This article provides general information and recommendations, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws, deadlines, policy terms, and available options depend on the facts. Readers may wish to consult a qualified attorney about their circumstances.
When you are in pain, missing work and caring for your family, legal deadlines may not feel urgent. Some California deadlines arrive sooner than people expect. You do not need to calculate every rule yourself, but you should have the timing reviewed promptly.
For covered personal-injury and wrongful-death actions, California Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 provides a two-year period. For many ordinary accident claims, the injury date is the starting point. That is not a universal deadline calculator. The accrual date, type of claim, identity of the defendant and other statutes can change the result. A covered claim involving a California state or local public entity may require a separate claim presentation no later than six months after accrual.
Does the two-year rule apply to every injury claim?
California Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 states that an action for assault, battery, injury to a person or death caused by another’s wrongful act or neglect must be brought within two years. Section 312 provides the general framework: civil actions must be started within the prescribed period after the cause of action accrues, unless a different statute applies.
The California Courts self-help guide to statutes of limitations describes two years from injury as the common personal-injury deadline. It also warns that these questions are fact-specific and can be hard to calculate. Delayed discovery, tolling and other claim-specific rules may affect some cases.
It is risky to assume that every injury claim expires exactly two years after the incident or to wait until the date believed to be the deadline. A lawyer needs to know what happened, when important facts became known, who may be responsible and which claims may apply before giving a case-specific answer.
A public-entity claim may have a much earlier step
California Government Code section 911.2 says that a claim relating to death, personal injury or injury to personal property must be presented no later than six months after accrual when the statutory claim-presentation process applies.
This issue deserves immediate attention if a California state or local public entity, or a covered public employee, may be involved. That possibility can arise with a publicly owned vehicle, public transit operation, public property or an alleged dangerous condition of property under public control. A government-sounding name on a bus, hospital, school, roadway or contractor does not answer the question by itself. Ownership, control, employment, the type of claim and statutory exceptions all matter.
The six-month presentation period is not simply a shorter version of the ordinary lawsuit deadline. It can be a separate step that must happen before suit.
Presenting a claim is not filing a lawsuit
Government Code section 945.4 generally prevents a damages suit on a claim subject to the Government Claims Act until the written claim has been presented and acted upon or deemed rejected, subject to statutory exceptions.
What happens after a rejection also requires care. If a rejection notice complies with Government Code section 913, it warns that, subject to exceptions, the claimant has six months from personal delivery or mailing to file a court action. Section 945.6 contains the corresponding lawsuit deadlines and a different rule when compliant written notice is not given.
Missing the first presentation period does not automatically extend it. Section 911.4 provides a late-claim application process that generally must begin within a reasonable time not exceeding one year after accrual, with specific statutory rules. If the application is denied, section 946.6 provides a separate court-petition process and deadline.
Because these procedures have exceptions and detailed requirements, seek advice now rather than relying on an online date calculation.
City of Los Angeles and Metro use different filing routes
The City Clerk’s Claim for Damage page lists an online portal, a signed form mailed to the Clerk, and in-person filing. It states that emailed or faxed claims are not accepted. Its instructions for sending supporting documents after filing should not be confused with instructions for presenting the initial claim.
LA Metro’s Legal Services page provides a different form and accepts completed claims only in person or by mail. Metro expressly says emailed claims will be rejected. First confirm which entity may be involved, then use that entity’s current instructions and keep proof of submission. A shared Los Angeles location does not make the City and Metro the same recipient.
Other rules may change the date
The ordinary two-year period may not control when a different statute governs the claim, the cause of action accrued on another date, or a statute pauses, shortens or otherwise changes the limitations period. A federal administrative process or federal cause of action may have its own rules. Insurance claims may also carry separate policy or statutory notice, demand or arbitration conditions.
Those categories are warnings, not answers for a particular case. California UM and UIM coverage, for example, raises policy-specific questions that are different from the deadline to file a civil lawsuit. Death-related claims can also involve separate questions about who may bring the action; see who can file a California wrongful-death claim.
A Providence deadline review starts with identities, not a date
Providence first identifies the event, every potentially responsible person or entity, the date important facts became known, and any public involvement. A City of Los Angeles department, Los Angeles County, Metro, and Caltrans are separate entities with different procedures. That is why a general “two years” answer is not enough for a specific Los Angeles case. The broader California personal injury guide and the firm’s pages for car accidents and unsafe-property injuries provide additional general information when those facts apply.
Evidence has its own clock
A filing deadline does not preserve proof. A business or agency may overwrite video under its own retention practices. A damaged vehicle may be repaired or sold. Witness contact information can go stale, and electronic vehicle or app data may not exist or remain available.
A prompt, targeted preservation request may help protect identified evidence controlled by the recipient. It cannot guarantee that the evidence exists or will be preserved. Our evidence preservation checklist shows how saving proof differs from filing a legal claim.
Which dates and documents may help a deadline review?
The following information may make a deadline review more useful without requiring the reader to resolve the legal issues independently:
1. The incident date and dates when important facts first became known.
2. The people, businesses, and possible government entities involved.
3. Available reports, photographs, letters, policies, claim notices, and medical records.
4. Consider reviewing any rejection, denial, release, or insurer request promptly after it arrives.
5. Consider obtaining clarification about whom and what a release covers before signing it.
6. Obtaining advice well before a possible deadline may help avoid an incorrect calculation.
If time may be short, it may be prudent to obtain case-specific advice promptly rather than rely on this article. The California personal injury guide can explain the broader process, but only a review of the actual facts and documents can address a specific deadline.
Dates and document sources for a deadline review
Use this paper worksheet to show a lawyer where each date came from. Do not add months or years to produce your own filing date. If timing may be close, seek advice promptly rather than waiting to complete every row.
| Event or document | Date or “unknown” | Source or file location |
|---|---|---|
| Incident | ||
| Important fact first became known: | ||
| Claim submitted, if any; recipient: | ||
| Rejection or denial letter | ||
| Insurer request or notice |
People, businesses or possible public entities named in the records:
Uncertainty to explain during review:
For a letter, distinguish the date printed on it from when you received it; note both if known. Keep the letter itself and any proof of submission with this sheet. If dates conflict, show the conflicting records rather than choosing one without explanation.
This worksheet records facts for review. It does not decide accrual, whether an exception applies, which entity is responsible or whether a claim was properly presented. A report, claim presentation and lawsuit are different items. Leave those distinctions for case-specific review when uncertain.
Sources and references
Let us help you protect your time and your choices
Providence Trial Lawyers can review potential timing issues, identify possible public-entity concerns and discuss steps that may help preserve available evidence. That review cannot promise that a claim is timely or that evidence can be recovered, but it can give you a clearer path forward.
Call 213-380-5858 for a free consultation. Providence is available 24/7, especially when a deadline is worrying you and your family. No fee unless we win.
