Sun Valley runs on heavy vehicles. Recycling yards, material suppliers and industrial businesses line the corridors along San Fernando Road, and the trucks serving them use Sunland Boulevard, Glenoaks Boulevard, Vineland Avenue and Lankershim Boulevard to reach the 5, the 170 and the 210. Loaded trucks need far more distance to stop than the traffic around them, their blind spots swallow a small car or a motorcycle, and they make wide turns across lanes that drivers behind them do not expect. Add commuter traffic cutting through and the result is a pattern of collisions heavier than the same crash would be a few miles away.
Manoukian Law Firm is about twenty-five minutes northwest, on Topanga Canyon Boulevard in Chatsworth. Manoukian Law Firm takes each case from the first call through resolution and prepares every file as though it will be tried. An attorney is on the case from the first call, and the file stays with the firm from start to finish.
What to do after an injury in Sun Valley
- Get examined the same day. A heavy vehicle transfers more force than the damage suggests, and symptoms often appear the next morning.
- Confirm which agency responded, LAPD or CHP, and write down the report number before you leave.
- Photograph the vehicles, the debris, the lane markings, and the company name, DOT number and plate on any commercial vehicle.
- Ask in writing that week for video and carrier records to be preserved, including yard cameras, dashcams and logging data.
- Collect witness names and phone numbers at the scene, including workers at nearby businesses.
- If a public agency, a public vehicle or a broken sidewalk or roadway was involved, note it immediately. The six-month claim rule moves quickly.
- File a DMV form SR-1 within ten days if anyone was injured or property damage exceeded $1,000, as Vehicle Code 16000 requires.
- Speak with an attorney before giving a recorded statement to any insurance company.
Injury cases we handle in Sun Valley
Truck accident claims are central here. A commercial case opens up the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations: hours of service limits, maintenance and inspection history, load securement, and electronic logging device data that a carrier is only required to retain for a limited period. Commercial policies generally carry higher limits than a private auto policy, and the carrier’s own records often explain the collision better than anything at the scene. A written preservation demand goes out early.
Car accident claims on Sunland and Glenoaks usually involve a turn across traffic, a lane change beside a large vehicle, or an entry from a yard driveway. California follows pure comparative negligence under Li v. Yellow Cab, so a share of responsibility reduces a recovery rather than barring it.
Motorcycle accident claims start from the fact that lane splitting is lawful under Vehicle Code 21658.1, which matters where traffic stacks behind slow trucks. Bicycle accident claims follow Vehicle Code 21200, giving riders the rights and duties of drivers, and Vehicle Code 21760, the three-foot passing rule, which is difficult to satisfy on a narrow industrial street.
Pedestrian accident cases rely on Vehicle Code 21950, which requires drivers to yield in marked and unmarked crosswalks. Sidewalks are uneven along parts of these corridors and signals are far apart, so people walking to work end up in the roadway. Where a public sidewalk defect is involved, a sidewalk injury claim against a public entity follows a much shorter path than an ordinary claim.
Away from the road, slip and fall claims in the markets and parking lots along San Fernando Road are decided on notice: whether the owner knew or should have known about the hazard, and whether it was repaired or warned about, under the duty of care described in Rowland v. Christian. In the most serious cases, a wrongful death claim under Code of Civil Procedure 377.60 allows a spouse, domestic partner, children and certain dependents to bring a claim.
Where Sun Valley cases are handled
Collisions on Sun Valley surface streets are generally reported by the LAPD Foothill Division. Crashes on the 5, the 170 and the 210 are usually investigated by the California Highway Patrol. The two agencies release reports on different timelines, and each is requested separately.
Paramedics, not the patient, choose the receiving hospital. Whatever the destination, keep every discharge instruction, imaging order and billing statement. Under Howell v. Hamilton Meats, recoverable medical damages are the amounts actually paid or owed, which makes the billing record part of the evidence.
If a claim cannot be resolved and a lawsuit becomes necessary, Sun Valley cases go to the Los Angeles Superior Court, which serves the whole county. Unlimited personal injury lawsuits are filed in the court’s Central District at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse downtown under Local Rule 2.3, and the court may later transfer a case to a district courthouse such as Chatsworth or Van Nuys East. The San Fernando Courthouse handles traffic, criminal, family and small claims matters, not injury suits.
Why work with Manoukian Law Firm
Manoukian Law Firm was founded by Vaheh Manoukian, a graduate of the USC Gould School of Law and UCLA who handled depositions and trials at a larger firm before opening his own. The firm belongs to the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles and Consumer Attorneys of California, its founding attorney was selected to the Super Lawyers Rising Stars list for 2027.
The practical difference is that your calls are returned by the person who knows the file. The firm works in Spanish as well as English and Armenian, and calls are returned the same day. Meetings can happen at the Chatsworth office, in the hospital, or by phone and video. Consultations are free, the firm works on a contingency fee, and there is no fee unless we win. More background is on the about page, and past matters appear on the case results page. Neighboring areas are covered on the Pacoima and North Hollywood pages.
Case results
Our client suffered catastrophic injuries after being struck by a commercial delivery driver who was on the job.
Our client developed ongoing neck pain after a multi-vehicle rear-end collision on the highway, requiring pain-management treatment. The case resolved for $400,000.
The other side valued our client's injuries at $5,000 to $10,000 and called it a “soft impact.” Our client was the third car struck in a chain-reaction collision. We filed suit and recovered $275,000.
Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Frequently asked questions
A truck from a local yard hit my car. Who is responsible?
Possibly more than the driver. Depending on the facts, the trucking company, the business that loaded the vehicle, a maintenance contractor or the owner of the tractor or trailer may share responsibility, and each may carry separate coverage. Sorting that out starts with the carrier’s records.
The truck left before police arrived. Is the case over?
Not necessarily. Industrial corridors carry a high density of cameras on yards, businesses and other vehicles, and dispatch and weigh records can place a specific truck at a location and time. That evidence is time-sensitive, so preservation requests go out as soon as the sources are identified.
I was hurt on a broken public sidewalk. What is the deadline?
Claims against a public entity run on a short clock. A written government claim is generally due within six months under Government Code 911.2, rather than the two years that applies to most claims under Code of Civil Procedure 335.1.
What does a case like this cost me?
Nothing up front. The consultation is free whether or not you hire the firm, and you can reach it through the contact page.
If you were injured in Sun Valley, call (818) 818-5031 for a free consultation. The consultation is free, and there is no fee unless the firm recovers for you.
