Work site injury: what can I do?

Construction injury claims in California are filed in Superior Court in the county where the injury occurred or where the defendant is headquartered. There is no federal MDL for general construction accident tort claims; state civil courts have exclusive jurisdiction over these personal injury actions.

California's statute of limitations for personal injury is two years from the date of injury (Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1). Injured workers who rely solely on workers' compensation will not toll this deadline — third-party tort claims must be filed independently within the two-year window.

California does not have a Scaffold Law equivalent to New York's Labor Law § 240. However, Cal/OSHA Title 8 regulations impose extensive duties on general contractors and subcontractors for fall protection, scaffold erection, and trenching safety. OSHA citations and inspection reports are admissible as evidence of negligence in civil litigation.

California's workers' compensation system is the exclusive remedy against an employer, but injured workers retain the right to sue third parties — including general contractors, property owners, equipment manufacturers, and other subcontractors — for negligence. Labor Code § 3852 preserves these third-party claims, and any recovery is subject to the employer's lien for comp benefits paid.