Often, yes. For many corporate-owned facilities, the most effective way to force systemic change—such as better background checks or increased security—is to make the cost of neglect higher than the cost of proper care. Our goal is to ensure what happened to your...
Understaffing is the primary driver of institutional abuse. When there are not enough eyes on a unit, or when a single staff member is left alone with several high-needs residents, the "checks and balances" of a professional environment vanish. We look for patterns...
Sexual abuse often leaves deep psychological scars without leaving permanent physical marks. In Hayward facilities, we pursue claims based on the emotional trauma, the violation of dignity, and the facility’s failure to maintain a safe environment, regardless of...
The timeline varies, but we begin work immediately to preserve evidence, such as surveillance footage or internal shift logs, that facilities often destroy after a set period. While the legal process can take a year or more, our initial investigation starts the moment...
While the Hayward Police Department may pursue criminal charges against the individual abuser, our civil lawsuit focuses on the facility’s management. A civil case has a lower burden of proof than a criminal trial, and we can often secure a recovery even if the...
The Elder Abuse Act allows for remedies beyond simple medical bills. If we prove the facility acted with recklessness, malice, or fraud, the court can award compensation for pain and suffering (which survives the death of the victim) and order the facility to pay your...
Generally, yes. Nursing homes and assisted living facilities cannot escape liability by outsourcing care to third-party agencies, such as physical therapists or hospice providers. If a Hayward facility allowed a predator access to your loved one without proper vetting...
This is a common and offensive defense. Under California law, many residents in memory care or skilled nursing environments lack the legal capacity to provide informed consent due to cognitive impairment. Stebner, Gertler, & Guadagni aggressively challenges these...
We do not rely solely on verbal testimony. We build these cases through a combination of forensic medical evidence, behavioral change documentation, and facility records. We often uncover "incidents" buried in nursing notes or find that a facility was operating with...
Yes. Facilities have a non-delegable duty to protect residents from foreseeable harm. If a facility was aware—or should have been aware—of a resident’s history of aggressive or sexually inappropriate behavior and failed to implement adequate supervision or separation,...
