Sherman Oaks Personal Injury Lawyer

If a crash left you hurt in Sherman Oaks, the other driver's insurance company already has a plan for your claim. Moe Abdallah Law, P.C. works for you, not the adjuster. Attorney Moe Abdallah takes motor-vehicle injury cases only, so he knows how a wreck on the US-101, the I-405 or Ventura Boulevard gets argued and valued. This page is a local guide for anyone searching for a Sherman Oaks personal injury attorney. It covers the roads where cases start, who writes your police report, where you get treated, which court hears the case, how a city claim works, and the deadlines that can end a claim. The free review runs 24/7. Moe takes the calls himself, and you pay nothing unless he wins. Se habla Español.

How we help injured people in Sherman Oaks

We handle every motor-vehicle injury case type for Sherman Oaks residents, dealing with the insurers directly while you focus on recovery.

Where Sherman Oaks sits, and why that matters for a claim

Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood of the City of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley. The Los Angeles Almanac, reading 2024 Census estimates, puts it at about 68,380 residents. It is not its own city, so LAPD, the City Attorney and the City Clerk handle the public side of your case. The area sits where the US-101, the Ventura Freeway, meets the I-405, the San Diego Freeway, as it heads into the Sepulveda Pass. Surface traffic runs along Ventura Boulevard, Van Nuys Boulevard and Sepulveda Boulevard, with Magnolia Boulevard, Burbank Boulevard and Coldwater Canyon Avenue feeding the neighborhoods. Residents in Magnolia Woods and Chandler Estates, and visitors from Studio City, Encino and Van Nuys, all share those roads. That mix matters. Investigators treat a freeway crash, a left turn on Ventura, a pedestrian struck near a shop and a cyclist hit by a car door differently, even when the same insurers handle all of them. Moe first works out which road, which agency and which evidence your crash involves. Then he builds your claim around it.

Freeway and boulevard crashes: car, truck and motorcycle cases

Many Sherman Oaks injury claims begin on the US-101 or the I-405, or on the boulevards that connect to them. On the freeways, rear-end and sideswipe cases turn on speed, spacing and who changed lanes first. On Ventura, Van Nuys and Sepulveda, intersection crashes turn on the signal and on left turns, where a driver must yield to oncoming traffic close enough to be a hazard. Motorcyclists add a second fight. California has no statute banning lane splitting, but insurers still argue a rider moved unsafely, and a rider can be partly blamed and still recover. Truck and delivery-van cases move fast, because the carrier's driver logs and engine data can be overwritten. Whatever the vehicle, California's pure comparative negligence rule only reduces your award for partial fault. It does not erase it. Moe uses scene photos, traffic and business cameras, vehicle data and independent witnesses to push your percentage of fault down. One real firm result: $30,000 in policy limits after a head-on crash with fractures and surgery. Past results do not promise a similar outcome.

Pedestrians, cyclists and the hit-and-run problem

People on foot and on bikes have no vehicle around them, and in Sherman Oaks they share Ventura, Van Nuys and Sepulveda Boulevards with bus lines and freeway-bound traffic. One recent case shows the risk. Around 12:05 a.m. on October 19, 2025, a southbound black Tesla Model Y struck a 62-year-old man on Van Nuys Boulevard just south of Huston Street. LAPD's Valley Traffic Division investigated the fatal hit-and-run. That is one incident, not a ranking of the street. Still, it shows why you should plan for a hit-and-run here. Leaving the scene of an injury crash is a crime under Vehicle Code section 20001, and it also changes your civil claim. Your own uninsured motorist coverage can step in when the driver is never found, but only if the crash involved physical contact, you reported it to police within 24 hours, and you filed a sworn statement with your insurer within 30 days. Moe once won a $100,000 policy-limit UM recovery for a woman rear-ended by a driver who fled, after other firms turned her down. Call early so no deadline slips.

Uber, Lyft and drunk-driving crashes after dark

Rideshare crashes and drunk-driving crashes each raise their own coverage questions, so here are plain answers to both. Rideshare coverage depends on what the app was doing. With a passenger on board or a ride accepted, California requires $1,000,000 in coverage that pays first for death, injury and property damage. With the app on but no ride accepted, the minimum drops to $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident, plus $30,000 for property damage. Since January 1, 2026, the rideshare company's own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is $60,000 per person and $300,000 per incident, and it applies only while a passenger is in the car. Those figures are floors, not caps. Drunk-driving cases work differently. A DUI conviction does not decide your civil case, but the driver's conduct can support a punitive damages claim under Civil Code section 3294 if you prove malice by clear and convincing evidence. A felony conviction can also extend your filing time to one year after judgment. Moe saves the app trip record, the bar or restaurant receipts and the arrest report before they disappear.

Your police report, LAPD Valley Traffic and the first week of evidence

LAPD's Van Nuys Community Police Station, at 6240 Sylmar Ave. in Van Nuys, serves Sherman Oaks, and its number is 818-374-9500. The station page sends traffic matters to LAPD Valley Traffic Division and offers an Obtain a Traffic Collision Report link, so you can request your report online. Do that early, then compare the officer's version with your own photos. Reports sometimes get fault wrong, and a wrong box can follow you into settlement talks. Vehicle Code section 16000 requires you to report a crash to the DMV on form SR-1 within 10 days if anyone was hurt or damage passed $1,000. Photograph the scene, your injuries and every car. Write down witness names. Ask nearby shops on Ventura Boulevard whether their cameras caught the crash, because many systems overwrite video within days. Do not give the other driver's insurer a recorded statement before you have spoken with a lawyer. Moe sends preservation letters, requests footage and asks for vehicle data in the first days, while memories and recordings are still intact.

Hospitals near Sherman Oaks and the courthouse that hears your case

Care matters for your health and your claim. Sherman Oaks Hospital at 4929 Van Nuys Blvd. runs an emergency department and a stroke center, though we found no trauma designation for it. Encino Hospital Medical Center on Ventura Boulevard has 24-hour emergency care. Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center is an LA County stroke and STEMI receiving center. For the most serious injuries, Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills is a Level II trauma center, and Northridge Hospital Medical Center has a 24-hour emergency room. Gaps in treatment give insurers an argument that you were not really hurt, so follow your doctor's plan and keep every record. Sherman Oaks has no courthouse of its own. The LA Superior Court's Northwest District sits at Van Nuys Courthouse East, 6230 Sylmar Ave., which lists a Civil Unlimited clerk's office. Before filing, check the court's Filing Court Locator, because the right venue depends on the case. Moe's office is in downtown Los Angeles, and he handles the filings and court appearances for you.

Deadlines, city claims, Metro buses and how Moe handles a case

In most cases you have two years from the crash to sue a private driver or company under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. Claims against a public entity run on a much shorter clock. For the City of Los Angeles, you must present a written claim within six months under Government Code section 911.2. File it with the Office of the City Clerk, through the online Claim for Damages portal or at 200 N. Spring St., Room 395, City Hall. They do not accept email or fax. If the city rejects the claim in writing, you then have six months to sue under section 945.6. Claims against LA County or LA Metro go to those agencies instead. Metro buses, including Lines 233, 234, 761 and 240, run on Van Nuys, Sepulveda and Ventura Boulevards, so this comes up here. A late-claim application is possible within one year, but it is not certain. Moe Abdallah Law, P.C. holds a 5.0-star Google rating and works on contingency. The consultation is free, you owe no fee unless Moe wins, and he keeps you updated by call and text. Call (323) 716-1992.

Frequently Asked Questions