The basic two-year rule
In California, most personal injury lawsuits must be filed within two years of the date you were injured (Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1). That covers the ordinary cases: traffic collisions, slip and falls, dog bites, assault claims, most product injuries.
“Filed” means the complaint is actually on file with the court. Not sent to the insurer, not discussed with a lawyer, not agreed in principle with the other side. Filed.
When the clock starts
Usually the date of the injury. The complication is injuries you could not reasonably have known about at the time — the discovery rule postpones the start date until you discover, or have reason to discover, the injury and its likely cause (Fox v. Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. (2005) 35 Cal.4th 797).
This matters most for toxic exposure, surgical complications and some product cases. It matters very little for a rear-end collision, where you knew on the day.
Suing a government entity: six months
This deadline is easy to miss. If your claim is against a city, county, school district, transit agency or the State of California, you must first present a written government claim within six months of the incident (Government Code § 911.2). If the entity rejects the claim and sends written notice, you generally have six months from the date that notice is mailed or delivered to file suit; if no proper notice is sent, the limit is generally two years from the incident (Government Code § 945.6).
A bus, a pothole, a public hospital, a police interaction, a slip in a county building — all of these can put you on the six-month track, and it is easy not to realize the defendant is a public entity until months have passed. If you miss the six months, a written application for leave to present a late claim can be made within one year of the incident, but it is granted only on limited grounds (Government Code §§ 911.4, 911.6).
What pauses the clock
Four situations are worth knowing by name — though not all of them work the way people expect.
Other claim types have their own clocks
Medical malpractice, property damage, contracts, defamation and wrongful death all run on different clocks from ordinary personal injury — see the table below. If the defendant is a public entity, the six-month government claim requirement applies on top of these.
Working out your own date
A short, practical sequence for narrowing down your own deadline before you talk to anyone.
Settlement talks do not extend the deadline
Negotiating with an adjuster does not stop the clock. If you do not have a lawyer, California regulations require the insurer to give you written notice of a statute of limitations it may rely on at least 60 days before it expires (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 10, § 2695.7(f)) — but that notice does not extend the deadline. If it passes while you are negotiating, the claim is generally gone and your leverage goes with it.
| Who you are suing | First step | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Private person or business | File complaint in court | 2 years from injury (CCP § 335.1) |
| City of Los Angeles | Written claim filed with the City Clerk | 6 months from the incident (Gov. Code § 911.2) |
| LA County | Written claim to the Executive Officer, Board of Supervisors | 6 months from the incident |
| LA Metro | Written claim on Metro's claim form | 6 months from the incident |
| School district | Written claim with the district | 6 months from the incident |
| State of California | Claim with the Dept. of General Services Government Claims Program ($25 fee or fee waiver) | 6 months from the incident |
| Claim | Deadline | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Personal injury (general) | 2 years | The default (CCP § 335.1) |
| Medical malpractice | 1 year from discovery, 3 years from injury | Whichever comes first; longer only for fraud, intentional concealment or a foreign body left in the body; separate rules for minors (CCP § 340.5) |
| Property damage only | 3 years | e.g. vehicle damage with no injury (CCP § 338) |
| Written contract | 4 years | CCP § 337 |
| Oral contract | 2 years | CCP § 339 |
| Defamation | 1 year | CCP § 340(c) |
| Wrongful death | 2 years from date of death | Not date of injury (CCP § 335.1) |
The injured person was under 18
The two years generally does not begin until their eighteenth birthday (CCP § 352). This does not apply to claims against public entities, where the six-month claim rule still governs (with limited late-claim relief for minors, Government Code § 911.6), and medical malpractice claims by minors have their own limits (CCP § 340.5).
The injured person lacked legal capacity
Time can be suspended while the injured person lacks the legal capacity to make decisions (CCP § 352). This is fact-specific and often disputed, and it does not apply to claims against public entities.
The defendant left California
A statute from 1872 says time the defendant spends out of state is not counted (CCP § 351), but a California appeals court has held that rule unconstitutional under the federal Commerce Clause (Heritage Marketing & Ins. Services v. Chrustawka (2008) 160 Cal.App.4th 754). Do not count on it.
The injury could not reasonably have been discovered
The discovery rule above. Do not assume it applies to you — once you have reason to suspect the injury and its cause, you are expected to investigate, and “I did not know I could sue” is not discovery.
Common questions
Does reporting to my insurance stop the clock?
What if I only discovered the injury much later?
Can the deadline be extended by agreement?
I think my deadline has already passed. Is it worth calling anyone?
Official sources
- CCP § 335.1 (2-year PI)
- Gov. Code § 911.2 (6-month claim; $25 DGS fee)
- Gov. Code § 945.6 (suit after rejection)
- Gov. Code § 911.4 (late claim application)
- Gov. Code § 911.6 (grounds for late claim)
- CCP § 352 (minority/incapacity tolling; public-entity exception)
About this guide
Last reviewed September 2026 by the LA Law Hub editorial team against the official sources listed above. Laws, court rules, fees and local ordinances change, and how they apply depends on facts this guide cannot know. LA Law Hub is not a law firm. This guide is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice about your own situation, speak with a lawyer licensed in California.
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