Strict liability
Liability without needing to prove carelessness. California applies it to dog bites, so you do not have to show the owner was careless or that the dog had bitten before.
Why it matters in a California small claims case
Small claims court is designed to be used without a lawyer, but it still runs on its own vocabulary, and a term you half-understand is a term that can cost you. "Strict liability" comes up often enough in California small claims practice to be worth knowing precisely rather than approximately.
If you are mid-dispute and trying to work out what to do next, the short version of the whole process is this: ask in writing, file SC-100, serve the defendant and prove it with SC-104, bring documents to the hearing, and if you win, collect using the post-judgment forms. Individuals can claim under $12,500; entities under $6,250.
Not legal advice
This is a plain-language definition for orientation, not advice about your case. Terms can carry a narrower meaning in a specific statute than they do in general use.