California holds dog owners strictly liable for bites. If a dog bit you or your child in a public place or while you were lawfully on private property, the owner is responsible for your injuries — even if the dog had never shown aggression before. In most cases, the claim is paid through the owner’s homeowner’s insurance or renters policy — the personal liability coverage most pet owners already carry — not by the owner personally.
Attorney Anthony J. Nuñes has handled personal injury claims in Orange County for 26 years, from offices in Santa Ana and La Mirada. He works directly with every injured person — not a case manager, not a call center.
Most personal injury cases require proving that someone was careless. Dog bite cases in California do not. Under California’s strict liability statute, Civil Code § 3342, a dog owner is liable for a bite regardless of the dog’s prior bite history or the owner’s knowledge — there is no “one free bite” in this strict liability state, and the rule applies to every dog regardless of breed. Pet owners have a legal duty to prevent their animals from injuring people, and for a dog attack that does not involve a bite — a dog that jumps, knocks someone down, or runs into a cyclist — negligent dog owners can still be held responsible. Orange County and most of its cities have leash ordinances, and a violation is strong evidence of negligence in those cases.
That should make these cases simple. In practice, insurance companies contest many dog bite incidents anyway. Adjusters argue that the victim provoked the dog, that the victim was not lawfully on the property, that the injury is less serious than claimed, or that scarring will fade. With children, they push to settle before the long-term extent of facial injuries is known. They also sometimes misapply the law — citing a “skin must be broken” rule that does not exist in the civil statute.
An Orange County dog bite attorney’s job is to close those arguments off early: document the injury properly, secure the Animal Care report and witness accounts, establish that you were lawfully where you were, and refuse to let the claim be valued before the injury has fully declared itself. For the complete explanation of the statute, the exceptions, and the deadlines, see our guide to California dog bite law.
Every dog bite case starts with the same question: what, exactly, is this injury going to mean for you over time? The answer drives everything else.
Evidence and reporting. In the immediate aftermath of a bite, the firm obtains the OC Animal Care bite report and any county health department records, the dog’s vaccination and incident history, photographs of the injuries at every stage of healing, and statements from witnesses — before those records go stale.
Medical documentation. Dog bites to the face and hands frequently require reconstructive or plastic surgery, sometimes more than once. The firm works with your treating physicians to document the full course of medical treatment, including future procedures and permanent scarring, so the claim reflects the real injury and its total medical expenses rather than the emergency room bill alone.
Dealing with the insurance company. Once you are represented, the owner’s homeowners or renters insurer communicates with the firm, not with you. No recorded statements, no pressure to settle early, no adjuster reframing what happened. Because the insurer — not your neighbor, friend, or relative — is the responsible party paying on the owner’s liability, pursuing the claim does not have to damage a relationship. The firm also identifies the policy’s coverage limits early, because those limits often shape what a claim can realistically recover, and evaluates whether any other coverage applies.
Protecting the deadlines. California gives you two years to take legal action by filing a personal injury lawsuit for a dog bite. If the dog belonged to a government agency — a police dog, or a dog on public property under public control — a claim must be filed within six months. The firm tracks those dates from the first call. Most dog bite claims resolve through negotiation with the insurer; the legal process takes longer when a case proceeds to litigation and trial, and the firm prepares every case as if it might.
Direct access. Attorney Nuñes handles the case personally. You will have his direct line, and you will understand what is happening at every stage.
The firm cannot promise a particular result — no attorney honestly can. What it offers is careful preparation, thorough documentation, and an attorney who has been doing this work in Orange County courts for 26 years.
26 years of practice in California. Attorney Nuñes has represented clients in Orange County since 2000, in personal injury and across a general practice that includes criminal defense, immigration, family, and business law — a breadth that matters when an injury case touches other parts of a client’s life.
Verified client reviews. 48 five-star reviews on Avvo, including endorsements from fellow attorneys, and a consistently positive rating on Yelp.
Institutional rigor. Before entering private practice, Attorney Nuñes spent eight years as a Senior Tax Representative with the California State Board of Equalization, enforcing state tax law. That background shaped a documentation-first approach to proving claims — the same discipline applied to every dog bite case.
Two Orange County-area offices. Santa Ana, on Civic Center Drive near the county’s civil courthouse, and La Mirada, serving north Orange County and the LA County line — a Southern California law firm rooted in the communities it serves.
One attorney, start to finish. This is not a high-volume firm that signs cases and hands them to staff. Injured victims work with Attorney Nuñes directly.
Free consultation. Your initial consultation for a dog bite injury is free, and the legal fees and fee arrangement for representation are explained clearly, in writing, before you commit to anything.
A dog bite claim in California allows an injured person to seek compensation for economic damages — emergency and follow-up medical bills, reconstructive surgery, future procedures, medication, and lost income — and non-economic damages for pain, permanent scarring and disfigurement, and emotional distress. If you share some responsibility for the incident, California’s comparative fault rule reduces the recovery by that percentage rather than eliminating it.
The value of a claim depends on the severity of the injury, the treatment required, the permanence of scarring, and the insurance coverage available. The firm’s role is to document every category of loss so that the claim pursues full and fair compensation under the law. Those are the questions a free consultation answers.
The Law Office of Anthony J. Nuñes represents dog bite victims throughout Orange County, including Santa Ana, Anaheim, Garden Grove, Fullerton, Orange, Tustin, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Huntington Beach, Buena Park, and La Habra. The Santa Ana office at 611 W. Civic Center Drive is minutes from OC Animal Care — the county’s animal control agency, where bites are reported — and from the Central Justice Center, where Orange County civil cases are filed. The La Mirada office at 14241 E. Firestone Blvd., Suite 400, serves north county clients.
If you were bitten by a dog in Santa Ana or anywhere in Orange County, a Santa Ana dog bite lawyer who knows the local process — Animal Care reporting, the county’s courts, and the insurance carriers that handle these claims — can move the case forward quickly.
Not every bite requires a lawsuit, but any bite that involves scarring, a child, surgery, or an insurance company disputing the claim benefits from legal representation. Insurers regularly undervalue dog bite claims — especially scarring and future surgery — and settle early before the injury’s full extent is known. A free consultation can tell you whether your situation warrants representation.
The initial consultation is free. If you decide to move forward, the fee arrangement for your case is explained clearly and in writing before you sign anything, so there are no surprises about costs at any stage.
Two years from the date of the bite under Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1. If the victim is a minor, the deadline is paused until the child turns 18. If the dog belonged to a government agency, a claim must be filed within six months.
Yes. The claim is against the owner’s homeowners or renters insurance policy, which typically covers dog bite liability. In most cases, the owner does not pay personally, and pursuing a claim is a matter of dealing with the insurance company rather than the person you know.
A parent or guardian brings the claim on the child’s behalf. Because children’s bites are so often to the face, these cases center on scarring, reconstructive surgery, and long-term emotional effects — which is why they should not be settled quickly. Any settlement for a minor generally requires court approval to protect the child’s interests.
Get medical care, obtain the owner’s name and contact information (California law requires the owner to provide it), report the bite to OC Animal Care, photograph the injuries, and do not give a recorded statement to the owner’s insurance company before speaking with an attorney.
If you or your child was bitten by a dog in Orange County, California’s strict liability law is on your side — but the strength of the claim depends on what happens in the first days and on valuing the injury correctly before any settlement is accepted.
Call the Law Office of Anthony J. Nuñes at (714) 404-3131 to schedule a free consultation. Attorney Nuñes handles dog bite and personal injury cases from offices in Santa Ana and La Mirada, serving injured people throughout Orange County.
The information on this page is general and is not legal advice. Contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship; that relationship is formed only by a signed written agreement.
