Yes. You can bring a claim against anyone who may be liable for your damages. Two important concepts that apply to these cases are “pure comparative negligence” and “joint and several liability.”
California follows a pure comparative negligence system, which means each defendant is responsible for paying the percentage of damages that corresponds to their percentage of fault. If, for example, your damages award totals $100,000 and two defendants are liable—one who was 80% at fault and another who was 20% at fault—the former would have to pay $80,000 and the latter would have to pay $20,000.
The state of California also has a “joint and several liability” rule, which means each defendant can be held responsible for all of the victim’s economic damages. If one defendant lacks the insurance coverage or financial means to pay his or her share of the damages, the victim can seek the remainder from another defendant. Going with the example above, if the defendant who owes $80,000 only has the means to pay $60,000, the claimant can seek the remaining $20,000 from the other defendant, who would therefore be ordered to pay $40,000 even though he or she was only 20% at fault for the accident.
