A serious injury does not only change the life of the person who was hurt. It can change a marriage: the companionship, the support, the shared plans and daily life. California law recognizes this harm through a separate claim called loss of consortium. This article explains who can bring it and what it covers.
What loss of consortium means
Loss of consortium is the harm to a marriage or registered domestic partnership caused by an injury to one partner. It covers the loss of love, companionship, comfort, care, assistance, protection, affection, society and moral support, and the loss of physical and sexual relations. It is the uninjured partner’s own claim, separate from the injured person’s claim.
Who can bring the claim
In California, the claim generally belongs to a spouse or registered domestic partner. The relationship must have existed at the time of the injury. Other family members, such as children or parents, generally cannot bring this type of claim for an injury, although different rules apply when an injury is fatal.
How it depends on the main claim
A loss of consortium claim depends on the injured partner’s claim. If the injured person’s case succeeds, the partner’s claim can add real value; if the main claim fails, the consortium claim usually fails with it. Both claims should be prepared together, from the start.
How the harm is shown
These damages are personal, and they are shown through the couple’s own lives: how daily routines changed, what the uninjured partner now does to care for the other, and what the couple can no longer do together. Testimony from the partners, family and friends often matters more than documents.
What to do
- Tell your lawyer early that you are married or in a registered partnership.
- Keep a simple journal of how the injury has changed daily life at home.
- Keep records of care you provide, such as help with appointments, bathing and household work.
Read more about our catastrophic injury, spinal cord injury and brain injury cases, and our wrongful death cases for families who lost a loved one.
