Burbank Dog Bite Lawyer

Burbank is a dog-friendly, walkable community, from its tree-lined residential streets to neighborhood parks and the Chandler Bikeway, a popular path for walkers, joggers, and cyclists. With so many people and dogs sharing the same sidewalks, trails, and green spaces, encounters that turn into bites or attacks happen more often than residents expect.

Because MMG Law Firm is based right next door in Glendale, we know these neighborhoods and trails and can investigate quickly, identifying the dog's owner, locating witnesses, and documenting the scene before details fade.

Where Burbank dog attacks tend to happen

• Off-leash or poorly controlled dogs on residential streets and front yards
• Encounters along the Chandler Bikeway between cyclists, joggers, and dog walkers
• Incidents at neighborhood parks and shared green spaces
• Bites at apartment complexes and around shared building entrances
• Delivery, service, and visiting situations where a dog is loose at a home

California's strict liability dog-bite law

California Civil Code section 3342 imposes strict liability on dog owners. This means that if a dog bites someone who is in a public place or lawfully in a private place, the owner is generally responsible for the resulting injuries, whether or not the dog had ever bitten anyone before and regardless of whether the owner knew the dog was dangerous. California does not follow a one-free-bite rule for these bite injuries. Owners may also face ordinary negligence claims for attacks that do not involve a bite, such as a large dog knocking someone down.

Common dog-bite injuries

• Puncture wounds and deep lacerations
• Nerve and muscle damage
• Permanent scarring and disfigurement, especially to the face and hands
• Infections from bite wounds
• Emotional trauma, anxiety, and fear of dogs, particularly in children

What compensation may cover

Every case is different and no result can be guaranteed, but a successful claim may pursue economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages can include emergency care, surgery, reconstructive or plastic surgery, future medical treatment, and lost wages. Non-economic damages can include pain, suffering, emotional distress, and the impact of permanent scarring. Under California's pure comparative negligence rule, your recovery may be reduced if you are found partly at fault, but it is not automatically eliminated.

Deadlines and the court for Burbank dog-bite cases

A dog-bite lawsuit in California generally must be filed within two years of the attack under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1, though a claim for a child may be treated differently. Burbank is within Los Angeles County, so cases are filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court and may be heard at the Burbank Courthouse. From our nearby Glendale office, MMG Law Firm offers free consultations in English, Armenian, and Russian, and we work on contingency, so you owe no fee unless we win.