Practice Pointers

VI. Practice Pointers

1. Day-one preservation letter. Send a litigation hold to the agency, the city/county counsel, the district attorney (if charges are pending), and any third-party vendors (e.g., body-cam storage providers). Demand preservation of all video, audio, dispatch, jail, medical, and personnel records.

2. Public Records Act (Cal. Gov. Code § 7920 et seq.) requests early. Use SB 1421/SB 16 disclosures to obtain officer disciplinary and use-of-force records. These also build the Monell record.

3. Calendar the six-month Government Claims Act deadline at intake. Set a 90-day internal tickler. Lose this and you lose the Bane Act claim, the treble damages, and the state fees.

4. Plead both tracks. Always file § 1983 alongside Bane Act (and Ralph Act if the facts permit). The Bane Act is your hedge against qualified immunity.

5. Investigate Monell before filing. Pull prior lawsuits, IA records, DOJ findings, and consent decrees. A bare-bones Monell allegation will be dismissed under Iqbal/Twombly.

6. Watch Heck v. Humphrey. If your client was convicted of resisting arrest (PC § 148(a)) or assault on a peace officer (PC § 245(c)), carefully temporally segregate the force used before, during, and after the conduct that supported the conviction.

7. Assess venue. Federal court is often more favorable on procedural rules and jury pools in some districts; state court is sometimes better for Bane Act-only cases or for liberal damages juries. Removal is automatic for any case with a federal claim.

8. Build the damages case from intake. Treating providers, mental-health records, family declarations, employment records, day-in-the-life materials. Civil rights damages are story-driven.

9. Negotiate fee provisions explicitly. Settlement agreements should expressly address § 1988 and § 52.1(i) fees; Buckhannon "prevailing party" issues can otherwise eliminate fees in voluntary dismissals.

10. Understand indemnification. The real defendant in compensatory terms is the city or county, not the officer. The officer becomes the real defendant only on punitive damages — and that is where settlement leverage is generated.

This analysis is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Consult qualified counsel for advice specific to your situation. Attorney advertising.