Legal Question in Personal Injury in California

The mechanic is not liable for negligence. The owner of a car has a duty to maintain the vehicle in a safe operating condition which is nondelegable (Maloney v. Rath (1968) 69 Cal. 2d 442, 448). Thus the fact a failure of the car was the result of a mechanic or other third party is no defense for the car owner.

Your Daughter can sue the car's owner (which the owner would give the complaint to the insurance company to defend) to recover her damages (assuming she doesn't own the vehicle) under a theory the owner would have negligently entrusted a defective vehicle to another driver. By the way if you own it, it is not unheard of family members suing each other when insurance companies are resistant to pay out.

Your daughter can most definitely sue the mechanic if it is proved that the repairs were done negligently. The mechanic owes a duty of care to those who will forseeably drive the vehicle, including the valet parking guy. She has to keep the car so an expert can inspect it. Also, the defendant's expert will want to inspect the car as well. So, if she gets rid of the car she'll be accused of destroying evidence. If she has serious injuries I am interested in the case.

IN order to make a claim against a mechanic for negligence, you will need to have the vehicle examined by a professional, certified mechanic qualified to testify in court, as an 'expert', and who will be prepared to say exactly how the brake job was faulty and caused the wreck. If you get that, then feel free to contact me for the legal help you'll need.