(Injured persons’ immigration status not subject to inquiry under new law)
ON October 23, 1979, Jesus Rodriguez was injured in a traffic accident after being hit by a vehicle driven by Samuel Kline. As a result of his injuries, Rodriguez could no longer work at his usual job. Rodriguez sued Kline in court and won a judgment of $99,000 for his damages. A substantial portion of Rodriguez’s award for damages came from his future loss of earnings.
Kline appealed the judgment, saying that Rodriguez’s damages should be reduced because Rodriguez admitted in court that he is an “illegal alien.” Kline argued that someone who is in the United States illegally is only entitled to compensation for personal injuries based on his projected earning capacity in the country of lawful citizenship (in Rodriguez’s case, Mexico). If so, Rodriguez’s damages should indeed be drastically reduced.
The Court of Appeal decided that undocumented workers may recover damages for personal injuries, including future loss of earnings, if they could show that they had applied for a visa and had worked to correct their illegal status. In other words, if they had already corrected their illegal status, then their damages for future loss of earnings will based on what they could have earned in the U.S. If the undocumented worker cannot show that he or she has worked toward becoming a legal worker (i.e., they’re still undocumented) their earning-capacity damages are based on earning capacity in their home country.
This law has stood for 30 years. Many injured undocumented workers have chosen not to make claims for serious injuries fearing that their immigration status will become known and they will be deported. Worse, the decision in the Rodriguez case has also been used by defendants in personal injury cases to argue that compensation for medical expenses should be based on how much the care would cost for a person in their country of origin, rather than in California.
To finally correct this state of affairs and continue to strengthen California’s commitment to protect undocumented workers from exploitation, California passed a law to overturn the Rodriguez decision. This new law will take effect in February 2017. The new law states:
“In a civil action for personal injury or wrongful death, evidence of a person’s immigration status shall not be admitted into evidence, nor shall discovery into a person’s immigration status be permitted.”
An injured person’s immigration status cannot therefore be asked or be the subject of inquiry in a personal injury or wrongful death litigation. This affords the immigrant an opportunity to recover damages in full. It avoids the injustice of having the negligent party pay lesser compensation simply due to the victim’s undocumented status.
In its support of the new law, the Consumer Federation of California noted that “Once immigration status is raised, a person, injured through no fault of their own, is faced with either forgoing recovery for his injuries, or continuing with his case in fear of deportation. Immigration status is strategically applied only when the undocumented person is from a country whose wages are lower than the U.S. … This allows defendants to undercut the value of an injured immigrant’s future medical care, even though that future medical care will be in the U.S., not their country of origin.”
* * *
The Law Offices of C. Joe Sayas, Jr. welcomes inquiries about this topic. All inquiries are confidential and at no-cost. You can contact the office at (818) 291-0088 or visit www.joesayaslaw.com.
* * *
C. Joe Sayas, Jr., Esq. is an experienced trial attorney who has successfully obtained significant recoveries for thousands of employees and consumers. He is named Top Labor & Employment Attorney in California by the Daily Journal, consistently Aselected as Super Lawyer by the Los Angeles Magazine, and is a member of the Million Dollar-Advocates Forum.