SB 29: Civil actions: decedent’s cause of action.

Existing law provides that a cause of action that survives the death of the person entitled to commence an action or proceeding passes to the decedents successor in interest and an action may be commenced by the decedents personal representative or, if none, by the decedents successor in interest. Existing law provides that the damages recoverable in that action or proceeding include the loss or damage that the decedent sustained or incurred before death, including any penalties or punitive or exemplary damages that the decedent would have been entitled to recover had the decedent lived. Existing law also permits damages for a decedents pain, suffering, or disfigurement to be recovered in an action brought by the decedents personal representative or successor in interest if the action or proceeding was granted a specified preference before January 1, 2022, or was filed on or after January 1, 2022, and before January 1, 2026. Existing law requires a plaintiff who recovers damages for pain, suffering, or disfigurement between specified dates to submit to the Judicial Council a copy of the judgment, consent judgment, or court-approved settlement agreement entitling the plaintiff to the damages and a cover sheet containing specified information. Existing law requires the Judicial Council to transmit to the Legislature a report detailing this information, as specified.

This bill would remove the limitation on the recoverability of damages for pain, suffering, or disfigurement described above and the related reporting requirements, and would make all loss and damages the decedent sustained or incurred before death generally recoverable by the representative or successor of the decedent.