If another party’s negligence contributed to the wildfire, you may also have a claim against that party. Coopers LLP can review the insurance payments you have received, the losses that remain, and the circumstances of the fire to help determine what legal options may be available.
Our Approach and Contingency Fees
Wildfire litigation can involve extensive investigation, multiple defendants, and proceedings that run for years. Coopers LLP strives to gather and preserve evidence, coordinate with experts on cause and origin and on the valuation of losses, and advocate for clients in settlement negotiations, coordinated proceedings, and trial where necessary.
We handle wildfire claims on a contingency fee basis, meaning you do not pay attorney’s fees unless we successfully recover compensation for you. Our fee is typically a percentage of the recovery. In some cases, clients may be responsible for prevailing-party costs as determined by law.
If you or your family suffered losses in a Northern California wildfire, contact Coopers LLP today for a free consultation.