What follows are our general observations and opinions. This is not legal advice, it is not a definitive statement of California law, and every situation depends on its own facts.
The general deadline for filing a personal injury lawsuit in California is two years from the date of injury, under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 as we read it. That is the number most people find, and for a straightforward collision between two private drivers it is usually the right one.
The reason we treat this as a topic worth writing about rather than a one-line answer is that the general rule is not the rule that ends most cases. Claims are lost far more often to a shorter deadline sitting underneath the two-year one — most commonly the government claim requirement, which can expire in six months while the injured person is still in treatment and has no idea a clock is running.
The Deadlines That Sit Underneath the Two Years
Several categories carry their own timing, and the differences are not intuitive:
- Claims against a public entity. Where a city, county, transit agency, school district or the state is responsible, our reading is that a written claim generally must be presented to the entity within six months for personal injury, before any lawsuit is filed, with a further short window to sue after the claim is rejected. Missing the claim step can end the case regardless of how much of the two years remains.
- Medical malpractice. A different framework applies, generally running from injury or from when the injury reasonably should have been discovered, with an overall outer limit — and separate notice requirements before filing.
- Claims involving a minor. The running of the limitations period is generally tolled during minority, but our understanding is that the government claim requirement is not suspended in the same way, which catches families out.
- Wrongful death. The period generally runs from the date of death rather than the date of the underlying injury, which can be considerably later.
- Property damage from the same incident carries its own period, distinct from the injury claim.
Discovery, and Why It Helps Less Often Than People Hope
The delayed discovery principle can postpone the start of the clock where an injury or its cause could not reasonably have been known at the time. It genuinely matters in cases involving latent conditions or exposure over time.
We would be candid that it helps less often than clients expect in ordinary injury cases. Where someone knew they were hurt on the day of the accident, the argument that the claim was undiscoverable is difficult, even if the full extent of the injury only became clear months later. Our view is that discovery is a doctrine to plead where it genuinely applies, not a reason to relax about a date.
What Does Not Stop the Clock
This is where we see the most damage done, because the things that feel like progress are usually not.
Negotiating with an insurance adjuster does not extend the deadline. Neither does an adjuster saying the file is open, that they are waiting on records, or that they will “get to it once treatment finishes”. An insurer is under no obligation to remind a claimant that a limitations period is about to expire, and in our experience will not. Filing a claim with an insurer is not filing a lawsuit, and the two should never be confused.
Ongoing medical treatment does not extend it either. There is a real tension here, because settling before the medical picture is stable is usually a bad idea — but the answer to that tension is to file suit and continue treating, not to let the date pass while waiting for a final prognosis.
What Can Extend It
Some circumstances do toll the period: the defendant being absent from the state for a time, the claimant’s minority in the ordinary civil claim, and certain periods of incapacity. A written tolling agreement between the parties is also possible, though we would want it signed by someone with authority and would not rely on an adjuster’s verbal assurance that one is coming.
Our general approach is to treat every one of these as an argument we might have to make rather than a date we can count on. If the case can be filed inside the plain deadline, we would rather file it than litigate whether an exception applies.
What We Would Do Early
Identify every potentially responsible party in the first weeks, not the last. The reason is the public entity problem: a pothole, a badly designed intersection, a transit bus, a tree root lifting a sidewalk, a county vehicle. If any thread leads to a public entity, a six-month clock is running from the date of injury and the two-year figure is irrelevant. Where there is doubt, our view is that presenting a claim is cheaper than being wrong about whether one was needed.
Then preserve the evidence that will not survive the wait — scene photographs, witness contact details, vehicle data, and the medical record of a prompt evaluation.
Fees
We handle personal injury matters on a recovery basis: our fee comes out of any recovery rather than being paid up front, costs are handled separately, and the arrangement is set out in a written fee agreement before we begin. No outcome is guaranteed, and past results do not predict future results.
If you are unsure which deadline applies to your situation — and particularly if a city, county or transit agency might be involved — that is worth a conversation sooner rather than later. Call us at (310) 556-9692.
Related reading: our personal injury resource page, along with the six-month claim deadline for suing a city or public agency — the deadline that ends the most cases; who is responsible for a Los Angeles sidewalk injury — where the public entity question comes up constantly; and how limitations periods work on a mold claim.
This article reflects our general views and opinions rather than legal advice, and it is not a definitive statement of California law. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and our firm. Every matter turns on its own facts, and we would encourage you to speak with a lawyer about yours.
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